What You Need To Know For The MSU Football Season Opener
Michigan State Football begins the 2019 season this Friday. Our local coverage begins Friday afternoon at 3:30 PM with the MSU Healthcare Tailgate Show.
Here are some guidelines for fans to follow this season.
Spartan Stadium gates open 90 minutes prior to kickoff. The Huntington Club, suites, and student entrance is available two hours before kickoff. Fans may bring seat cushions into the stadium, as long as there are no backs, zippered sections, or anything else that may make the cushion a usable bag or storage container. Binoculars, small cameras and radios are allowed, but leave the cases for them at home. Blankets and rain apparel are also allowed (no umbrellas). And, each fan can bring one factory sealed 20 ounce bottled water.
Items that are prohibited in Spartan Stadium include:
Purses, bags, or cases of any size; weapons; containers of any kind; umbrellas; flags, flagpoles; camcorders, tripods, and selfie sticks; alcoholic beverages, coolers, cups, thermoses, bottles, cans, flasks, and open water containers; strollers, non-approved chair backs, projectiles, any other object deemed dangerous by security staffers.
Tickets and Will Call are both located on the west side of the stadium between gates G and H. Will Call opens three hours prior to gametime.
Tailgating times still follow the "7/9/1" Rule. Noon and 1:00 PM kickoff times will see tailgate areas open at 7:00 AM. 3:30 and 4:00 PM games will have 9:00 AM tailgate start times. For night games, lots will open at 1:00 PM, however, any Friday night game, including the season opener, lots open at 3:30 PM. Kegs, couches and upholstered furniture, drinking games and paraphernalia, trailers of any kind, and tents larger than 10'x10' are prohibited.
A new feature is an university partnership with Tailgate Guys, who specialize in premium tailgate services. Fans can reserve space at McLane Baseball Stadium and have Tailgate Guys do all of the set up and tear down. Tents, chairs, linens, and personalized signs are included in all of their packages. You can also upgrade your order with DISH Network service at your party, catering and beverage services, and more.
Munn Field is closed to vehicle parking and tailgating again this season. The site of the former Cherry Lane Apartments will once again handle the former Munn Field traffic. There are many available parking areas for the general public. Those lots are all $20 per vehicle. And, there will still be shuttle service from Lot 89 available for $5 per round-trip ride. Accessible Parking is available with shuttle from Lot 48 (Natural Resource Building) for $20 as well. RV Parking is designated for Lot 97 behind the Engineering Research Building at the far south end of Bogue Street for $67.
And, of course, there is the Open Container Ordinance. This ordinance bans open containers of alcohol on campus and in all public areas of campus buildings. But, on home football game days, enforcement of the ordinance is suspended for those 21 and older, only during the hours that tailgate lots are open. The pedestrian areas immediately adjacent to Spartan Stadium and all public areas of campus buildings all remain alcohol free on game days. Open containers are not allowed at any point in time in the City of East Lansing, off campus.
For more details and contact information, visit this link to the MSU Athletic Department.