INGLEWOOD, Calif. — In the South, tailgating and football may go hand-in-hand but football fans are learning that will not be the case for Monday night's National Championship in Los Angeles -- and some Dawgs fans already out there aren't happy about that decision.
Whether they're in Athens or Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta or on the road to see their Bulldogs play, Georgia fans bring their passion and their grills.
It's not football season unless they're tailgating. Except that won't happen out in the parking lots of SoFi Stadium, where Georgia plays its biggest game of the year.
Bulldog fan Nichole Pryor said true Dawg fans understand the passion behind a good tailgate
"I think it's just kind of like in the DNA of SEC football and SEC football fans," Pryor explained. "It's part of the game day experience and it's a great memory."
Fans can bring in coolers and keep them within their parking space, but no tents or grills in SoFi Stadium parking lots on the day of the game will be allowed.
To some, it's blasphemy or sacrilege. It's as if Bulldog fans have been asked to leave their hearts at home.
Several fans expressed their discontent on social media with the following tweets:
- "It's going to take the National Guard to stop it," one fan said
- "From now on let's make sure the game isn't in a place that doesn't allow tailgating," another fan tweeted.
The decision wasn't handed down by the stadium, nor the city, however. It was one made by the College Football Playoff and Executive Director Bill Hancock. Hancock said it's so the CFP "can operate the parking operations efficiently."
There will be a corporate-sponsored tailgate in one area for ticketholders and off-site tailgates are still allowed.
Still, to some Georgia fans, it's like holding the biggest game without one of the biggest elements.