I still have my blackout towel too.
Not to bring up bad memories, but the TCU game in 2010 had a similar feeling before kickoff. Both teams were in the top 10. I believe college gameday was in town as well. The entire stadium was packed and buzzing BEFORE kickoff. Come to think of it, that may be one of only a hand full of times I’ve ever witnessed that. It felt like big time college football. Up until about halfway through the first quarter when we got our asses handed to us.