The long wait is now over.
Milan Puskar Stadium is set to return to 100-percent fan capacity this fall with full stadium operating procedures. It’s a gust of fresh air for the day-game experience inside the stadium as with that news also means the return of pre-game tailgating and the experience we’ve all come to know.
The 2020 season was the most unique that I have ever covered since arriving on the beat with game cancelations, stadiums with next to no fans in the stands and all interview sessions conducted on zoom. This news should help things return to normal with the complete game-day experience set to return.
University, local and state health officials worked with West Virginia over the past year to devise a plan of attack to approach the COVID-19 pandemic and while it required patience we have reached a point where we can begin to get back to the customary Mountaineers game-day.
I can’t begin to stress to you all how strange it was to sit inside a near empty stadium to cover a sport that thrives on the environment that the fans produce or to see a near empty Blue Lot without the activity that comes with a football Saturday. It was a strange chapter, but one that now seems to be closed as more and more people continued to be vaccinated.
Truthfully, I thought this would be the result after summer camps returned to a sense of normal and I had my first face-to-face interactions with people in a work related setting in over a year. But that doesn’t make it any less exciting to have things now out in the open.
The news was announced by Director of Athletics Shane Lyons in a release and sent a wave of euphoria to a fan base that has been patiently waiting for this news.
“I want to thank our fans for their patience and understanding throughout the past year,” Lyons said. “Not only is this great news for Mountaineer Nation and our student-athletes, but it adds to the excitement and anticipation for Mountaineer football. A full stadium of 60,000 fans is exactly what our team deserves, and what our fans have been wanting.”
All other athletic events are set to return to 100-percent capacity as well beginning in August, but with football just around the corner receiving this news is a major boost heading into the dog days of summer with fans anxiously looking forward to the fall.
Tailgating and gathering with friends and family is a major part of what makes the game-day experience for so many fans. The game is of course the centerpiece, but the pageantry of it all is part of the event and makes it such a special day to spend a Saturday in the Mountain State.
And with a six-game schedule that has plenty of interesting games such as Virginia Tech, Iowa State, Oklahoma State and Texas, excitement is unquestionably building for the season.
It’s good to be back and I think I can speak for all of us when I say that.
----------
• Talk about it with West Virginia fans on The Blue Lot.
• SUBSCRIBE today to stay up on the latest on Mountaineer sports and recruiting.
• Get all of our WVU videos on YouTube by subscribing to the WVSports.com Channel
• Follow us on Twitter: @WVSportsDotCom, @rivalskeenan, @JaredSerre
•Like us on Facebook
