Puka Nacua shared his insights on how the Rams feel like the away team when they host the 49ers at SoFI Stadium.
One of the more provocative elements about the Los Angeles Rams moving back to Southern California was how hoards of San Francisco 49ers fans would attend games when the two NFC West rivals squared off against each other when L.A. was the home team.
It's not just because the Niners are a bigger national brand. It also helps many a San Francisco fan has either grown up or relocated to Southern California over the years.
Quarterback Matthew Stafford's wife, Kelly, already acknowledged the "49ers takeover" of SoFI Stadium, the Rams' home venue, during a game in 2021.
Needless to say, she's not the only one.
Puka Nacua opens up about 49ers fans dominating SoFI Stadium
Los Angeles' up-and-coming star wide receiver Puka Nacua shared his thoughts on the NFC West rivalry, particularly when the two teams square off at SoFI Stadium.
Speaking on former NFL wide receiver Julian Edelman's Games with Names Podcast, Nacua admitted it was hard to adjust to the boos from the overwhelmingly Niners-centric fans all donned in red during an L.A. home game:
"And when you come out to the pregame, everyone’s wearing red. Like, the lower bowl is already filled up and everybody in the stadium’s wearing red. I'm like, ‘Yo, this is supposed to be our first home game.’ And everybody’s like, ‘Get used to it. When we play the Niners, everybody shows up wearing red.’ Just a sea of red. It was crazy. Come out and do the intros and it’s like, ‘Are people cheering or is everybody booing?’ It’s just random noise and like, ‘Boooo.’ I’m like, ‘What the heck? It doesn’t feel right.’ Because in high school, in college at BYU home games, you go to some crazy stadiums, but this is our home field. Everybody is wearing the opposite color of what we’re supposed to be wearing. But the intro, I remember, took me for a whirlwind of being like, ‘Yo, they just called my name and we just got booed.’ Our whole intro, everybody got booed. ‘This can’t be real, right?’”"
You can watch the full interview below:
Well, it is real. Very real.
Various estimates have suggested as many as two-thirds of fans attending 49ers-Rams games at SoFI Stadium are rooting for the red and gold.
That'd probably explain the noise levels when something good happens for the Niners, or the loud noise when L.A. is on offense.
And it's hard to envision that changing anytime soon.