Gallery: The clean sweep no one sees
Workers begin the postgame cleanup by clearing the team area on the sidelines. After moving the benches, fans and coolers out of the way, workers pick up a tarp protecting the field.
(Tanmay Shankar/Daily Bruin)
The tarp that spans the team area on the sidelines – almost half the field – is rolled up and loaded onto a trolley to be taken into storage.
(Tanmay Shankar/Daily Bruin)
Ice from beverage coolers is dumped on the grass as workers pack up sideline equipment.
(Liz Ketcham/Daily Bruin)
Will Schnell mows the field after the game. He said mowing and sweeping the field takes around two to three hours, and the field is mowed every day.
(Niveda Tennety/Daily Bruin)
As the field is being cleared, workers take to the stands armed with trash bags to pick up litter left behind. With typically more than 36,000 people in attendance at each game, workers spend several hours after the game cleaning the stands.
(Tanmay Shankar/Daily Bruin)
Michael Jenkins, a Rose Bowl staff member, said there are about 100 workers, and it takes about six hours for them to pick up all the trash. “If they win, it’s a slow day. If they lose, it’s a fast day,” he said.
(Niveda Tennety/Daily Bruin)
Recyclables and compostables are sorted into separate trash bags.
(Niveda Tennety/Daily Bruin)
The end-zone net is taken down after each game.
(Tanmay Shankar/Daily Bruin)
The student section is left littered with blue pompoms and debris from food packaging.
(Liz Ketcham/Daily Bruin)
Game patrons leave garbage under the Rose Bowl’s rose-colored seats.
(Liz Ketcham/Daily Bruin)
Edwin Posada walks up and down the stadium benches picking up water bottles left behind by attendees. Posada has been working at the Rose Bowl since January, picking up trash and recycling after games and events.
(Liz Ketcham/Daily Bruin)
Posada is assigned a section to clean up by his supervisor. He starts at the top of the stadium and works his way down, weaving back and forth through the rows. He said he works shifts that are approximately nine hours long. For an event like an evening football game, his shift is from about 6 p.m. to 3 a.m.
(Liz Ketcham/Daily Bruin)
