Collegiate Times

A half time performance from the Corps of Cadets lights up Lane Stadium.

With the Ohio game coming up this Saturday, the Athletic Department is constantly preparing Lane Stadium for game day festivities.

The average Hokie plans for game day maybe two or three days ahead of time, picking out a spirited maroon and orange outfit, rounding up friends for a tailgate, and trash talking Ohio fans. The men and women of the Athletics Department who deal with game day, however, have a lot more to consider.

Planning for the Ohio game and others began in January, when the 2007 football schedule was decided. Contracts were drawn with police, clean-up committees and event staff agencies. Behind each home football game are hundreds of thousands of costs and hours upon hours of human labor.

Tom Gabbard, associate director of Athletics and Internal Affairs, explained that each football game costs around $150,000 to $200,000, broken down in various ways.

After tailgating, the game-goers will begin to file into Lane Stadium. There are about 130 ticket takers and gate people, receiving $10 an hour each. Those helpful event staff members are sent by RMC Events, whom Tech is paying $28,000 per game. Want a turkey leg or a soda? Boston Concessions sends 400 concession workers to serve hungry Hokies each game.

As the football team runs onto the field, many students do not realize how much preparation goes into the field. The Bermuda grass is grown and maintained from April to August, the field is mowed regularly, and the lines are painted before every game.

Tech pays everyone from the time clock controller and the 25-second clock controller, to the first-down chain holders and the "red hat" man, who runs onto the field to stop the game for a TV break. Hokies may boo the referees' calls, but Tech is paying the 10-man staff $10,000 a game.

There is also a system to handle alcohol incidents and safety during games. There are 200 police officers from 20 various agencies who are on site at each game. Tech pays the Virginia Tech Police $300,000 a season to organize security for the home games. Capt. Joseph Albert of the Tech Police explained that he has been planning security for the Ohio game since last Sunday.

"You don't just whip it out on Friday and get a game out on Saturday," Albert said.

Ohio may be Tech's opponent, but the school is being paid to visit Tech and play. This payment is called a game guarantee, and each visiting team receives between $150,000 to $500,000 depending on the game.

As the crowd leaves the stadium at the end of the game, the work has just begun for the clean-up crews. Can-Do Enterprises is paid $150,000 a year to bring a clean-up crew to the games. About 40,000 pounds of garbage is picked up and thrown away each game. For this Saturday's game, it is going to take all through Sunday to finish cleaning up. In the event of a Thursday game, workers clean through the night to have the stadium and campus sparkling by Friday morning.

With a stadium of 66,000 problems will occur, and the Athletic Department tries its best to keep each game running like clockwork.

"As far as prep, that's fairly routine," Gabbard said. "Every game has its unique problems... a lot of fan control problems, alcohol problems, the ref's mike doesn't work, the clock goes wacky."

Gabbard also said that there are a lot of problems concerning the bathrooms, saying "the plumbers work pretty hard" during each game to stock toilet paper and fix toilets.

While Hokie fans gear up for games, staff members are working around the clock to turn out a successful game day operation.