Steelers fans travel well. Of course, so did 49ers fans during these first two road games. Head coach Kyle Shanahan and quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo are expecting — maybe hoping — to see a sea of red on Sunday, not black and yellow.
Shanahan understands that the 49ers haven't given fans much to celebrate over the past two seasons, which makes it tougher to entice fans to spend tons of money to head over to the stadium and sit in the heat.
"I'm expecting it to be a strong 49ers crowd," Shanahan told reporters before Wednesday's practice.
Added Shanahan: "I don't think we've given our fans a lot to be excited about in the two years I've been here at home or the years prior, but when we have, I think our stadium has been loud."
Shanahan remembers the loud Levi's Stadium crowd in 2017 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, when the 49ers were already well-eliminated from playoff contention. He remembers noisy home crowds against the Oakland Raiders and Seattle Seahawks last year.
"I think our fans come ready, and if we come ready, I think we'll be very happy about our home-field advantage," Shanahan said.
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo knows what it's like to face the Steelers and their fans. He witnessed the atmosphere twice while with the New England Patriots — once at home (2015) and once on the road (2016).
"I think our home crowd is awesome," Garoppolo said of the Niner Faithful. "I mean, these last two games in Tampa and Cincinnati especially, it turned into a home game with all the red out there. It was fun. So yeah, I would expect a great atmosphere this Sunday, and I hope the crowd is rocking."
Shanahan and the 49ers are excited to return to Levi's Stadium after the recent road trip.
"I love when you give momentum to the fans and stuff," Shanahan said. "Hopefully, they're excited for us coming back, and it's the first game of the year. Hopefully, they're excited with it [being] the first game and that we are 2-0. And I hope we come out there and play well because of it.
"I know our guys are pumped to be back. We've been on the road for a while, and this will be our first game in the stadium this year, and we plan on it being a good year in our stadium."
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