Purdue Football opens its second season under Barry Odom on Friday night against Indiana State, and the first home game at Ross-Ade Stadium comes with a fresh set of arrival rules for fans heading to the 103rd season at the stadium. Boilermaker Crossing in Weist Plaza, shuttles and media gates all open 3 hours before kickoff, with the Team Walk on Tiller Drive starting 2 hours and 15 minutes before the game.
The rest of the timeline tightens from there. The Pavilion at Gate K opens 2 hours before kickoff, Gate B opens to Ross-Ade Brigade members 1 hour and 45 minutes before kickoff, and all general public gates open 1 hour and 30 minutes before kickoff. Purdue will take the field 5 minutes before kickoff, entering through Tiller Tunnel in the northeast corner of Ross-Ade Stadium. The home opener is set for Sept. 4 at 7 p.m.
That schedule matters because Purdue Athletics is using digital tickets only for all home events, and fans who want paper versions can have digital tickets printed for $40 each at the Hayes Family Athletics Ticket Office on the east side of Mackey Arena. The parking setup is different too: ADA parking is now available in Armory and O-Lot, while H-Lot is reserved for season ticket holders and JPC members only. New parking options are also available in Purdue West and M-Lot, and for the Friday games this fall, lots north of Stadium Ave and grass lots open at 12 p.m., while lots south of Stadium Ave open at 3 p.m.
One line of the game-day plan is harder to square than the rest. Gates A and B are still listed as entrances for students only, but students must enter through Gates A or B to receive a wristband for access to the student section, and anyone without that wristband will be removed. Students who miss those two gates do not get another route in, which makes those entry points the only thing standing between a student and a seat in the section. The south end zone patio remains open to the general public.
For Purdue, the timing also frames the rest of the month. Two home games will be played on Friday nights this fall, and the same timeline will be used for Indiana State and Washington, which means the early parking openings, gate times and student-entry rules are not a one-off for the opener. Ahead of the 2024 season, Purdue Athletics announced a partnership with KultureCity to make Ross-Ade Stadium sensory inclusive, and that means the first Friday crowd of the year will also be the first to use the updated setup in full.
