Indiana v. Virginia to play in prime time on 9/10.

My main advice would be that if you are thinking about it, reserve a hotel room ASAP. IU football isn’t a huge draw, but Bloomington is a fairly small town considering the size of the university. Rooms at the on-campus Indiana Memorial Union hotel are a tough get, but you might consider the Courtyard or the Hilton Garden Inn downtown. Both would be within walking distance of the bars (the main attractions are on Kirkwood between College and the main entrance to the university, and north from there on Walnut Street), and would be a long but doable walk to the stadium if you were so inclined. Staying in Indianapolis is an option as well, but traffic can be pretty rough after a night game. Again, as a small town, Bloomington’s infrastructure isn’t well-suited to a football crowd.

As for the bars, Nick’s English Hut is the classic IU bar, but there are plenty of other spots, depending on what you want—Kilroy’s, Kilroy’s Sports, and Upstairs Pub are typical college bars; the Bluebird has live music; the Irish Lion is a more subdued pub with great food.

All in all, I would recommend it. I’m biased, but I think Bloomington is one of the best college towns around, even considering that you will be measuring it against Charlottesville, which is high on my list of places to visit. Considering Indiana’s reputation as nothing but cornfields, most visitors are pleasantly surprised by Bloomington’s hilly environs.