President Donald Trump was greeted with thunderous applause and cheers on Monday when he arrived at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, to attend the 2020 College Football Playoff National Championship game between No. 1 LSU and No. 3 Clemson.
As Trump and First Lady Melania Trump walked onto the field, they were greeted with overwhelming cheers and chants of “USA” broke out among the fans in attendance.
WATCH:
The crowd went absolutely wild for @realDonaldTrump
and @FLOTUS
at the College Football National Championship game as they walked onto the field.Chants of "USA" broke out.
This is America.#LSUvsCLEM pic.twitter.com/dEn6MjDai8
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) January 14, 2020
USA Today tweeted out a video that was taken from a different place in the stadium that showed that the cheers were even louder than they appeared on the broadcast of the game.
WATCH:
The reaction inside Mercedes-Benz Superdome to President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump walked onto the field. pic.twitter.com/DgbWxvy6cW
— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) January 14, 2020
Before leaving the White House for the game on Monday, Trump told reporters, “It’ll be a great game. It’ll be something that a lot of people want to see. And we’ll be in New Orleans, and we look forward to it.”
In November, Trump was greeted with thundering applause when he attended a rivalry game between LSU and Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
WATCH:
President @realDonaldTrump and @FLOTUS Melania at the #LSUvsBAMA game!🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/eI7vzbJcsL
— Dan Scavino Jr.🇺🇸 (@Scavino45) November 9, 2019
Last year, Trump hosted the Clemson Tigers at the White House after they beat the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 2019 College Football Playoff National Championship game.
Trump tweeted, “Great being with the National Champion Clemson Tigers last night at the White House. Because of the Shutdown I served them massive amounts of Fast Food (I paid), over 1000 hamburgers etc. Within one hour, it was all gone. Great guys and big eaters!”
Great being with the National Champion Clemson Tigers last night at the White House. Because of the Shutdown I served them massive amounts of Fast Food (I paid), over 1000 hamburgers etc. Within one hour, it was all gone. Great guys and big eaters!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 15, 2019
The media and other opponents of the president criticized Trump for serving the players fast food, that he paid for, during their visit. However, the players loved the gesture, including Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence, who told TMZ, “It was awesome. We had McDonalds and everything. It was good!”
In a preview of Monday night’s game, CBS News wrote, “The matchup of two 14-0 juggernauts pits the nation’s top scoring offense in LSU against the top scoring defense in Clemson, and it’s headlined by Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Joe Burrow going up against Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence, who is undefeated (25-0) as a collegiate starter. For LSU, this season has included major leaps forward for coach Ed Orgeron’s program, including snapping an eight-game losing streak to SEC West rival Alabama and winning the SEC title for the first time since 2011.”
“Epic battles and dominant wins against some of the best teams in the country have given LSU fans a feeling that they’re rooting for a team of destiny, a feeling only reinforced by the Louisiana-based title game,” CBS News added. “Clemson enters its fourth national title game as an underdog to an SEC foe … for a fourth time. The defending national champions are seeking their third title win of the playoff era, this after opening the season at No. 1 and being passed in the rankings by three different teams. Dabo Swinney’s squad has an opportunity not only to finish as the unquestioned champions but to continue one of the greatest runs in college football history with a 30-0 record since the start of the 2018 season.”
This report has been updated to include additional information.