Madison is an isthmus city — the capitol and the campus squeezed between two lakes — and on game day the entire strip between them turns cardinal red. The tailgates run on brats, cheese curds, and a local ethic that treats a 11 a.m. kickoff as no obstacle whatsoever to a full day's celebration.
The Mascot
Bucky Badger is a badger in a striped sweater with a permanent scowl and a genuinely storied pushup habit after scores. Wisconsin's badger identity goes back to the state's 1840s lead miners, who dug into hillsides for shelter like badgers — the football mascot inherited a state nickname that predates football itself.
The Saturday
Between the third and fourth quarters at Camp Randall Stadium, House of Pain's 'Jump Around' plays and 80,000 people jump in unison until the stadium's engineering becomes a topic of casual conversation. It started in 1998 and is now non-negotiable — an athletic department once tried to skip it and reversed course within a week after the outcry. The Fifth Quarter afterward, when the band stays and plays while the crowd polkas, means Madison parties longer after the game than most towns do during it.
What to Wear
Our vintage Madison line is hand-drawn badger art in cardinal red on garment-dyed tees and embroidered caps — sturdy enough to jump around in, classic enough for the Fifth Quarter polka. Start with all Madison gear.