All you need to know about going to Thursday’s Gophers football opener vs. North Carolina

Tickets: The Gophers football team is trending toward the second consecutive opening game sellout after playing in front of an announced crowd of 53,629 last August, a 13-10 win vs. Nebraska.

Wardrobe note

The Gophers encourage fans to wear gold as part of the “Gold Out” game for the opener. Every fan entering the game will receive a free gold rally towel.

Pregame

• Tailgate lots open at 2 p.m.

• Golden Gopher Garden featuring music, drinks and giveaways outside of 3M Arena at Mariucci on Oak Street, and the Huntington Bank ticket office both open at 4 p.m.

• At 4:15 p.m., the Gophers’ Ski-U-March begins to welcome the football team into the stadium near Gate C. The university’s Alumni Association hosts its kickoff party at the McNamara Center at 5 p.m. Premium ticket holders can also enter the stadium and access Club Cambria.

• Gates open to the stadium at 5:30 p.m., with lower prices for food and drinks during Gophers Hour at the West Plaza. The Gopher Spirit Rally takes place in front of 3M Arena at 6 p.m. The Minnesota Marching Band takes the field for a performance at 6:40 p.m.

Food

New concessions offerings at Huntington Bank Stadium for the 2024 season are the Chicken, Bacon, Boom Sandwich at Goldy’s Grill (Sections 105 and 131), Chicken Street Tacos & Buffalo Chicken Tacos at Eat, Drink, Taco (Section 140), Minnesota BBQ Dog at Links (Section 109 and 140), Italian Beef Sammy at Portable Food Cart (Section 141) and Short Rib Grilled Cheese at Sizzle (Section 133). Beverage options have expanded, too.

Ordering should be faster and more efficient this year with new concession stands and additional portable beverage kiosks on the main concourse. The north and south sides will also allow fans to order prior to checking out with an open market concept.

Key rule change

NCAA rules now allow one player to receive a radio feed from a coach. That player must have a green dot on the back of the helmet to identify himself. Communication between that player and coach will cease when the play clock reaches 15 seconds or at the snap.

Broadcasts

Jason Benetti, Brock Huard and Allison Williams will call the game for Fox. Mike Grimm, Darrell Thompson and Justin Gaard are back covering the opener for KFAN (100.3-FM).