The first football game of the season, a nationally-televised event, called for much preparation on the university’s part.
“An incredible amount of work has been done over the last three months,” MSU President Robert “Doc” Foglesong said.
During a large number of meetings, discussions took place about when to close down the campus, cancel classes and the types of security measures to use on game day.
The security surrounding Davis Wade Stadium had been set up since Tuesday night, MSU Police Sergeant Terry Wheeler said. He made sure fans remained safe in the stands and the picnic area surrounding the stadium.
“There will be 80 law enforcement officers in and around the stadium three hours before and two hours after the football game,” he said.
The officers handled crowd control, watched the gates and made sure everything went according to plan. Officers patrolled The Junction area to ensure the safety of thousands of fans.
Wheeler said 25 of the officers on duty are part of the MSU Police Department, and the rest are from neighboring agencies as far away as Grenada.
“We are fortunate enough to be able to lean on local communities and the state police,” Foglesong said.
The new and much-anticipated tailgating area, The Junction, will become the center of fans’ focus before football games, Foglesong said.
He said the area will most likely be difficult to drive through during game time because thousands of Bulldog fans will crowd the area.
“It’s hard to predict how parking and traffic will be. It will probably be more confusing because of the construction of campus and the changes we’ve made in parking lots on campus,” he said.
Maps will be provided to lessen the confusion, he added.
Foglesong anticipated a large crowd for the game, would heighten traffic flow.
“We are encouraging people to park downtown because of the new shuttle routes,” he said.
“Parking will probably still be a problem, mostly for students,” sophomore architecture major Carley Crigler said. “Fans park in the dorm parking lots because of a lack of parking, and students that live in the dorms lose their parking spots.”
Crigler said she has been coming to the football games with her family since she was born. She said The Junction will be a different experience for her because she has always tailgated in a motor home with her family. She thinks it might even improve parking around that area because cars cannot actually be parked where the tailgating is going on.
Both Foglesong and Wheeler are confident that the university prepared itself well for the game.
“No matter how much we have planned, there will be surprises. Things change and plans need to be modified,” Foglesong said.