Governor Larry Hogan and U.S. Naval Academy Superintendent Vice Admiral Sean Buck today announced that the Brigade of Midshipmen will be able to attend the Navy vs. Temple football game on Saturday, October 10. State and local officials have approved a plan for the safe, socially-distanced execution of the game at Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
Attendance at Saturday’s game will be limited to the Brigade of Midshipmen and a small support staff element only—no fans, families, or guests.
“We were pleased to work closely with Naval Academy leaders to allow the Brigade of Midshipmen to safely attend this weekend’s game,” said Governor Hogan. “It gives us a great deal of pride to have the Naval Academy here in the State of Maryland. I want to thank Vice Admiral Buck for putting the health and safety of the Midshipmen first.”
“We greatly appreciate the consideration taken by state and local officials in approving our request for the Brigade of Midshipmen to safely cheer on our football team in the stands this weekend,” said Vice Admiral Sean Buck. “I want to extend my personal thanks to Governor Hogan and Anne Arundel County Executive Pittman for trusting the Naval Academy to develop and execute a game day plan that safeguards the health of our midshipmen as well as the local community and state of Maryland.”
Saturday’s game will operate under strict health protocols:
- Midshipmen will sit socially-distanced by company with small roommate pods allowed to sit together, and remain masked the entire game.
- There will be bubble-to-bubble movement of the Brigade to and from the stadium.
- There will be symptom and temperature screening of all Midshipmen, support staff, and stadium personnel.
- Mask use will be mandatory for Midshipmen, stadium personnel, and law enforcement.
- Concessions will be limited to bottled water or non-alcohol beverages only, with cashless transactions. No water fountain use will be permitted.
- Restrooms will be limited to 50% capacity with designated, one-way traffic patterns.
- Hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes will be provided throughout the stadium, which will have designated two-way traffic lanes.
- Event security staff will monitor seating and concourse areas to ensure compliance with social distancing protocols.
- Parking lots will be closed: no pre-game or post-game tailgating,
Testing Protocols. Since late August, USNA has been performing surveillance testing of the Brigade, reporting a 0% positivity rate on September 30. In-season varsity sport teams are being tested three times per week. No football players on the sideline roster have tested positive to date.
