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The Gamecocks are playing their 2026 home opener against Kent State Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium, and tens of thousands of fans will descend on the stadium for the 12:45 p.m. kickoff.
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It’s also Labor Day weekend, and millions of people across the country have travel plans for the holiday, according to an analysis by AAA.
Whether you’re a football fan headed to Williams-Brice, trying to get out of town for the weekend holiday, or just trying to get across Columbia on Saturday, here’s what you should know about the weekend traffic.
Saturday will probably be a traffic nightmare
More than 77,000 Gamecocks fans will descend upon Columbia this Saturday for the sold-out Gamecocks home opener against Kent State.
With kick-off at 12:45, Columbians should expect the Saturday traffic to start early.
Gamecock Village, the official tailgating hub at Williams-Brice, opens 4.5 hours before the game begins.
The area around the stadium already sees tens of thousands of vehicles on a normal day, and the influx of traffic will almost certainly cause delays on roads around Williams-Brice and the state fairgrounds.
The sold-out home opener also coincides with the travel-heavy Labor Day weekend. An analysis by AAA anticipates heavy holiday traffic to occur between 1 and 5 p.m. Saturday.
Allen University’s Yellow Jackets is also holding its home opener Saturday against Florida Memorial University Lions. Kick-off for that game is at 4 p.m., at Allen’s C.F. Bolden Stadium, located northeast of downtown Columbia.
Also happening Saturday: Columbia’s weekly Soda City Market, which runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and closes a large portion of Main Street downtown.
Regardless of where you’re headed, make sure your A/C is working and that you have plenty of water. Temperatures are expected to stretch toward 100 degrees Saturday, with a “feels-like” temperature around 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
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Traffic won’t flow normally around the stadium
If you’re driving anywhere near Williams-Brice on Saturday, don’t assume the roads will work the way they normally do. SCHP will adjust traffic patterns before and after the game, including reversing lanes to help get fans into and out of the stadium.
A couple of hours before kick-off, lanes around the stadium will be reversed, so traffic can flow into the stadium. After the game, those lanes will be reversed again to help traffic flow out of the stadium.
Check the pregame and post-game traffic maps below so you know what to expect.
Where to park
USC recommends buying single-game parking in advance. Gamecock Park has 200 game-day spaces for $40 cash, available first-come, first-served.
USC will also run gameday shuttles Saturday, starting at 8:45 a.m. The service is free for students with a CarolinaCard. For the general public, surface-lot parking costs $20 and a round-trip shuttle costs $5.
Private property owners around Williams-Brice also regularly sell parking spaces at their businesses and yards on game days, for varying prices.
Many fans also opt to park further away from the stadium, and either walk or take a ride in one of the many “golf cart taxis” that operate around the stadium on gamedays.
The State Fairgrounds’ 2026 season football parking is sold out.
Not going to the game? How to avoid at least some of the traffic
Officials advise those not going to Williams-Brice Saturday to avoid the stadium area if possible. Bluff Road, George Rogers Boulevard, Shop Road and Assembly Street will see heavy game-day traffic, with traffic patterns changing before and after kickoff. Rosewood Drive is also often busy with “golf-cart taxi” traffic.
If you’re trying to get across Columbia, I-77 can help you bypass the stadium area. Labor Day weekend traffic is also expected to increase traffic into and out of Columbia Saturday.
The South Carolina Highway Patrol is asking residents and visitors to “pack your patience” ahead of the busy weekend.
You can check 511SC.org for current traffic conditions, crashes and road closures.
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