2019 WEARESC TRAVEL GUIDE: GAME No. 1 – FRESNO STATE

Greg Katzby:Greg Katz•08/26/19

FRESNO STATE (0-0, 0-0 MWC)/USC TROJANS (0-0, 0-0 PAC-12)
AUG. 31: 7:30 p.m. PDT/10:30 P.M. ET
Televised: ESPN
Location: Los Angeles
Stadium: Memorial Coliseum
Capacity: 77,500
Surface: Natural Grass
Seating Chart: www.lacoliseum.com
Tickets: 213-740-GOSC (4672)

The opening line: The Trojans opened a 13 ½ points over Fresno State.

Projected Saturday Los Angeles Weather Forecast: Sunny with a high of 84 degrees, low of 66 degrees, 64 percent humidity, and 0 percent precipitation.

The extended downtown Los Angeles (photo above) forecast Saturday is sunny with a high of 84 with a low around 66 degrees. A 7:30 p.m. should be a very comfortable evening in the newly renovated Coliseum.

Websites:  gobulldogs.com/usctrojans.com

DIRECTIONS TO THE COLISEUM

From the West
(1.)Take the 10 Freeway east (2) Exit Hoover St. and turn right
(3) Turn left on Jefferson St. (4) Turn right on Figueroa St.
(5) Continue past campus and follow directional signs to Coliseum and parking.

From the North

(1) Take the 110 Freeway south (2) Exit Exposition Blvd., turn left on Flower St. (3) Follow the directional signs to Coliseum or USC and parking.

From the South

(1) Take the 110 Freeway north (2)Exit Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
(3) Turn left on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., and follow directional signs to Coliseum or USC campus parking lots. The Express Lane exits directly to 39th St. and the entrance to Exposition Park. 

From the East

(1) Take the 10 Freeway west (2) Exit Los Angeles St.
(3)Turn left on Broadway St. or Hill St. (4)Follow directional signs to Coliseum and parking.

Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to get to the Coliseum. Driving LA freeways (photo above) between 2p.m. and 8:p.m. even during rush hour on a Saturday can be stressful. If you’re an out-of-towner, you may want to make sure you have a navigator and a Coliseum parking map.

Parking

Parking in Coliseum Lots 4, 5, 6 on the south, on the South Lawn of the Natural History Museum, in the Exposition Park Visitor Parking Structure to the east of the stadium is reserved for existing pass holders. Those lots, which open up at 8 a.m. on USC game days, are not available for general public parking. There will be limited public parking in the new Lucas Museum of Narrative Art underground South Parking Structure on the west side of the stadium, accessible southbound on Bill Robertson Ln. from Exposition Blvd.

Fans without passes are encouraged to park on the USC campus and walk through Exposition Park to the Coliseum. Available USC on-campus lots are located on the north side of Jefferson Blvd. near the Shrine Auditorium, on the south side of Jefferson Blvd. near Vermont Ave. and on either side of Figueroa St. near the Galen Center, as well as in the Grand Avenue Parking Center (Grand Ave. and Jefferson Blvd.), Downey Way Structure (Vermont Ave. and Downey Way), Flower Street Structure (Exposition Blvd. and Figueroa St.) and Royal Street Structure (south side of Jefferson Blvd. near the Shrine Auditorium). Parking in the Grand Avenue Parking Center, Downey Way Structure and Royal Street Structure can be reserved in advance at usc.clickandpark.com. Parking in USC lots, which open at 6 a.m. on Trojan game days, costs $25 on a first-come, first-served basis. Here is a University Parking Map: https://gameday.usc.edu/files/2018/07/Parking_FootballMap_V1.pdf

Campus parking structures (photo above) will be available for those that want to spend time on the beautiful grounds of the university, and then make the walk across the street into Exposition Park and the Coliseum.

RV parking is not available in Exposition Park or the USC campus.

Left turns into parking lots or structures are not permitted on game day. Bill Robertson Lane will have limited pedestrian access during USC games.

Tailgating

Tailgating areas in Exposition Park are limited. Trojan Fan Fest, including the Ralphs Ultimate Tailgate Experience (available with product purchases at Ralphs), will be in Christmas Tree Lane.

Arrive early and begin your USC tailgate experience, especially if you can find a place in Exposition Park, home of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Tailgating is allowed on the USC campus; groups must reserve a spot. There also is the Trojan Family Game Day Experience in Alumni Park on campus. No tailgating is allowed in the USC Village.

The United Coliseum Clubs, located near Gates 12, 19 and 33, feature food, beer and wine service. All United Coliseum Clubs are accessible once gates open except for Club 33, which opens 30 minutes prior to kick-off. Entrance for all Coliseum Clubs is reserved exclusively for Trojan Athletic Fund members. Club 33 is located on the peristyle plaza and provides field viewing throughout the game.

Stadium Entry and Seating

There are six main entry gates into the Coliseum (Gates 1, 4, 8, 19, 23 and 28), each with new automated ticket scanners for easier entry. Gates open two hours prior to kickoff. Trojan Athletic Fund members with a TAF logo on their ticket can use dedicated TAF entry gates at Gates 18 and 33.

There is a new numbering system in the seating area, with each section divided into the 100s (low), 200s (the middle sections) and 300s (the upper section). A seat in section 108, therefore, would be in the lower rows of section 8. New “wayfinding” signage will assist fans to their seating areas.

The Coliseum has all new seats with cup holders (photo above), which should add to the in-game experience.

Trojan Athletic Fund members attending the TAF pre-game party at the peristyle end of the Coliseum should enter at Gate 33 (it opens 3 hours prior to kickoff).

Fans are encouraged to enter the stadium early. All fans will go through metal detector screening. A “clear bag” policy is enforced; for information, go to lacoliseum.com/beclear. Smoking and smoking implements are prohibited inside the Coliseum.

TRANSIT OPTIONS

Because of limited parking options in Exposition Park, fans are encouraged to use public transit options to get to the Coliseum, including Metro’s Expo Line rail and Silver Line park and ride (from the Harbor Gateway Transit Center), as well as ridesharing services.

One of the best ways to avoid LA traffic is take one of the “lines” (photo above) that takes you to USC and Exposition Park.

­Fans who drive are encouraged to carpool. Those arriving from the north via the 110 Freeway should exit at Exposition Blvd., those arriving from the south via the 110 Freeway should exit at Martin Luther King Blvd. (or at 39th St. if in the Express Lane) and those arriving from the east or west via the 10 Freeway should exit at Vermont St., and follow the signs to park.

Exposition Blvd. both eastbound and westbound between Bill Robertson Ln. and Figueroa St. will close starting 1 hour before kickoff (both directions re-open 45 minutes after the game’s end).

Metro Express Lanes

Eleven miles of carpool lanes on the 110 Harbor Freeway have been converted to High-Occupancy Toll Lanes, known as Metro ExpressLanes. All users must have a FasTrak installed in their vehicle regardless of vehicle occupancy. To learn more: www.metroexpresslanes.net

If you’re driving on the 110 Fwy (photo above) and you have a transponder, you can save time by driving on the Express Way.

Tommy Trojan Game Day Tips

USC Campus: It’s the opening game of the season and there will be optimism and plenty of Trojans and Fresno State fans taking it all in.The TFGDE opens four hours prior to kickoff and closes 30 minutes before kickoff and is located in Alumni Park on USC’s campus in front of the Doheny Memorial Library. Have fun with face painting, crafts and interactive games. The Trojan Family Game Day Experience is a safe, family-friendly on-campus tailgate that is free and open to the public. Kids can play free games and make Trojan crafts while parents can sit back, relax, and enjoy live out-of-town football games on one of the 60″ plasmas. The area has plenty of shade, tables, and chairs for adults and children, along with affordable tailgate food and beverages (non-alcoholic, wine and beer) available for all fans to purchase.

The USC campus (photo above) really comes alive on game day and the earlier you get there, the better the experience.
If you’re tailgating either on campus or in Exposition Park, the key to get there early to get a prime location.

Trojans Marching Band: Get into the Trojan Game Day spirit by watching the Trojan Marching Band at one of their pregame performances throughout campus, and then follow the band to the LA Coliseum. For more information, visit www.uscband.usc.edu/gameday-routine/ 

Before every home game, the nationally acclaimed Trojans Marching Band (photo above) performs a campus pregame show, and then marches with fans from the USC campus to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Coliseum Tailgate/Trojan Fan Fest: The Trojans Fan Fest is located on Christmas Tree Lane just east of the Coliseum, with everything a Trojans fan could want – food trucks, music, games, merchandise, free giveaways, vehicle displays, and more. And make sure to stop by the Ralphs Ultimate Tailgate inside the fan fest to see how to qualify for free food and drinks, dining, and pub seating, plus TVs of other college football games to enjoy. Trojan Fan Fest opens four hours prior to kickoff at every home game.

COLISEUM BAG POLICY – IMPORTANT

The Coliseum prohibits bags, backpacks and other containers from entering the venue, with the following exceptions:

• One bag that is clear plastic, vinyl or PVC and does not exceed 12” by 6” and 12”, or;

Make sure when you go to the Coliseum, you have a clear bag to enter the stadium to avoid delays.

• A one-gallon clear plastic storage bag (Ziploc bag or similar).

• In addition to one of the clear bags noted above, guests may also carry in a small clutch bag or purse approximately the size of a hand, with or without a handle or strap.

• An exception will be made for medically necessary items after proper inspection.

Prohibited bags include, but are not limited to: purses larger than a clutch bag, coolers, briefcases, backpacks, fanny packs, cinch bags, luggage of any kind, oversized seat cushions with pockets or metal structures, computer bags and camera bags or any bag larger than the permissible size. These measures are designed to promote public safety while encouraging guests to limit the items they bring into the venue to create a more efficient screening and entry process. It is requested that all items are visible when entering the venue. The fewer items that are concealed, the quicker the process becomes. All approved bags are subject to inspection upon entry. For more information on the Coliseum Bag Policy, please visit www.lacoliseum.com/beclear 

Trojans Walk: The Trojans team busses should arrive at the Coliseum around 4:45 p.m. Get there early to get a good spot to see Clay Helton’s team walk into the Coli through the peristyle end. For visiting fans, the visitors busses will drop off the players near the outside tunnel that leads down into the Coliseum locker rooms.

There is nothing quite like the “Trojan Walk” when the team arrives near the peristyle end of the Coliseum and walks through a large spirit line of cardinal and gold fans, urging their heroes to bring home the victory. Normally, the USC team arrives approximately three-hours before kickoff.


Game Day Sports Bar/Restaurant

El Cholo Café. 1121 So. Western, Los Angeles, Ca. Ph 323-734-2773



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Garry Paskwietz (1966-2019)

Garry Paskwietz was a pioneer in bringing team-specific sports coverage to the internet. He founded WeAreSC in 1998 and was an Emmy winner for his work with Fox Sports West. Always generous with his time, knowledge, and compassion, he touched the lives of countless USC and high school football fans.

Garry Paskwietz