NFL to bring big changes for USC

Sundays on and around USC’s campus are typically regarded as tranquil, but things are about to drastically change over the next few years.

After a 21-year hiatus, the NFL is finally returning to Los Angeles following Tuesday’s vote by owners to move the Rams from St. Louis back home to the city of Angels. The final approval also gave the San Diego Chargers the option to make the move to L.A. and share the new Inglewood stadium, a $2 billion-plus project that is expected to be ready to use by 2019, with the Rams.

In the meantime, all signs point to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum serving as the temporary home of at least one of these teams, almost certainly the Rams, for the next couple of years before their permanent home is completed.

The Coliseum, which is managed and operated by USC, is scheduled to go through a proposed $270 million in upgrades expected to begin at the start of the 2017 season and would financially benefit from hosting an NFL team or two in order to fund those renovations.

According to Athletic Director Pat Haden, who quarterbacked the Rams back in the late 1970s, USC’s lease with the Coliseum Commission would need to be amended in order to approve a second team because the current lease only allows one NFL team to play in the Coliseum at any given time.

The Coliseum has forever served as the host for the USC football team on Saturdays and occasional Thursdays, and has not been the home to a professional team since 1994.

Nonetheless, USC’s campus, which is less than a half mile south of the Coliseum, needs to get ready for the storm that is going to hit on Sundays beginning in September 2016.

Stadium noise, traffic and tens of thousands of people in the surrounding area are just a few of the inconveniences that will likely take their toll on USC students trying to circumvent campus on NFL game days.

These types of logistical challenges are going to be present regardless of where the team(s) play in L.A., but in this case, it’s going to directly impact student life at USC in the fall.

While most students set aside their academics for USC home games and renowned tailgates on campus, Sundays are a whole different animal.

At least for the time that I’ve attended USC, many students have typically used Sundays as a day to catch up on their studies, whether it be individually or by meeting with fellow students on campus to collaborate.

Yes, students now have the option of rolling out of bed, walking less than a mile and getting a double dose of football in person on some weekends, but it could potentially be disruptive to others who have different priorities.

Though it’s just temporary, the Coliseum very well might be the closest NFL-College Football shared stadium to a college campus so it’s just important that steps are taken to address any possible issues concerning the community that may arise. That’s because for USC, the pros absolutely outweigh the cons in the Coliseum functioning as a temporary home site.

Angelenos have been waiting more than two decades to see professional football return to their city and it’s USC that is going to have the honor of putting its stamp on the initial stages of what’s just the beginning of a new era for the NFL in L.A. It doesn’t hurt at all that USC Athletics will also be bringing in a little extra cash to help finance the new look of the Coliseum.

I will have already graduated by the time fans start to head down to Exposition Park to watch the Rams and perhaps, the Chargers, play at the Coliseum, but I’m hoping that USC takes measures to ensure that the big business that the NFL carries along with it doesn’t undermine the undergraduate experience for students.

Darian Nourian is a senior majoring in print and digital journalism. His column, “Persian Persuasion,” runs every other Thursday.