It's not uncommon for Camp Randall Stadium to be filled on a chilly Saturday afternoon, as it will this weekend.
What will be uncommon, though, what's happening on the field.
Instead of 70,000 red-clad fans urging the Badgers football team on to victory, the crowd will be treated to a pair of hockey games as part of the Culver's Camp Randall Hockey Classic.
The UW women take the ice first, for a 3 p.m. game against conference rival Bemidji State. That will be followed by a non-conference (for hockey) showdown between No. 3 Wisconsin and Big Ten rival Michigan -- ranked No. 19.
This will be the first time the Wisconsin women have played an outdoor game and the fourth for the men, who three times played outside between 1921 and 1935, losing all three times.
The hockey program was resurrected in 1963 but didn't skate outdoors again until a 2006 contest against Ohio State at Lambeau Field. Wisconsin won, 4-2, and went on to win a national championship later that season.
To acclimate themselves to playing outdoors, the Badgers took to a frozen pond at Madison's Elver Park this week and Wednesday, stepped onto the Camp Randall ice for the first time.
Rink construction began Jan. 23. Both Eaves and DeKeyser gave the ice surface, installed by Texas-based Ice Rink Events, a good review.
The weather is expected to be ideal Saturday, with forecasts calling for cloudy skies temperatures around 27 degrees.
"I would say right around brisk would be perfect. Anywhere from 25-freezing would be ideal for me," says senior captian Ben Street, a native of British Columbia.
The game will be broadcast by the Big Ten Network, though tickets are still available.
And, for those curious, the football tradition of "Jump Around" will take place.
Wave game cancelled: A blizzard expected to dump as much as two feet of snow on the East Coast has caused the Wave's Saturday game at Philadelphia to be postponed.
Here's a look at other events this weekend involving local teams:
FRIDAY
COLLEGE HOCKEY
Concordia Univeristy-Wisconsin hosts MSOE at the Bradley Center at 3:30 p.m. Tickets are $11 and include admission to that night's Admirals game.
cuwfalcons.com
BADGERS AND ADMIRALS
The West Division-leading Admrials take on Houston at 7:30 p.m. The first 3,500 fans get a goalie glove oven mitt, courtesy of Palermo's Pizza and the Univeristy of Wisconsin band will be on-hand, playing during the game and performing a special "Fourth Period" following. Call (414) 227-0550 for tickets.
milwaukeeadmirals.com
IN THE BIG APPLE
The Bucks make their first trip of the season to New York to face the Knicks at 6:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast, as always, by FS Wisconsin.
bucks.com
SATURDAY
EAST COAST TRIP
Marquette is out east for an 11 a.m. matchup with Providence. Earlier this season, Marquette beat the Friars by 30 points at the Bradley Center. Catch the game on WMLW-TV. The women's team, meanwhile, is in Upstate New York to face Syracuse at noon.
gomarquette.com
WOLVERINE!
It's a rematch for the Badgers, who travel to Ann Arbor to face Michigan at 3 p.m. CBS (WDJT-TV) will carry the game nationally.
uwbadgers.com
JUST UP I-43
It's an in-state rematch for UWM, which travels north to face UW-Green Bay in a Horizon League showdown. The Panther women are on the road, too, taking on Detroit in Motown.
uwmpanthers.com
BOBBLE BOBBLE
Half-price tickets and a Brandon Jennings bobblehead? You can't lose The Bucks take on the Indiana Pacers at 7:30, with the Jennings' bobbles sure to go fast.
bucks.com
SUNDAY
BADGER WOMEN
Avoid Super Bowl pregame coverage by watchng the Wisconsin women take on Purdue on the Big Ten Network. Plus, women's hockey takes on Bemidji State at 2 p.m.
http://uwbadgers.com
