On Jan. 12, 2016, NFL owners approved the Rams’ move from St. Louis back to Los Angeles, where the team spent 49 seasons before leaving in 1994. As part of the deal, the Rams will get a new stadium in Inglewood by the 2019 season. But until then, the team will have to share the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum with the USC Trojans.
While fans may like the idea of having a top college program and a professional football team sharing a stadium, USC is sure to be impacted by an increase in traffic, new stadium policies and lengthy renovations.
“I think traffic and more tourists in the area are going to be one of the biggest changes we see around here,” said USC student Alex Drossos.
On the other hand, the Rams’ return will contribute revenue toward USC’s renovations of the Coliseum, give students opportunities to attend professional games and may even help in recruiting efforts.
“No doubt there’s going to be some occasion where [student-athletes] will get the opportunity to connect with a Rams player or executive,” said USC sports journalism professor Jeff Fellenzer. “It certainly wouldn’t hurt recruiting, if anything it may help it.”
Many USC football players do not mind the change.
“As football players it’s really not that big of a deal,” said USC’s All-Pac-12 offensive tackle Zach Banner. “If anything, it’s a great thing to have a chance to play in Los Angeles for our whole careers.”
While Banner’s sentiments may be shared by some of his teammates, USC’s standout cornerback/wide receiver Adoree Jackson has mixed feelings.
“I’m a Rams’ fan so I was excited, but unfortunately, I always wanted to play for the Rams back in St. Louis,” said Jackson, who hails from nearby Bellville, Ill. “It was a lifelong dream.”
Jackson, however, expects the Rams’ presence to motivate the Trojans.
“We know we don’t want them to be the only team in the Coliseum performing and doing well, so it’s going to be like a competitive edge,” said Jackson.
The Rams’ will be adding another chapter to the Coliseum’s extensive history bringing the NFL back to Los Angeles after more than 20 years. The facility has already been the host site for two Olympics, a pair of Super Bowls, a Papal Mass and multiple presidential events.
“If you look at the past events that the Coliseum has hosted, there is not another stadium in the world that’s hosted the same type of huge events,” said Chief Operating Officer of the Coliseum, Dan Stimmler.
This is partly due to the fact that the Coliseum is in the largest metro area on the West Coast, but because of its age, the 90-year-old stadium is in need of major renovations to get it NFL-ready.
The walls are cracked and the seats are worn and rusted. Prior to the Rams’ deal, USC had planned a $270 million renovation beginning in 2018. The Rams’ organization has agreed to help defray these costs with financial assistance. The renovations will include replacing all the seats in the stadium and reducing the seating capacity from nearly 93,600 to about 77,500 to make the facility more suitable for NCAA attendance.
Additionally, USC will be installing handrails and a structure will be built on the south side of the stadium which will include suites, loge boxes and new media space. The Coliseum’s construction is expected to be completed before the 2019 home opener.
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Outgoing USC Athletic Director Pat Haden admitted that the stadium was in need of major repairs.
“It was built in ‘23, it was[renovated] for the ’84 Olympics and after the 1994 earthquake, but other than that it’s falling apart,” said Haden.
While the Rams won’t have the chance to play in the fully renovated Coliseum, there will be changes made before and after the 2016 season to accommodate the NFL. The stadium is getting new lighting fixtures, vendors will be selling alcohol (not allowed at Trojan games) and the locker rooms will undergo necessary improvements. Especially, the away locker room which has ripped carpet, chipped wooden locker compartments and virtually no space for coaches to address all their athletes at once.
“Our current away locker room is really small and the way that it was designed when the Raiders were playing at the Coliseum it definitely gives a benefit to the home team," said Stimmler.
Beyond the structural changes to the facility, USC will also have to implement new stadium rules in conjunction with NFL policies. This includes the installation of metal detectors and the “bag” policy to increase public safety.
The NFL’s bag policy restricts fans from carrying certain types of handbags into the stadiums on game days. The allowed bags include: clear bags that do not exceed 12” x 6” x 12,” one-gallon clear plastic freezer bag (Ziploc bag or similar) or small clutch bags, approximately the size of a hand, with or without a handle or strap.
Some USC students feel that the new rule is a burden.
“I’m in a sorority and usually we all wear fanny packs to the game because it’s convenient,” said USC sophomore Hannah Wing. “I don’t think that a lot of people are in favor of it. I understand it’s an NFL rule, but I wish it didn’t affect USC football.”
Others, like graduate student/ROTC member Jeremy Todd, are more understanding about why the rule is in place and are not as concerned about it.
“Personally I think security is a good measure, said Todd. “I’ve been in the military for 15 years so I understand the need to prevent threats.”
Logistically, preparing the stadium for both teams should not be too difficult since there are only two weekends the Rams and the Trojans will both play at the Coliseum. Also, the Rams will not play any Monday night or Thursday night home games, which leaves only select Sundays for patrons to be concerned about.
Traffic and security, however, could still be a nightmare.
According to Google Maps, traveling from downtown LA toward the USC campus and Coliseum on a good day could be anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes. During rush hour, the times when people are commuting back and forth from work, traveling that same distance could be an hour or longer trip. Then when you add events at the Staples Center, such as games or conventions, an additional 30 minutes could be needed and that is just traveling in the immediate area.
“We’re going to have to bring in at least 20 additional officers on game day to enforce the no tailgating on campus,” said David Carlisle, Deputy Chief of USC Department of Public Safety.
But while the adjustments may require additional planning, for fans, most are just happy to be in the mix. And, according to Haden, students won’t have to worry about increased fees during the renovations. The Rams’ rental fees will be “like another donor.”
“LA is just such a great market, so I was really surprised for a long time that we didn’t have a team,” said USC sophomore Adrian Sunga. “I guess I was happy because I could finally get behind something [an NFL team].”
USC’s ROTC program currently provides parking attendants and Color Guard services, where they carry the American flag onto the field during the national anthem, for Trojan football games. With the addition of NFL games at the Coliseum, the program will have more opportunities to earn more funding.
“We put the bid in to run the colors presentation at the beginning of the Rams’ games and the proceeds will go to USC’s ROTC Cadet Fund,” said Todd. “We’ll also be running the parking for the Rams’ games.”
BEYOND USC
USC may benefit financially from the Rams calling the Coliseum home, but the surrounding community may not. Research shows that sports have little to no economic impact on neighborhoods.
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A 2008 study about the economic benefit from having a sports franchise by economists Dennis Coates from the University of Maryland and Brad Humphreys from West Virginia University, revealed there is a lack of evidence that prove “professional sports franchises and facilities have a measurable economic impact on the economy.”
“Economists reach the nearly unanimous conclusion that ‘tangible’ economic benefits generated by professional sports facilities and franchises are very small,” wrote Coates and Humphreys. “Clearly far smaller than stadium advocates suggest and smaller than the size of the subsidies.”
But even if the surrounding businesses don’t gain much financially, the impact the Rams have on the community may extend elsewhere. The NFL often gives back to the communities they reside in through volunteer services; Play 60 events where the athletes play football related games with children to promote health and fitness; and other community outreach programs.
They have already inspired one youth football team to change their name to the LA Youth Ram Football – which was a direct result of the Rams moving back to Los Angeles. LA Youth Ram head coach Alan Long feels like the return of the Rams will promote positivity towards his youth players.
“They can have hope of playing in the NFL one day,” he said. “I know it’s a long shot, but before it was just a dream to them and now it’s right there at their hands.”
