Who would’ve thought you’d need hand strength and shin guards to watch a football game?
The third quarter has just ended, “Jump Around” is blaring as the bleachers start caving in, the scoreboard shows a Badgers lead over a difficult competitor and you hear rumblings of “We’re storming the field!” Your initial reaction might be, “Haha, yeah right, I wish!” This was my thinking during the Halloweekend football game against Iowa. But I knew my “wish” was becoming a reality when I saw security guards line the field and open the gates as the end of the fourth quarter quickly approached. Never did I imagine I would need extreme hand strength and a pair of shin guards to watch a football game, but that particular Saturday, they would’ve come in handy.
The morning of this memorable day started with a long march to Camp Randall Stadium. The streets were flooded with red and white stripes, Halloween costumes and countless alumni. Not only was this game the cornerstone of Halloweekend, it was also the Homecoming game. As excited as every Badger, old and new, was for the game, there was a consensus that this game was not going to be easy, as the Badgers were set to take on the number nine ranked team, the Iowa Hawkeyes.
As the time on the clock signaling the start of the game vanished, the stadium started to fill. The bright, shining sun beating down on the field created a spotlight that drew in all Wisconsin fans. Little did we know, this was a subtle hint that in a matter of four quarters, we’d all be down on the field, under the spotlight together.
The Badgers played strong from start to finish, holding the Hawkeyes to zero throughout the first half. The excitement from the student section, the top of the stadium and the field grew from the second the clock started until time expired. Throughout the entire game, rumors of storming the field were spreading throughout the student section. To me, these slight mentions seemed like a joke, but as the game progressed and the Badgers’ lead increased, they gained truth.
While “Jump Around” eventually died down, the energy exuding from Badger supporters did not. We all watched as Wisconsin scored their final touchdown and secured the win against Iowa. Before the scoreboard reached zero, everyone in the student section began looking around at their friends with the question of, “Are we actually about to storm the field?” As time ran out, the security guards bordering the student section unlocked and opened the gates. They understood that, whether the gates were open or not, the student section would somehow end up under the spotlight that had been beaming from the minute we entered the stadium.
Students began to pour onto the field, jumping over the stadium walls and bolting through the gates. Friend groups attempted to stay together, gripping hands as tightly as possible as they bounded down the rows of bleachers. Chains of friends were broken as people pushed from behind, eager to reach the field. The bleachers disappeared the closer you got to the bottom. All that could be seen were the shoes of elated students preparing to add to the sea of red and white covering the field. While blindly bolting down to the field, I found myself with one foot on the bleachers and one on the stairs. There were moments when I felt my feet leave the ground and I feared that when they returned, it would be with the bleachers slamming directly into my shins. After the wave of people pushing down moved me to the turf, the remains of my “friend chain” looked around for our missing links and booked it to the center of the field. We looked up towards the stands and saw cheers coming from the remaining Wisconsin fans and scowls from Iowa. Music blared as energetic students, coaches and players celebrated in the middle of the stadium, directly under the spotlight. The players hoisted the Heartland Trophy towards the sun as the remaining members of the student section surrounded them. The moment was picture perfect, complete, with quintessential lighting.
Next time you hear rumblings of “Let’s storm the field!” at a Wisconsin football game, understand that this may not be the joke you thought it was. Look up towards the sky; if you see a shining sun, know that the forecast is showing a 100% chance of the student section painting the field red.