re: tailgating advice for Tennessee game.

Unfortunately, tailgating for Vanderbilt games is a rather decentralized and lackluster affair. I'm not sure what to suggest for someone who does not know anyone else going to the game. As for the night before, downtown Nashville offers a plethora of options depending on what you want to do, especially with a young teenager. The typical view of Nashville comes from places like Rippy's and Tootsie's which are on Broadway running from 4th Avenue down towards 1st Avenue and the Cumberland River. Others are probably better equipped to suggest local places, but if you don't mind being in a mixture of bar, live music menu, and barbecue joint, I'm a big fan of Rippy's. Of course, the Nashville Predators (NHL team) are playing at 5 CT on Friday night, so downtown parking will be expensive. Your best bet if you want to go to the hockey game or just experience Broadway is to park across the Cumberland River at Nissan Stadium's Lot R (free) and walk across the pedestrian bridge. The walk across the bridge will give you a great view of downtown. It is about 15 minutes across the bridge to Bridgestone or Rippy's.