Lisa Kuphal sat nervously in her office when it happened. At long last, she had a chance to do the one thing she and thousands of other Rutgers football fans haven’t been able to do since 2019: attend a game.
Knowing the spring game would be a highly coveted event with limited attendance, all of Kuphal’s attention switched from her job to making sure she pocketed four tickets to the 2021 spring game.
“The time I could secure them (online) was 9 o’clock, so I just stopped working at 8:50 and I sat there on the computer waiting,” she said. “When it opened, I was, like, ‘Oh, God, I hope there’s something left.’ And sure enough, I logged in, needed four and there were four.”
Kuphal’s group was proud to be four of roughly 5,000 fans who were allowed to attend the Scarlet Knights’ 2021 spring game. Many other fans, including Jason Bond, had a similar joyful feeling about being back at SHI Stadium on Thursday night for the Scarlet vs. White spring football game — won by the Scarlet, 23-21.
“I was so happy to hear that they were opening up,” Bond said. “People need this right now to feel better about themselves and look forward to summer and football.”
While having limited fans in the seats was fine for some, others wanted more people in the stands for a more raucous atmosphere as Rutgers continues its Big Ten climb under coach Greg Schiano. Rutgers officials capped the attendance number, even though nearly 16,000 people could have attended, according to the state’s COVID re-opening guidelines.
“Everything should be back, that’s how I feel,” Rutgers fan Diane Surace said. “I think they should up (the attendance). They need to open more.”
A Rutgers spokesperson told NJ Advance Media that school officials decided to limit the attendance to 5,000 because the school is “following the health and safety advice of the university’s health and operations experts to provide campus guidance for events at Rutgers.”
While the return of fans marks a fun moment for many families, it returns a livelihood for others.
Tom Carretta, manager of alcohol compliance services at Rutgers games, was out of work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Without fans in the stands, Carretta and his team didn’t have anything to do.
“We all got put on unemployment,” Carretta said. “For a while there, we were trying to do anything and everything we could. There wasn’t much to do and so it’s just nice to be back working these Rutgers games.”
But it wasn’t only about returning to the games. Many fans believe they’re also returning to a program on the climb. With victories against Michigan State, Purdue and Maryland — all on the road — a competitive Rutgers finished 3-6 in 2020 in a Big Ten only schedule. That was a vast improvement from 2019, when the Scarlet Knights were 2-10 overall and 0-9 in the conference under Chris Ash.
Under Schiano, Rutgers also has been locking up commitments from top talent, including quarterback Gavin Wimsatt and offensive lineman Jacob Allen, who announced his commitment hours before the spring game.
“They’re in the Big Ten now, Schiano’s here, and I think we have a chance to be a decent team,” said Chris Hilden, a Rutgers season ticket holder since 1994.
Some fans insisted the excitement surrounding a post-pandemic spring game was greater than some regular-season games they’ve attended.
“We’ve seen a lot of bad football, but we’re really excited for the future,” Rutgers alumnus Larry Dunne said. “I think it starts right here, right now. There are people here. There are more people (at the 2021 spring game) than we had at one of the games in 2019.”
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The Link LonkMay 21, 2021 at 06:46PM
https://www.nj.com/rutgersfootball/2021/05/a-breath-of-fresh-air-giddy-fans-cant-wait-for-rutgers-to-open-up-the-stadium-and-the-regular-season.html
A breath of fresh air: Giddy fans can’t wait for Rutgers to open up — the stadium and the regular season - NJ.com
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