The school has sold 44,320 season tickets to donors, faculty members and the general publicGETTY IMAGES
Ohio State will "likely limit capacity for football games at Ohio Stadium this season to 20% capacity," according to Bill Rabinowitz of the COLUMBUS DISPATCH. Tailgating also will be "banned, concessions will be limited and spectators must wear face coverings." The school has "sold 44,320 season tickets to donors, faculty members and the general public, a renewal rate of 87%." OSU AD Gene Smith in May said that capacity "would likely be limited to roughly 20,000 to 25,000 spectators" before later saying that capacity "could be as much as double that." Twenty percent capacity at Ohio Stadium would be 20,989. Smith during a call earlier this month said, "Two months ago, I was optimistic and cautiously optimistic, but I lost that. So if we have fans in the stands, we'll use CDC guidelines and we just have to figure out what those numbers are, but it's a lot less than I thought" (COLUMBUS DISPATCH, 7/29).
IF YOU'RE GONNA PLAY IN TEXAS: Austin's public health authority said the city was "caught a little off-guard'' by the recent announcement by Texas that the school plans to allow 50% stadium capacity at Longhorns football games this fall. Travis County Interim Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott spoke with county commissioners yesterday and said that it is "difficult to imagine allowing a crowd of any size to watch a game." Escott said that having as many as 50,000 fans in attendance is a "bit of a reach right now." But school officials have "noted that the 50% limit is currently allowed under statewide rules" (AP, 7/28).
