September day games at Bryant-Denny Stadium split the crowd into two groups: the shaded and the cooked. The field runs almost due north-south, the shade collects on the west sideline, and below is how much of a noon, 3:30 or night Alabama kickoff every area spends in shade, ray-traced for this exact bowl.
Pick your game and kickoff. Watch the shade move across the bowl through the game.
The field runs almost due north-south, so the afternoon sun crosses the bowl broadside. The stands on the west side block it first: that sideline averages about 70% of a 3:30 game in shade against 28% for the east side. Every number here is ray-traced for this exact orientation (3 degrees), latitude and kickoff time, by the same engine as the live map.
Share of a full game spent in shade, by area, for a mid-September Saturday:
| Seats | Noon | 3:30 | 7:00 |
|---|---|---|---|
| East sideline, lower rows | 0% | 37% | 100% |
| East sideline, upper deck | 0% | 19% | 100% |
| West sideline, lower rows | 0% | 71% | 100% |
| West sideline, upper deck | 0% | 69% | 100% |
| North end zone, lower rows | 0% | 51% | 100% |
| North end zone, upper deck | 0% | 33% | 100% |
| South end zone, lower rows | 0% | 51% | 100% |
| South end zone, upper deck | 0% | 33% | 100% |
A 100% cell means that area never sees direct sun that game. The 7:00 column climbs everywhere because the sun sets mid-game.
| Seats | Game in shade | Reaches half shade |
|---|---|---|
| West sideline, lower rows | 71% | about an hour in |
| West sideline, mid level | 71% | about an hour in |
| West sideline, upper deck | 69% | about an hour and a half in |
| North end zone, lower rows | 51% | about 2 hours in |
East sideline, upper deck sit in sun for 81% of a 3:30 game, and East sideline, mid level sit in sun for 73% of a 3:30 game. Noon kickoffs start with the sun about 59 degrees high and nearly every open seat lit. You cannot buy full shade at noon here, only a head start: west sideline, lower rows gain it soonest.
At a 3:30 kickoff the sun stands about 42 degrees up in the southwest. Minute by minute, this is what the model shows: shade climbs the west sideline from the bottom up. The lower rows reach half shade about an hour in, the upper deck about an hour and a half in. That surprises people who assume the top of the stadium shades first. It does not. The stands behind you rise at roughly the same pitch as the afternoon sun, so the front rows drop into shadow first and the shade line walks upward row by row. Even the east sideline, upper deck eventually get there, but not until about 3.5 hours in.
At a 7:00 kickoff the sun starts about -1 degrees up and disappears before halftime, so every area heads to 100% in the night column. When the schedule offers a night game, that is the shade play, not a seat trick.
Shift the same 3:30 game to late October and the numbers move on their own: about 90% shade on the west sideline instead of 70%, with the kickoff sun 14 degrees lower (28 vs 42). November crowds rarely need this page at all.
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These figures come straight from the engine that runs the live map: a 3D bowl model ray-traced against the actual solar path for the dates and kickoffs listed. Overhangs, press boxes and one-off canopies are not modeled, so use the numbers to rank areas, then confirm the exact row on a seat map. Independent tool; not affiliated with the NCAA or any school.
Same conference, same afternoon sun. Shade guides for the rest of the SEC: