Fans attending Thursday night's football game at Samford University will experience some new parking and traffic flow options for the 2006 season. Samford and cross-town rival Miles College open the season at 7 p.m. Thursday (Aug. 31) at Seibert Stadium.
Because of construction projects on campus, fans will be routed to commuter and employee parking lots near Wright Fine Arts Center, Beeson University Center and McWhorter School of Pharmacy. Samford fans are asked to use a temporary ticket entrance on the south end of the stadium. Visiting fans can use the stadium's east entrance.
The main ticket entrance on the north end of Seibert Stadium is closed this season because of construction of Samford's new arena. Parking on the north side of the stadium has been eliminated.
"We realize that this is a big game for both schools, and we are doing everything we can to accommodate the needs of what we expect to be a sell-out crowd," said Jay Roberson, Samford's associate director of athletics. "Fans are encouraged to arrive early to enjoy the game-day atmosphere and to ensure that they have adequate time to park and be in the stadium before kickoff."
Roberson emphasized that the university will have adequate parking for fans attending the game, although not everyone can park adjacent to the stadium. The university also will have limited shuttle service available from remote lots to the stadium.
Fans planning to set up tailgate parties prior to 4 p.m. on Thursday have the option of using an overflow parking lot on University Park Drive across from Homewood High School's baseball stadium, Roberson said. On-campus tailgating will not be available until after classes and labs end about 3:30 p.m. because of limited parking availability.
Complete game information is available at www.samfordsports.com.