Fans chasing the best view of the NFL Draft stage on the North Shore baked on open concrete — settling in for an eight-hour wait in the heat Thursday.
Still, many claimed a spot and did their best to get comfortable after the NFL Draft Experience gates opened at noon. The first round of the draft was scheduled for 8 p.m. and temperatures hovered around 80 degrees.
“Oh, this is nothing,” said Josh Keith, a 26-year-old Pittsburgh native, sitting next to his younger brother David, 18, toward the front of the stage. “We’ve been waiting like a year for this. So it’s not a big deal to wait a few hours so we can actually see the guys when they [are] up there.”
An hour before the NFL Draft Experience opened, lines wrapped around Acrisure Stadium and the lots behind Kamin Science Center, stretching nearly to Reedsdale Street by noon.
Bengals fans Maggie McDonald and Jason Tremba of Salem, Ohio, arrived early expecting gridlock but got in quickly. Parking was the real shock, with some spots hitting $150.
“Now that we are out here, though, I have a feeling that this line is going to move quickly and once it starts moving, we will actually make it inside,” Jason Tremba said, as the couple counted down the minutes remaining for the doors to open.
Along the front barricade — still a few hundred feet from the main stage behind rows of reserved seating — Steelers fans filled nearly every spot.
Sisters Carla and Julianne Lenehan of Glenshaw, meanwhile, claimed a patch of concrete at the rail, settling in to lock down their view.
“We are here with a big group, so we are each going to take turns saving this spot while the rest of them walk around,” Julianne said while applying the third layer of sunscreen to her legs. “We weren’t going to do all of this planning to come down here for this and not see the Steelers pick live.”
Most fans, however, opted to avoid the stage waiting area, stopping by for photo opportunities before exploring other venues.
“We aren’t going to stand out here and wait the entire eight hours,” said Donavan Brown, a Los Angeles Rams fan who traveled from California. “We got our pictures and we are going to be back later tonight. … They got these huge screens so we aren’t worried about seeing the stage, and I heard they’re streaming it at a bunch of the locations.”
A couple of feet away, childhood best friends — Dallas Cowboys fan Josiah Davies, 19, and Las Vegas Raiders fan Donte Michaelson, 20, both of Pittsburgh — claimed their spots along the side of the stage.
“It’s not too bad because we can trade off to go to the bathroom and get food and stuff,” Davies said. “The hours will go by quick and then we can actually see them instead of having to look at other people’s heads.”