Michigan State football to allow 6,000 fans for April 24 spring game

Michigan State football’s spring game will return with fans.

The university announced Saturday it will cap attendance at 6,000 fans for the 2 p.m. Green and White scrimmage next Saturday at Spartan Stadium. The game will be broadcast on Big Ten Network and followed by Maryland’s spring football game at 4 p.m.

“We have great fans, and our fans are hungry,” MSU coach Mel Tucker said Tuesday. “They want to see the Spartans, they want to see us out there playing, they want to see us out there winning. I'm looking forward to the day that we can have fans in our stadium and pack that thing out and be loud and see us play winning football.”

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In a statement, athletic director Bill Beekman echoed Tucker's excitement to have fans return to watch MSU football go through a 10-15 period practice featuring individual and group drills as well as live scrimmage periods..

“There’s a buzz building around the Spartan football program, and I know our student-athletes and coaches will love to have fans in attendance, with many more tuning in on television and radio," Beekman said. "I’d also like to thank our staff who has worked diligently to put together a plan that complies with all of the MDHHS requirements to make this event accessible to our fans.”

Tickets will be distributed digitally starting Tuesday for the top three levels of donors, who will be able to claim up to four tickets. At 8 a.m. Wednesday, tickets will be available to the general public on msuspartans.com, with a chance to secure up to four per person. That same day, 500 tickets also will be opened for MSU students.

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MSU's protocols will require everyone ordering a digital ticket to enter a valid email address to receive the tickets. The email addresses will be documented by the Spartan Ticket Office for contact tracing purposes. All email addresses receiving digital tickets from the Spartan Ticket Office will be sent a link 24 hours prior to the event to complete a mandatory health screening. The completed health screening form must be shown to stadium personnel before entering Spartan Stadium.

Spectators also will be required to pass a symptom checklist, and face masks and coverings are required everywhere on campus, per MSU policy.

Other items:

* Parking will be free on campus in lots 79, 62, 126 and 63. Lot 124 will be available for accessible parking. Lots open at Noon.

* Tailgating is not permitted and lots will be strictly monitored to enforce this policy.

* Digital ticket holders may enter at stadium gates B, C, J and K, located at the southeast, southwest, northwest and northeast corners of Spartan Stadium beginning at 12:30 p.m.

* The lower bowl of Spartan Stadium will be divided into five seating areas. Upon entrance, spectators will be allocated color-coded wristbands to sit in assigned seating areas throughout Spartan Stadium, which will ensure a predetermined number of people will be sitting in each section. Per MDHHS protocols, spectators will be in groups of no more than six people and at least 6 feet of physical distance must be maintained from people outside of one’s cohort.

* Concession stands will be open in both the north and south concourses where there is greater room for distancing. All concessions purchases will require cashless payment. Fans are only permitted to eat and drink when at their seating location.

* Only the large restrooms on the north and south concourses will be open. Air PHX systems will be utilized in every open restroom.

* Spartan Stadium's no-bag policy will be enforced, other than required for medical reasons.

Current Michigan health department order approved in late March allow 20% capacity inside outdoor stadiums. That has allowed the Detroit Tigers to expand attendance at Comerica Park to more than 8,000 fans.

Michigan Department of Health and Human Services orders issued March 19 require operators of outdoor stadiums must establish an effective infection control plan in order to expand capacity. Those measures included:

• Limiting groups sitting around each other to six people;

• Staggering entering and exiting for some fans;

• Wearing masks whenever a fan is not eating or drinking;

• Collecting contact information for all fans in order to potentially perform contact tracing. To make this easier, the state is suggesting venues do not offer same-day ticket purchases.

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MSU did not have a Green and White game in 2020 due to the cancelation of spring practice with the pandemic. The last public spring scrimmage was April 13, 2019, the 13th and final Green and White game for former coach Mark Dantonio, who retired after that season. The general public has not been allowed inside Spartan Stadium for a game since Dantonio’s final home win on Nov. 30, 2019, against Maryland.

The Big Ten did not allow schools to have fans during the fall season other than parents and family members. MSU's family members were permitted to attend the Oct. 24 season-opener against Rutgers and the second home game Nov. 14 against Indiana. However, a Nov. 15 state order prohibited any attendees other than staff for the final two games at Spartan Stadium last fall against Northwestern on Nov. 28 and Ohio State on Dec. 5. Penn State shut out parents and families from the Spartans' finale Dec. 12 due to Pennsylvania state restrictions.

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The empty stands carried over into basketball season, with Breslin Center eventually being allowed to welcome parents for one game in December and two in January before restrictions tightened, then again in March after state regulations were loosened. However, fans were permitted at the Big Ten men's and women's basketball tournaments and the NCAA tournament in Indianapolis.

Michigan's spring game April 10 was closed to the public and media.

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State football to allow 6,000 fans for April 24 spring game