Atlanta

Here's how to spot fake tickets to the SEC Championship

ATLANTA — The Georgia Bulldogs and Auburn Tigers are preparing to face off in the SEC Championship Saturday in Atlanta. The big game will be held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Hundreds of fake tickets were sold to the college football games at Mercedes-Benz Stadium earlier this season.

"For the kickoff game here on Labor Day weekend, there were hundreds and hundreds (of fake tickets). Too many to count. We expect the same thing this weekend based on what we've seen already," said Jim Sullivan, the SEC director of ticket operation.

Tickets for the title game are currently selling for $300 to $3,000.

Sullivan showed Channel 2's Berndt Petersen what to look for to make sure a ticket is real.

"If you rub your finger over the white letters, or in the blue panels, they're raised and laminated and you can feel it with your finger," Sullivan said.

He said to also look at the back of the ticket for a holographic image.

"If you slowly turn the ticket, an SEC logo will appear and disappear because it's a hologram. Counterfeit tickets will have an SEC logo, but it's not a hologram. They won't disappear when you turn the ticket," he said.

There will be scalpers for the game, but they must stay 2,700 feet away from the stadium.

"It's illegal to sell tickets on the site, so people shouldn't come down here thinking they're going to do that," Sullivan said.

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Stadium general manager Scott Jenkins said the 70,000 fans expected to attend the game may be the biggest crowd for the venue to date.

Stadium officials said NFL-style security will be in place for the game. Jenkins said fans should arrive early because lines at the metal detectors could be long.

The NFL's clear bag policy will also be in place. Jenkins suggests not to bring  a bag at all. He said police officers and police dogs will be around.

He also said drones are strictly prohibited.

"Drones are becoming more common and obviously they pose some level of threat. We don't like them. They're not supposed to be here. Don't be putting your drone up around here. It's a no-fly zone. People should be aware of that," Jenkins said.