Originally posted by Oakland-Niner:
Going to TC for the first time this year. I'm taking my son and would like to get his jersey autographed. Do you guys have any reccomendation on how early we should arrive? Being that my son is a quarter Samoan, it would be really nice to get Iupati sig. What are the chances that can happen?
Just keep in mind that not all of the players stick around to sign autographs after practice. Sometimes they are gassed and just want to hit the locker room. Gore usually hits the locker room right after the end of practice, though I have seen him stick around to sign autographs several times. Vernon Davis usually stays on the field after practice so it's hard to get to him as well. I don't know if Iupati will stick around or not. I've only seen Crabtree in one practice, so I don't know how accessible he is. The guy I always see sticking around for the fans is Joe Staley. Smaller names like Michael Robinson, Delanie Walker, Adam Snyder, etc. are easy to get to. Your best bet is to bring a child along and let them get the autograph. They always go to the kids first.
Towards the end of the practice, you'll see a huge crowd starting to form around the entrance to the locker room for autographs. Some of the guys will walk right up to where the fans are sitting and start to sign and they'll make their way around the fencing until they get to the locker room area. You'll have to keep your eye on Iupati to see what he does when practice ends and follow him to get his autograph, if he sticks around to sign.
Some people actually wait at the entrance/exit gate for players and catch them as they're driving out. It works, but I wouldn't recommend it. These guys are probably tired, maybe hungry, and they're obviously trying to go home, so catching them as they drive out might irritate them and you might be disappointed by their reaction.
[ Edited by 49erRider on Jul 28, 2010 at 5:20 PM ]