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How realistic is the idea of playing a game to a 1/4 capacity stadium?

Posted on 5/25/20 at 11:55 am
Posted by BamaGradinTn
Murfreesboro
Member since Dec 2008
26950 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 11:55 am
I continue to see articles like this one and talking heads go on about the idea of limiting stadium attendance to 1/4 capacity, and it makes me seriously question whether some of these people have even attended a college football game. To me it seems like an entirely unworkable solution. The Ohio State AD says they can use their point system to allocate tickets...but does he seriously think that, and "implementing social distancing", is all there is to it?

Just from a manpower standpoint, crowd enforcement is next to impossible. Let's take Georgia-Alabama @ BDS. 25,000 fans. Instead of a normal 5,000 visitor allotment, Georgia gets 1,250. There will likely be thousands more who show up on campus.

Start with the students. Does anyone in their right mind think that the students are going to stay six feet apart from each other? Guys and their dates? Drunk frat guys? Then take all the rednecks sitting in the upper reaches of the NN and SS enzone sections...they're just going to stay there when there are hundreds and hundreds of empty seats between the 30 yard lines? I doubt that Alabama, LSU, Tennessee, etc., have the manpower to deploy in the stadium to keep people seated where they are supposed to.

Then, how about the bands? I was never in the band, but having 350 band members seated 6 feet apart doesn't seem workable.

What about pre-game? Does Alabama have enough manpower to stop this from happening? What about the Vol Walk and Tiger Walk, etc? How do you stop a crowd of thousands from massing together? Then throw in tailgating. Entering and leaving the stadium. Etc., etc., etc.

It seems to me that limiting crowd size is just a knee jerk reaction and hasn't seriously been thought out to any great degree. I think ultimately what should and will happen is that, if Georgia comes to Tuscaloosa on September 19, Alabama will sell 102,000 tickets, and people will simply be told to stay home if they feel it isn't safe. People will simply have to be responsible for their own decisons. It will become an assumed risk that goes with buying a ticket, which will include a disclaimer, similar to those on an MLB ticket covering injury from a foul ball.

Most of my experience has obviously been at BDS, but I've been to almost every other stadium in the conference. You can limit ticket sales, but I don't see how you can limit the number of people who show up on campus or how you enforce crowd behavior inside. I'd be interested to see what others think about how workable this idea is on your campus.
Posted by lewis and herschel
Member since Nov 2009
11363 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 11:56 am to
No go. Too many problems
Posted by AHM21
Member since Feb 2008
24444 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 11:57 am to
I agree.

Play in empty stadiums.
Posted by tylerdurden24
Member since Sep 2009
46385 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 11:57 am to
There would be no bands, no students, and no visitor allotments.

Tickets would go to highest paying donors on down with understanding that nobody will be able to sit in their normal seat per distancing requirements. It’s that or they try to split up games so that all season ticket holders get to go to at least a couple of games.
This post was edited on 5/25/20 at 11:58 am
Posted by BamaGradinTn
Murfreesboro
Member since Dec 2008
26950 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:03 pm to
quote:

no students,

LIterally no university wlll do this.

quote:

no bands,

Yeah, that ain't happening either.

quote:

no visitor allotments

Nor would UGA sit still and let this happen on 9/19.

quote:

with understanding that nobody will be able to sit in their normal seat per distancing requirements.

Not enforceable if 25,000 fans decide not to. No university has the manpower.
This post was edited on 5/25/20 at 12:05 pm
Posted by craigbiggio
Member since Dec 2009
31805 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:03 pm to
Texas am did this for years
Posted by Poncho and Lefty
Guntersville, AL
Member since Jul 2018
834 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:04 pm to
Better than an empty stadium, imho.
Posted by BamaGradinTn
Murfreesboro
Member since Dec 2008
26950 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:04 pm to
quote:

Better than an empty stadium, imho.



I'm not disagreeing...I'm just saying it's not workable.
Posted by tylerdurden24
Member since Sep 2009
46385 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:13 pm to
quote:

LIterally no university wlll do this.

Most universities don’t even give all their students tickets to games, it’s not a bridge too far for schools to say this season alone they’re not selling student tickets due to inability to police those crowds and in exchange not charge an athletics fee.

quote:

Yeah, that ain't happening either.

Excluding bands will be the first and easiest thing to eliminate.

quote:

Nor would UGA sit still and let this happen on 9/19.

The conference as a whole will agree to waive visiting allotments If it means more opportunity for individual schools to appease their own donors. UGA could be pissy about 9/19 but you’re fooling yourself if you don’t think Bama would prefer to have 25k tickets to give to their 25k top donors for that game. UGA will fee the same for the Auburn game a couple of weeks later.

quote:

Not enforceable if 25,000 fans decide not to. No university has the manpower.

It’s absolutely enforceable with a small crowd spread throughout the stadium. Most schools manage bigger crowds at spring games.

To be clear, I hate all of this and I think it’s going to take the shine off the season if this happens (CFB games without students and bands and crowd noise is hardly CFB) but when you have reduced supply, the first people athletic programs are going to take care of are the folks writing the checks. This has nothing to do with what might be right or good and has everything to do with staying afloat fiscally (especially if schools have to issue refunds for season tickets they can’t honor)
This post was edited on 5/25/20 at 12:17 pm
Posted by Mithridates6
Member since Oct 2019
8220 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:15 pm to
No way to enforce pre- and post-game scenes
Posted by tylerdurden24
Member since Sep 2009
46385 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:20 pm to
quote:

No way to enforce pre- and post-game scenes

This is the single hardest issue. Ingress and egress are particularly difficult as is and then you start adding in social distancing measures and potential temperature checks, mask checks, bag checks, etc

Tailgating on campuses and hosting recruits is also a whole other issue that has to be sorted out. As a conference do you allow on campus recruiting to happen for schools deemed safe but not others? Do you just let the schools police themselves? For tailgating, do schools allow some tailgating but not a lot? How do you police the placement of set ups and control crowds coming onto campus?
Posted by lastfan
Houston
Member since Nov 2015
7732 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:22 pm to
The whole thing sounds like one giant clusterfk.
Posted by walley tux
DFW
Member since May 2020
794 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:23 pm to
by september we'll be looking back on these types of articles and laughing and the dems will be trying to shift the narrative to trump over reacted.

we'll play football with fans this fall.
Posted by CGSC Lobotomy
Member since Sep 2011
79876 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:23 pm to
quote:

Texas am did this for years


Link?
Posted by tylerdurden24
Member since Sep 2009
46385 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:26 pm to
While bringing players back in June 8th is a sign of hope, we all need to be prepared for the shitshow ahead. For all the planning that is happening, big questions will have to be answered when one or more players test positive during a season (inevitable) and when multiple people who attended a game get sick and contact tracing leads it back to the stadium. Even if/when the season kicks off, it’s going to be week by week hoping it can keep going as new challenges arise. I think it can but it’s going to take. Lot of cooperation and timely action to make it happen
Posted by genuineLSUtiger
Nashville
Member since Sep 2005
72827 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:26 pm to
Time to just shut it down for 2020 and look to next year
Posted by tylerdurden24
Member since Sep 2009
46385 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:29 pm to
quote:

by september we'll be looking back on these types of articles and laughing and the dems will be trying to shift the narrative to trump over reacted.

So long as State public health departments deem this to still be a threat, it’s going to remain an issue for schools and athletic departments looking to avoid lawsuits. Player and fan welfare is important not just for PR reasons but for legal reasons as well. Lot of unchartered territory being traversed right now which makes big entities nervous.
Posted by BamaGradinTn
Murfreesboro
Member since Dec 2008
26950 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:36 pm to
quote:

It’s absolutely enforceable with a small crowd spread throughout the stadium. Most schools manage bigger crowds at spring games.



Seriously? Have you ever been to a spring game? Because I've been to a few, and I can tell you that there is absolutely ZERO management of the crowd at Alabama. 60,000-90,000 people literally sitting where they want, first come-first serve, with no management whatsoever. How, exactly, do you suggest the university stop thousands of people from moving?
Posted by prisonpunk
Member since Dec 2013
1598 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:38 pm to
They may try it one time, and I agree fans will sit where they want to and nobody can enforce social distancing. After that, no more fans at all, empty stadiums.
Posted by BamaGradinTn
Murfreesboro
Member since Dec 2008
26950 posts
Posted on 5/25/20 at 12:40 pm to
quote:

So long as State public health departments deem this to still be a threat, it’s going to remain an issue for schools and athletic departments looking to avoid lawsuits.


Not at all. Is there a threat of getting a fractured eye socket from being hit by a foul ball if you sit down the third baseline at an MLB game? Contracting COVID will become a standard assumed risk when you go to a ball game, concert, etc. The ticket you buy will have the language clearly worded in contract.
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