It won't be the crowd size Aggies want, but Texas A&M will have the largest home opener of any Texas football team this season.
That's because Kyle Field will allow up to 27,500 fans fans at Saturday's game against Vanderbilt, which is 25% of its 110,000 capacity. No other Texas stadium is offering as many seats this season because of COVID-19 regulations and social distancing. The University of Texas capped its capacity at 25,000, but only 15,337 attended the Longhorns' season opener against UTEP.
The Aggies are confident that the smaller crowd won't hold the team back.
“That’s our job as coaches and players to make the atmosphere. That’s what we have to worry about right now. Can’t depend on the crowd," said coach Jimbo Fisher.
"Don’t mean this in a bad way, but (you) should never depend on the crowd. That’s just a bonus. Can’t rely on them to get you there. They help you, they bonus you, you love them, you want to play for them, but as a competitive athlete, you have to bring your own energies and abilities and focus to play at a high level.”
Fans will not be screened for the coronavirus or have their temperatures taken before entering Kyle Field. They will have to wear masks and socially distance though.
“We really just want to use a common-sense approach,” Texas A&M Athletic Director Ross Bjork told KBTX. "I think the core values the spirit of Aggies, they’re rule followers. So let’s follow the rules. Let’s wear the mask.”
Texas A&M has a sanitizing drone for the football season, too. It'll spray down the seats with sanitizer since it'll be quicker than decontaminating thousands of seats by hand.
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