Free Tickets for Home Football Opener for Irma Evacuees

Georgia Tech President G.P. “Bud” Peterson, Director of Athletics Todd Stansbury and football head coach Paul Johnson have extended an invitation to families displaced by Hurricane Irma to attend Saturday’s Georgia Tech-Jacksonville State football game free of charge, GT athletics announced on Friday. Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m. at Bobby Dodd Stadium on Georgia Tech’s Midtown Atlanta campus.

Florida residents and residents of Georgia and South Carolina counties under evacuation orders can claim tickets for themselves and members of their immediate families beginning at 9:30 a.m. Saturday on the Brittain Dining Hall lawn, located on Techwood Drive, directly across from Gate 9 at Bobby Dodd Stadium. Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis while supplies last. All that is needed to claim tickets is a valid state-issued I.D.

“As a former resident of both Houston and Florida, my wife, Karen, and I personally have a lot of friends, former student-athletes and former colleagues in both areas and have been following Hurricanes Harvey and Irma closely. We have the deepest sympathy for everyone who has been affected by the storms,” said Stansbury, who previously served as associate athletics director at the University of Houston and director of athletics at the University of Central Florida. “Our hope is that a day of family fun and great college football can be a much-needed distraction for families displaced by Irma. Additionally, Georgia Tech athletics will be looking to help those affected in any way that we can.”

In addition to the 12:30 p.m. contest between the Yellow Jackets and Gamecocks, Saturday’s gameday festivities also include Wreckfest (a family-friendly pregame celebration featuring live music, interactive games and inflatables), Yellow Jacket Alley (an opportunity for fans to cheer on the Jackets’ student-athletes and coaches up close as they enter Bobby Dodd Stadium) and performances by the Georgia Tech Marching Band at the Campanile (in the center of GT’s campus) and Callaway Plaza (on the north side of Bobby Dodd Stadium, off Bobby Dodd Way).

Wreckfest begins at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday at Callaway Plaza, followed by Yellow Jacket Alley at 10 a.m., and the GT Band performances at the Campanile and Callaway Plaza at 11:15 a.m. and 11:45 a.m., respectively.

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