Rice-Eccles Stadium — Attraction in Salt Lake City

This place was a lot more fun when you could bring in your own food and there was a grassy area behind the south endzone seats to picnic or toss a football around, which you were bound to do after a couple quarters of watching the 3-5 Utes clash with 2-5-1 UTEP for the bragging rights of fourth place in the WAC. True, the competition has gotten a lot better in the nearly three decades I've been attending games (and a Rolling Stones concert that was just glorious anarchy) at this stadium. But every year the parking gets a little worse, the "security" more intrusive in their searches for contraband-- meaning outside food and drink, not dangerous weapons or they would have metal detectors. Two years ago the banned anything but plastic see-through bags; last year the took away the smoking section, which was just a fenced area outside the gates where people could have a smoke and come back in. Gone. No smoking in the stadium or gated area around it, and no reentry. Is that going to make people quit smoking? Nope, it's just going to make them edgy and in a bad mood. I have one more year of season tickets then I'm done going to games, as the U will be tearing down my seats in the south endzone. I sit with a group of 85 of my Italian relatives who have been collecting adjacent seats in that section for 45 years. We asked them if they would give a similar block somewhere else in the stadium, and the University offered to give us first dibs on buying the luxury boxes which will be replacing our bleachers, but we'd need at least two boxes, maybe three, and $500K or $750K is bit beyond our price range. So adios in advance Rice-Eccles Stadium--you went corporate eventually, but we had some good times. At least we have seen the Ute football team at the pinnacle of what they can achieve. They're not terrible, but I don't think they consistently go any higher than they are, as the end of this season (2019) so clearly demonstrated. A #5 team they are not; Ute fans need to take a look at, say, ASU or Oregon State and get used to what they see. Then settle in for another long run of mediocrity like the latter half of the McBride era.

But hey, at least it's not...

The football games are sort of enjoyable. The process to get in to the games? That experience is so horrible it's hard for me to put it into words. I'm part of what's called the MUSS (Mighty Utah Student Section) and you need a lanyard and a wristband that you receive at every game to sit down on the front rows in the student section. The security is supposed to make all the people without wristbands go sit up higher. Well, they don't do their jobs, you have people who move down and security does nothing to stop them, they turn a blind eye to it. Getting into the bowl is such a hassle that I won't EVER be attending another game again. People have scanning things that they use to scan the barcodes on your phone to get into the game. Well guess what? They couldn't scan my phone and so they sent me all the way to the ticket office to get a new barcode. I walled all the way back to the gate to get it scanned again and they couldn't scan it again. This time though, there was a guy who threatened to throw me off the property if I didn't have a barcode that would work. Keep in mind that I was WEARING my MUSS lanyard that I paid $400 to get! So I walked all the way back to the office and this time they printed a ticket for me. I walked back to the gate and they were able to scan it and I was able to go in. This was such an incredible hassle that it's disgusting. I'm very disappointed with the way that the Univeristy of Utah handles their football events. I would say, don't EVER buy a ticket or a pass to go see a game: you will be inconvenienced so much it's truly flabbergasting. Also, when you're in the bowl there is so little space that you can't sit, so you have to stand the entire time and because there are so many people who sneak down to the front rows you can't stand with your shoulders towards the field, you have to stand with an awkward one shoulder to the side and look over your shoulder to see the entire game. I would rate this a...

Saw George Strait & the 2002 ceremonies here. Mr. Strait puts on a great show. Wow what a musician. He performed 30 plus songs. Good acoustics & awesome sky view. But this place is humongous. Found the crowds quite overwhelming. In 2024 the gate security & paramedics were professional & helpful. Helped me to my seat without stairs. They had a water refill station but it was hot water. Later on in evening some ladies stole my water & I couldn’t afford another. So I ended up getting dehydrated & suffering heat exhaustion.

Sincerely thank the helpful paramedics for rehydrating me, their professionalism & concern. As well as the gate personnel for letting me in the back way down the ramp instead of up the stairs.

However the floor security were quite rude wouldn’t let me stand nor lean on the wall. The floor chairs are awful, cramped & pain inducing. Especially for tall people with arthritis or injuries. The security wouldn’t let me walk closer to the stage for photos. They also told me I couldn’t stand by the wall to the upper seats. Though many others were. They didn’t seem to pester any of the short guys or ladies. Only the taller people. When I told one that pestered me a few times how I couldn’t sit in my seat because it was making my disabilities agonizing. He said I could walk around. While walking about a finally nice security guy (tan thick curly gray hair) let me get close to the stage for a selfie.

Most of their floor security makes me question ever going here again. Especially the thin short bald guy. Was treated more like a prisoner than guest. They need to be retrained by the USANA staff. Now there’s a venue that knows how to treat people with hospitality & like the well paying guests...