COLUMBUS – The Buckeyes welcome fans back into Ohio Stadium for the first time in nearly two years Saturday when they host Oregon.
No. 3 Ohio St (1-0) vs. No 12/11 Oregon (1-0), Ohio Stadium (Sat. Noon/FOX)
Fans planning to attend are being encouraged to arrive early and bring their smartphones and their masks, but to leave their cash at home.
Parking lots and concession stands inside the stadium will only accept credit cards and tickets will be downloaded to mobile devices via the Ohio State Buckeyes app. Gates will be equipped with 120 ticket pedestals where fans will enter by scanning their tickets.
“It’s very easy to use. Tickets will be displayed on their mobile phone, we’ll have pedestals around the stadium to enhance our touchless experience for fans,” said Brett Scarbrough, senior associate athletics director in charge of the Athletic Department’s Ticketing and Premium Seating office.
As of Tuesday, there were still approximately 10,000 tickets still available for sale to the general public and head football coach Ryan Day wanted to see them sold by kickoff.
“We need Buckeye Nation in this game,” he said. “This is a very, very big game for our program and we need them to be loud.”
Power Five teams such as Ohio State bring in an average of $18.6 million annually from ticket sales in a typical year.
The gates will also be equipped with the latest technology in walk-through metal detectors to help speed up the process of admitting fans to the stadium.
“They’re able to leave their keys, their phones, items in their pockets, and walk through so it’s going to be a quicker experience for them,” OSU police chief Kimberly Spears-McNatt said.
Masks are required in restrooms, elevators and other indoor areas of the stadium, in keeping with university police, though they will not be needed outdoors, in parking lots, the stadium’s seating bowl or at concession stands.
Concession stands will not accept cash, though there will be gift cards available for fans who bring cash.
Fans are also being urged to allow plenty of time to get to the stadium Saturday due to construction that will impact on-campus traffic patterns.
Ohio State Football schedules 2021-2028
Buckeyes move up in polls
Ohio State moved up to No. 3 in both major college football polls after beating Minnesota 45-31 in its season opener last Thursday.
Oregon was ranked No. 12 in The Associated Press Top 25 presented by Regions Bank and remained at No. .
Georgia moved up three spots to No. 2 behind Alabama That gives the Southeastern Conference the top two teams in the country for the 30th time in history of the AP college football poll.
Oklahoma was No. 4, Texas A&M is fifth and Clemson fell three spots to No. 6 after losing to the Bulldogs.
Cincinnati moved up one spot to No. 7.
Stroud is Big Ten Freshman of the Week
Buckeye quarterback C.J. Stroud was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week.
He threw four touchdown passes in the second half to rally Ohio State from a 14-10 halftime deficit in the win at Minnesota. His 294 yards were the second-most by a Buckeye quarterback making the first start of their career since 2000.