Things to do in Tuscaloosa before Alabama's homecoming football game

Things to do in Tuscaloosa before Alabama’s homecoming football game

Posted by Admin October 23, 2024 Football

The University of Alabama will celebrate homecoming this weekend with “New Era, Same Standard” as the theme.

Homecoming will wrap up with the Alabama-Missouri football game, scheduled to kick off at 2:45 p.m. Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium with ABC televising. Gates to the stadium will open at 12:30 p.m.

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Fans can expect sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-80s. The game is a sellout, but tickets are available at www.seatgeek.com with prices beginning at around $50.

Here’s what you need to know about activities before and during the game:

Homecoming activities

The homecoming pep rally will begin at 6:30 p.m. Friday on the Quad, followed by a bonfire.

The pep rally will include the announcement of the homecoming queen, along with performances by the Million Dollar Band and UA cheerleaders and appearances by UA’s elephant mascot Big Al and guest speakers.

A drone light show will follow the bonfire at around 7:30 p.m.

Former Alabama running back Shaun Alexander will be the grand marshal for homecoming parade, which will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday at Hudson Poole Fine Jewelers on Greensboro Avenue. The parade will turn east onto University Boulevard and continuing through to the UA campus.

Pregame entertainment

Champions Lane, a 60,000-square-foot entertainment area, will open at 10:30 a.m. northwest of Bryant-Denny Stadium on the lawn behind the Tuska statue.

Admission is free to the area, which includes a concert stage, food trucks from World of Beer and Texas Roadhouse, a beer garden lounge with casual seating, LED videoboards for fans to watch other college football games in progress, an autograph tent and more.

The Crimson Tide Sports Network’s pregame radio show will broadcast live from the Bud Light Backyard Concert Stage beginning at 11:30 a.m.

Singer-songwriter Easton Corbin will give a free concert from 12:30-1:30 p.m. on the same stage. Country-rock band Smith Distillery will perform from 10:30-11:15 a.m.

Autograph opportunities will include former UA running back Kenyan Drake at 10:30 a.m. in the T-Mobile tent, members of the UA women’s basketball team at 11 a.m. and the women’s volleyball teams at 12:30 p.m. in the Alabama Department of Public Health tent.

Champions Lane will close when the game kicks off.

For a map of the area, go to championslane.com/champions-lane-map.

From 9-11 a.m., SEC Nation will broadcast live outside Wade Hall, across University Boulevard from Denny Chimes. The show, which airs on the SEC Network, features host Laura Rutledge, along with former UA player Roman Harper, Paul Finebaum, Tim Tebow, Jordan Rogers, Marty Smith and Ryan McGee.

Elsewhere on campus, the Paul W. Bryant Museum, 300 Paul W. Bryant Drive, will be open on game day, featuring memorabilia and exhibits from all eras of Alabama football from Wallace Wade to Nick Saban and Kalen DeBoer. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children. For more information, go to https://bryantmuseum.com.

For more information about tailgating, parking, traffic and more, go to uagameday.com.

Walk of Champions/Elephant Stomp

Two of UA’s most popular pre-game rituals take place within walking distance of Bryant-Denny Stadium, the Walk of Champions and the Elephant Stomp.

Fans can cheer the UA football players, Kalen DeBoer and the UA coaching staff members as they arrive by bus for the game at 12:20 p.m. along the Walk of Champions on the north side of the stadium. That’s the side of the stadium that also includes statues of Alabama national championship coaches — Paul W. “Bear” Bryant, Nick Saban, Gene Stallings Frank Thomas and Wallace Wade.

The Elephant Stomp, a pregame pep rally featuring elephant mascot Big Al, the Million Dollar Band and UA cheerleaders, will begin at 1:30 p.m. at the Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library. The band will play the school fight song, “Yea Alabama,” and then march down Colonial Drive, leading Crimson Tide fans into the stadium.

Inside the stadium

At halftime, the 2024 homecoming queen will be crowned, and the homecoming court will be recognized.

A pregame flyover is scheduled to feature the 37th Flying Training Squadron from the Columbus, Mississippi, Air Force Base.

UA’s honorary game captains will be Shaun Alexander and Chris Samuels.

Shelby McEwen, an Alabama native who earned the silver medal in the high jump at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will be recognized during the break between the first and second quarters.

Reach Ken Roberts at ken.roberts@tuscaloosanews.com.