Brooks was a big hit in Gainesville Saturday night.

As country music legend Garth Brooks strutted on stage Saturday night in Gainesville, more than 75,000 fans erupted in a thunderous cheer.

The Swamp hadn’t heard a sound like it since October, when Florida defensive back Brad Stewart picked off a pass thrown by LSU quarterback Joe Burrows, returned it for a touchdown, and sealed a win for UF.

But this cheer, let out by less folks than that day in October, might have had a little more of a twang to it.

When Brooks opened with “All Day Long,” his loyal fans let him know his friends in low places had made it to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

“Hello Gator Nation!” Brooks screamed, wearing a black button-up shirt, blue jeans and a black cowboy hat. “I hope you came here to listen to some by-God country music!”

Saturday’s performance was Brooks’ third stop on The Garth Brooks Stadium Tour.

The 12-time CMA-AMC Entertainer of the Year announced in November Ben Hill Griffin Stadium as one of the stadium tour’s stops. Saturday’s sold-out crowd was the first concert that UF’s football stadium has hosted since Nov. 27, 1994, when the Rolling Stones visited Gainesville as part of its Voodoo Lounge Tour.

Brooks in The Swamp had fans singing along to his top hits, dancing and throwing down a few beers in the process.

Brooks followed his opener with “Rodeo” and “Two of a Kind Working on a Full House.”

The unwavering sound of wailing drink salesmen could be heard as fans made their way into the stadium.

“Cold beer. No line. Coors Light. Bud Light,” one salesman said, gathering some attention.

His calls repeated and fans came. But the allure of overpriced beer did not match the allure of Brooks in Gainesville.

Fans from across the city and country showed up Saturday to see Brooks.

Bubba Strauss, of Cleveland, Ohio, and Kim Segers, of Bowling Green, Kentucky, showed up about 1:30 p.m. When a reporter arrived to their tailgate, a few beers had already been popped open.

Saturday’s concert marked Strauss’ 56th Brooks concert and Segers’ 66th.

“It’s the electricity of every single show,” Strauss said. “In every city, every town, it’s a different high — a different euphoria. When you get there, you don’t know what to expect. But Garth brings that energy to every show.”

The men both said it was hard to choose a favorite Brooks song, but if they had to choose, Strauss said it’d be “The Dance.” Seger said his favorites are “Alabama Clay” or “Guy Goin’ Nowhere.”

“He doesn’t sing ‘Guy Goin’ Nowhere’ that much but both of those songs get me every time,” Segers said.

″(The Dance) is what really helped me get through some tough times,” Strauss said. “When I hear that I practically cry every time.”

Later, 63-year-old Valerie Woodcock, a self-proclaimed “Garthoholic,” said the concert would be her 17th Brooks concert. Woodcock pointed out that “anything with the number 7″ was special to her, alluding to Brooks’ Feb. 7 birthday.

“You can always guess our passwords,” she said while chuckling. “It’s always something Garth.”

“If it was James Taylor, yeah, I could see it,” he said. “You don’t know why but you’re thankful.”

Around campus Saturday, UF looked more like a college football game day rather than a concert. Fans turned into tailgaters across campus, playing corn hole, grilling burgers, and drinking a few — or many — beers.

In fact, in front of UF’s stadium was country music star and Brooks’ wife Trisha Yearwood’s tailgate party.

Fans ate pork sliders and had drinks before the show. Yearwood, who has put out three cookbooks, put on a cooking demonstration.

Plaid shirts, blue jeans, and camouflage hats were the chosen attire for many men. At least two men wore American flag shirts.

Many women wore long sleeves and blue jeans, while others wore crop tops and sundresses — windy, chilly weather doing them no favors.

Country star Chris Young opened up for Brooks at 7:43 p.m., almost 45 minutes after the concert’s scheduled start time.

The delay caused some fans to become impatient. New fans, many complaining about a lack of parking, trickled in even as Young started singing his hit “Losing Sleep.”

As Young finished his 30-minute set, it was announced over speakers that Brooks’ concert would start in five minutes.

Brooks’ countdown clock got to about three minutes and fans near the stage started hyping up fans in the bleachers. The crowd started doing a collective Gator Chomp.

The clock ticked down and the stadium grew louder, peaking in volume when Brooks came out on stage.

In a special treat, Brooks sang Gainesville legend Tom Petty’s “Won’t Back Down,” which plays at the start of the fourth quarter during UF football games.

“I can mess up my songs,” he told media members. “But I can’t mess up other people’s songs.”

After surprising the crowd, it seems Brooks was just keeping that trick hidden up his sleeve.

Brooks’ first stadium tour performance was at the Dome of Americas in St. Louis March 9, then State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on March 23. Brooks will perform at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh on May 18, U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 3, and the Denver Broncos’ Mile High Stadium June 8.

Brooks recently announced added a June 29 stadium performance at The University of Oregon’s Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon.

Brooks, an Oklahoma native, told The Sun before the show he had enjoyed preparing for a performance in Gainesville because the city reminded him of home.

“What I love about Gainesville is it’s kind in its own area, when compared to the other bigger cities. Kind of like Stillwater, where Oklahoma State (University) is. And what that built for us is a us against the world (mentality). That’s what I feel here,” Brooks said. “The people that are coming tonight are the people I was raised around.”

As of press time, Brooks’ concert was still on.

He told The Sun he might have to try out Leonardo’s Pizza By The Slice before he leaves town because “pizza tastes better in college.”

“Trust me, I’ll mention Leonardo’s to (UF),” Brooks said, flashing a smirk. “I bet you 10 to 1 something shows up.”

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