Former President, and current Republican nominee for President, Donald Trump plans to be in attendance at Bryant-Denny Stadium for Alabama Football's matchup with Georgia next Saturday, the University confirmed on Thursday.
On Saturday, ESPN officially announced that College GameDay would be making the trip to Tuscaloosa as expected.
We're still waiting for confirmation on if the Pope plans to make the trip. Maybe Taylor Swift can swing by, too. Tuscaloosa is over-capacity on most gamedays. This one will make a normal Saturday look like the summer when the students are out of town.
Trump last attended an Alabama home game back in 2019 for the highly anticipated matchup between Alabama and LSU. He was the first sitting president to attend a UA home football game, a fact that's pretty cool regardless of your political leanings.
But fans who attended the game spoke of the logistical nightmare that was actually getting into Bryant-Denny to watch the football game. It'll be worse, now, with heightened security an undoubtable necessity following two attempts on Trump's life in the past few months.
My brother attended the game five years ago, and he said they had to arrive at the stadium three hours early just to have time to get through security. With the current state of things, I'd imagine those going should probably add another hour or two on to that.
The University said as much in a statement they released regarding the impending visit:
""Like for every UA football game, walk-through metal detectors will be in place and the clear bag policy will be strictly enforced. Additional safety measures will be enacted in collaboration with local and federal agencies, so fans are encouraged to arrive early to expedite the security screening process. The University’s focus will continue to be ensuring a safe and positive gameday experience for the student-athletes, fans of both teams, and all campus visitors."
The game is slated for a 6:30 pm CST kick. College GameDay should wrap up around 11:00 am. Those attending that morning might want to go ahead and get in line once it's over.