Editor’s note: Herald writer Elliott Pratt is manning the conditions this weekend and heading to Detroit on the student bus to watch the Toppers in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl. Here’s the first installment of his journey.

Before the sun could rise, Hilltopper faithful were already up and running. A convoy of 13 buses departed from WKU South Campus en route to Detroit to cheer on the WKU football team in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl against Central Michigan.

Forecasts of heavy snow did not damper the spirits of WKU fans. The caravan made three stops on the way up to Piqua, Ohio, one of which was unscheduled. Those delays have placed us between 45 minutes to an hour behind schedule.

Once we hit Dayton, traffic on I-65 moved no faster than 50mph, and it doesn’t appear to be moving any quicker until we arrive to northern Ohio.

Elizabethtown freshman Tyler Brandenburg says the weather hasn’t been great, but he’s still looking forward to finally making it to Detroit.

“I’m just ready to get off this bus and bad weather and get to the stadium,” Brandenburg said. “It should be a great game.”

As of 2 p.m., we’re about three hours away from Detroit, which puts a strain on arriving in time for the WKU pep rally, scheduled for 5:30 p.m.

Topkinsville freshman Evan Brown said he’s not concerned with making it to the rally.

“We’re moving at, like, 30mph now,” Brown said on the bus after the lunch break. “As long as we’re there by kickoff, I’ll be happy.”