Mercedes-Benz Stadium officials said that they will "look for ways to improve egress after fans reported difficulty getting out of the stadium" at the end of Monday's Tennessee-Georgia Tech game, according to Tim Tucker of the ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION. Some fans "complained on social media of clogged concourses and backed-up gates as they tried to walk out of the stadium, with several raising potential safety concerns." One fan said that it took "more than 30 minutes to get from his seat to outside the gates." Mercedes-Benz Stadium GM Scott Jenkins said that the "down-to-the-last-play nature of Monday's double-overtime game, which resulted in almost all of the 75,000 fans attempting to leave at the same time, and the unfamiliarity with the new stadium contributed to the problem." Tucker notes the stadium has four main gates plus "entrances for suites and clubs on the north side." In addition, Jenkins said that there are "other ways to exit the stadium that fans may not have been aware of, such as two stair towers on the west side." The two Chick-fil-A Kickoff games over Labor Day weekend "drew crowds of 76,330 and 75,107, far more than had been in the stadium for either of two Falcons exhibition games." Jenkins walked behind the departing crowd Monday night to "observe the exit flow, and he acknowledged improvement is needed" (AJC.com, 9/6).
