BRYAN, TX — Texas A&M hits the road this weekend as they go up against Alabama at Bryant Denny stadium and the Texas A&M athletics department is taking the time to reflect on the first home game day do’s and dont's.
”Just to have the game was a huge milestone and we’re very happy that it happened,” said Kevin Hurley, senior Associate Athletic Director for Texas A&M.
Texas A&M overcame a milestone with their first home game, an opportunity they weren’t sure they would have.
”Making sure people were wearing their masks and making sure people were staying socially distanced and I think we did a good job but I think we can do better and that will be our biggest focus,” said Hurley.
As they prepare for their second home game the athletics department is pushing one main message.
”In order to have game two we did what we needed to do now in order to have game three we got to get better in our masks and social distancing, so they’ll be a big push to try and get everyone on board with that thought process,” said Hurley.
Communication is key and that is what the athletics department will be utilizing to spread the message of encouraged game day guidelines.
”We sure want to reward good behavior, you’re going to see a video board, you’re going to see social media, you’re going to see public addressed announcements. You’re going to see all that kind of thing that will have one consistent drum beat, which is wear your mask,” said Hurley.
Even with the added changes to the game day, students like Kassy Cooper say they felt as one with their fellow Aggies as they swayed arm and arm.
”It kind of added a whole other component to the spirit of Aggieland like gathering in Kyle Field and wearing a mask with everybody else and like just hooking arms and still like swaying back and forth and like we’re still the Aggie family and we’re going to get through it together,” said Kassy Cooper
Learning as an organization is also what TAMU athletics has relied on, together they encounter uncharted territory.
”We’ve talked to other people about things they’ve done that have been good that have not worked so well and so we’re just trying to learn as a group just like you talked about there is a new world out there with corona virus and collegiate athletics,” said Hurley.
For the next home game Hurley expressed the utilization of staffers within the stadium and reorganizing their positions taking lessons learned to move forward.
The SEC has provided fun, health and safety guidelines to assist schools in making decisions on game day regulations.