Tomorrow I’ll post my analysis of the debate itself, but first, here’s a recap of the incredible day’s events:

We woke up at 5 o’clock in the morning, convinced we’d be the only students with enough initiative to make it to Holmes Lounge — one of the prettiest settings on campus — for a live taping of CBS’ The Early Show. To say that we underestimated the excitement on this campus would be an understatement. By the time we groggily stepped through the doors of the (usually) quiet dining hall, there were hundreds of students packing the room — some literally hanging from the walls. After waving our “sign” for a few segments (much more on the sign later), we’d had enough and decided decided to wait for the broadcast to head outside. We entertained ourselves with props found on the makeshift outdoor set until, much to our excitement, Bob Schieffer emerged from his Early Show interview and headed our way. It seemed obvious to us that a chance for a photo with the host of Face the Nation (and the moderator of the final presidential debate) was well worth seeding the prime real estate we’d captured outside, so we ran towards Mr. Schieffer, who graciously stopped and took a picture with us. Our chances of face time on The Early Show seemingly gone, we walked off campus to Boosters Cafe for a quick (and delicious) breakfast.

Still several hours before I’d usually be awake on a Thursday morning (and a few hours until our next opportunity to appear on TV), we headed to the library attempting to study. It might have been the most exciting day of my college career, but it’s still college, so there was work to be done!

Aside from the debate hall itself (where, incredibly, more than 400 student got to watch the debate), the MSNBC set was the most exciting place to be on campus. While no other news networks had chosen to broadcast from a location that students could actually access, from one stage we had the opportunity to watch Andrea Mitchell, Chuck Todd, and three tapings of Hardball with Chris Matthews. It seemed obvious, then, that this would be our base of operations for the rest of the day.

A true testament to the collective creativity of my group of friends, we carried with us, everywhere we went, a carboard cutout of Abraham Lincoln holding a Barack Obama sign. Not only was Honest Abe featured prominently on every MSNBC broadcast (we somehow managed to hold onto our position in the front row of the crowd, just over the anchor’s shoulder), he wound up (through the Associated Press) on the front pages of the New York Times and CNN websites, he got us interviewed by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and several other papers, and he turned into a crowd favorite with countless students stopping to take pictures with him.

The highlight of my day, however, was at the end of the 6 o’clock (CT) edition of Hardball, when Chris Matthews asked President Lincoln (and me) what we were expecting from tonight’s debate. I made a joke about Stephen Douglas, and the rest is a haze.

We watched the debate from Edison Theatre, the performing arts center on campus, with a not-surprisingly overwhelmingly liberal crowd. I’ll post my full analysis of the debate tomorrow, but here are a few brief thoughts:

• Joe Biden is clearly the most knowledgeable, qualified candidate on either party’s ticket. I think it will be next to impossible for John McCain to paint Barack Obama as unready solong as Obama has Biden by his side.
• Sarah Palin had a great night considering the expectations that most Americans, myself included, probably held before the debate. She may no longer be a liability for John McCain, but it was hard to look at the two candidates on that stage and not see a huge mismatch in every measurable way. Neither vice-presidential candidate is going to singlehandily shift the election in one direction or the other, but in terms of credibility and judgment, it is becoming more and more clear that Joe Biden is doing more to help his party’s ticket than his debate opponent last night. Palin might still be the more exciting selection, but if McCain wants to continue criticizing Barack Obama for being “just another celebrity,” his running mate is going to need to begin to offer something more than large crowds.
• In the next debate Barack Obama has to address the accusation that he and Biden will “wave the white flag” in Iraq. On the other side, without resorting to dishonesty — of the intellectual variety or otherwise — John McCain must explain to Americans why he is the best candidate to turn this country around, and how, in a significant way, his economic policies differ from the George W. Bush.

Make sure to check out Mark’s excellent photostream from Debate day at Wash U.

Considering that 2,800 members of the media will be descending on this campus in 72 hours, Monday was a fairly quiet day at Wash U. Work continued around the Athletic Complex, where the debate will be held, and we caught a glimpse of Secret Service members touring the campus with bomb-sniffing dogs in tow, but other than that it was just another day of school.

Today was the last day that students were able to access the actual debate facility and our brief tour revealed a venue almost unrecognizable from the Athletic Complex we’re used to seeing but still far from the auditorium we expect to see on Thursday night. Aside from the main gym where the debate will take place, the recreational gym has been completely transformed into the offices of several thousand reporters and, after the debate, the world capital of spin. The room is setup with hundreds of tables, phone lines, electrical outlets, and TVs.

Outside the AC are three large stages where reporters will be able to broadcast “from the scene.” Just so viewers don’t forget where the debate is being held, we’ve placed Washington University in St. Louis banners in front of the AC and then strategically around campus.

I was supposed to volunteer for MSNBC today (Chuck Todd, Andrea Mitchell, and Chris Matthews will be broadcasting live from campus all day Thursday), but it was rained out. The weather for the rest of the week looks nice though.

See you tomorrow!