UT welcomes fans to campus this Saturday for the first home football game of the 2012 season.
Kickoff is set for 4:00 p.m. ET for the Volunteers’ game against the Georgia State University Panthers. Gates open at 2:00 p.m. VideoSeat pay-per-view will televise the game.
Fans are encouraged to follow @UTGameday on Twitter for the latest updates on traffic, weather, gate information, and game day events such as the Vol Walk and band march.
Season tickets and select individual game tickets are available at UTTix.com.
Navigating the Cone Zone
With much construction underway on campus, new and returning visitors will see the following changes:
- All lanes of Neyland Drive approaching campus are open for the football season as renovation work continues on the Henley Bridge over the nearby Tennessee River.
- The parking garage next to the University Center has been demolished and the nearby section of Andy Holt Avenue has been permanently closed to make way for a new Student Union.
- “Cone Zone” signs featuring a hard hat-wearing Smokey have been placed around campus, helping direct motorists and pedestrians to find campus parking and detour around the construction. The latest information on campus construction can be found at conezone.utk.edu.
Due to campus construction, fans are encouraged to arrive early. For complete information on game day parking, stadium regulations, and activities, visit UTSports.com. Here are the highlights:
Parking
Only fans with permits can park on campus. UT encourages others to use shuttle buses from the Old City, the Knoxville Civic Coliseum, the Market Square area of downtown Knoxville, and Farragut High School in west Knoxville.
Limited public accessible parking spaces and fully accessible shuttle buses to the stadium are available on the UT Agriculture Campus off Neyland Drive.
Game Day Activities
The traditional Vol Walk will start at 1:45 p.m. on Volunteer Boulevard near Circle Park, as the members of the football team proceed down Volunteer Boulevard and then continue down Peyton Manning Pass to the stadium.
The Pride of the Southland Marching Band will begin marching at 2:20 p.m. at the intersection of Pat Head Summitt Street and Volunteer Boulevard and will then follow the same path as the Vol Walk.
From 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., the Volunteer Village commercial display area will be open on the lawn of the Humanities and Social Sciences Building. Pregame festivities will be available for fans of all ages.
Fans also can attend the College of Arts and Sciences’ Pregame Showcase. Held two hours before each home game kickoff in the University Center Ballroom, the showcase is a free thirty-minute presentation by a UT faculty member. This week, at 2:00 p.m., Cal MacLean, professor and head of the Department of Theatre and artistic director of the Clarence Brown Theatre, will discuss Supreme Synergy on Stage: Presenting Sweeney Todd.
Stadium Security
UT reminds visitors that all items, including purses, are subject to search at the gates. Bags larger than 12 inches by 12 inches by 12 inches cannot be brought into the stadium, and items larger than this standard size, as well as other prohibited items, cannot be stored at any stadium gate.
Prohibited items include the following:
- alcoholic beverages, cans, bottles, or coolers;
- large bags or parcels, including backpacks and large purses;
- radios without headphones;
- artificial noisemakers;
- open umbrellas;
- video cameras;
- stadium seats with arms; and
- weapons of any kind, including pocketknives.
Fans can bring the following items inside the stadium, provided they meet the size requirement:
- cushions and seats without arms;
- small diaper bags that accompany infants; and
- small cameras, pagers, cell phones, and binoculars.
Under state law, no smoking will be allowed anywhere inside the stadium. Fans cannot leave the stadium and be readmitted.
Commercial solicitation in front of Neyland Stadium from Middle Way Drive to Gate 10 is prohibited starting four hours before kickoff and continuing until the game is over.
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CONTACT:
Charles Primm (865-974-5180, charles.primm@tennessee.edu)