California vs UCLA sellout matchup brings another sour reminder for USC attendance struggles

As UCLA and California are set to renew a former Pac-12 rivalry on Saturday night at California Memorial Stadium in a nonconference matchup, it’s estimated to be an intense environment.

Hours before kickoff, Cal announced that the game will feature a sellout crowd of over 60,000 fans in attendance.

The large number of fans in attendance comes a year after California averaged 35,000 fans per home game and hasn’t had an attendance of over 60,000 in the building since 2015, when it hosted Grambling State.

With a highly anticipated matchup set to take place, California announced a week ago that it would remove the tarps that covered the seats in the south end zone of Memorial Stadium.

The news of California vs. UCLA marking a sellout crowd comes after two weeks of scrutiny over fan attendance for the USC Trojans, as they’ve been dealing with a low turnout from the fan base at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

On Saturday morning, The Post reported that while the school announced a crowd of 51,144 for its Week 0 opener against San Jose State and a 53,014 figure in Friday night’s Week 1 game against Fresno State, those numbers were inaccurate.

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The Post found out that 35,575 showed up for the hot, humid afternoon game against San Jose State, with the scan count rising to 45,833 against Fresno State.

There is a size difference between California Memorial Stadium and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, as USC’s home stadium holds 77,500. It’s about a 24,486 difference in the numbers.

Aside from USC struggling to fill the Coliseum, UCLA has faced its fair share of fan attendance issues over the years, as the Bruins averaged 37,282 fans per game last season in a Rose Bowl venue that could host over 90,000 people per game.

In the Rose Bowl, the Bruins have also been covering parts of the seating sections, as the upper decks of both end zones have been covered during UCLA football games since 2021.

As UCLA is set to kick off its season against California, it’ll be a new beginning for the Bruins, as it will be head coach Bob Chesney’s debut with the Bruins.

The Golden Bears will also have a coaching debut: Former Oregon defensive coordinator and Walnut Creek native Tosh Lupoi is making his debut as a head coach.