Bacon and cheese loaded tots

Loaded with queso and topped with bacon, green onions and diced tomatoes, these tasty tots are served by Michigan State University Concessions at the Breslin Student Events Center.

Alligator sausage po’boy

Gators beware! This po’boy favorite at LSU is dressed and topped with crawfish etouffee, plus spicy pork skins for crunch and a side of tots to round it all out.

Buffalo cauliflower tacos

I can’t believe it’s not chicken! This is one of the hottest items on Virginia Tech’s food truck scene. Tempura-fried cauliflower tossed in Buffalo sauce and topped with kohlrabi slaw and bleu cheese crumbles on a flour tortilla can be found aboard the Grillfield truck, a chef-driven mobile eatery.

The Bulldog burger

Who let the dogs out? Gonzaga’s Bulldog burger is a third-pound beef patty with smoked bacon, butter lettuce, tomatoes and frizzled onions, topped with cheddar and garlic-peppercorn aioli on a housemade bun.

Meat lover’s brisket

U of Michigan’s brisket is a carnivore’s dream, smoked in house for 18 hours, the tangy, tender brisket is served with corn bread and local smoked tomatoes.

Grilled chicken-avocado sandwich

Paired with creamy avocado, crisp lettuce and fresh tomato, this grilled chicken sandwich only gets better with a side of corn fritters.

Honey chicken biscuit

A spin-off of Seminole Dining’s famous Honey Fried Chicken, this little biscuit features the crispy chicken on a warm, flaky biscuit drizzled with local honey and topped with sweet housemade pickles.

Sweet potato bread pudding

A truly Southern dish, this tempting bread pudding is a Tar Heel staple, made with locally sourced sweet potatoes baked into melting caramel and served with vanilla ice cream and fresh berries.

Korean rice bowl

This is a bowl-d move from UK, with zingy marinated steak, carrot, cucumber and scallions garnished with a runny egg, fermented-fabulous kimchi and fiery flavor-of-the-moment gochujang.

In the paint dessert nachos

This celebration on a plate from UH features crispy tortilla chips topped with chocolate and raspberry syrup, funfetti sprinkles and whipped cream.

Crab nachos

These nachos are full of East Coast flavor with melted cheese sauce, house-special crab dip and a sprinkle of Old Bay seasoning, plus jalapenos to heat things up.

This craveable (and meat-free) burger is a team effort between Charlottesville-based vegetarian burger producer NoBull and the UVa dining team, made complete with traditional burger fixins.  

Acai smoothie bowl

1bowl is a dine-in or carryout concept at Purdue with all sorts of power bowls, including this acai smoothie bowl with blended fruit and yogurt, topped with more fresh fruit, granola, chia seeds and a puree of acai, banana and apple juice.

Pit burger

JP’s Gastropub on campus is serving this Kansas-farmed beef burger topped with smoky pulled pork, cheddar, candied bacon and fried jalapenos. Housemade jalapeno-blueberry barbecue sauce is the finishing touch.

Mediterranean nachos

This build-your-own option lets students choose a Mediterranean mix of marinated beef or chicken, freshly made falafel, housemade hummus, tabbouleh, baba ganoush, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, feta crumbles, Kalamata olives, yogurt, harissa and more.