The season-opening game between Georgia Tech and Clemson has sold out, according to Chick-fil-A Kickoff game officials, However, a limited allotment of tickets has been reserved for those who purchase Tech season tickets or a three-game mini-pack.
Tech has elected to play the Sept. 5 game with a seating configuration that will cap attendance at 42,500, as it did for its 2021 game against North Carolina in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. It could be considered a reflection of fan interest in the Yellow Jackets in the wake of three consecutive three-win seasons.
While the game is being presented as a Chick-fil-A Kickoff game, it is actually a home game for Tech, which made the game part of its six-year series at the state-of-the-art stadium within walking distance from Tech’s campus. As late as the time of last year’s game, Tech officials planned to use the full 71,000-seat configuration for this year’s Clemson game, expecting larger attendance.
However, Tech finished the season with an average home attendance of 37,333, the lowest (barring 2020, when attendance was capped at 11,000 as a COVID-19 protocol) since 1989, when the stadium capacity was 43,719, as compared to the present 55,000.
In Clemson’s past two visits to Tech, barring the 2020 season, when attendance was capped at 11,000 as a COVID-19 protocol, attendance was 50,595 in 2018 and 53,932 in 2016, both games played with a heavy orange presence in the stands. Both were Tech’s biggest home crowds of the season.
“The historic rivalry between Clemson and Georgia Tech will continue in this year’s Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, featuring two schools from the same conference for the first time in our game’s history,” Peach Bowl CEO and president Gary Stokan said in a statement. “Both teams and their passionate fan bases will create an electric atmosphere when they compete on the national stage to begin the 2022 ACC season.”
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