As fans rejoice at this weekend's close football victory, sports officials are happy to see large crowds pack the stands of Scott Stadium.
Two home games into the season, attendance at home football games has been higher than in years past.
Saturday's game drew 60,884 spectators, reportedly the fourth largest crowd in stadium history. The Aug. 30 season opener against Duke drew an even larger crowd of 61,737 fans. Last year, attendance was typically under 60,000 for home games.
Despite a renovation that was completed in 2000, recent attendance has pushed Scott Stadium slightly past its capacity of 61,500.
Officials in the athletic department attributed the increase in attendance to several factors.
"We have had tremendous response on the part of our students, typical of early season games, which are traditionally highly attended," University Athletic Director Craig Littlepage said. "Not playing at home for a month generated anxiety to see the team play, which worked in our favor."
The expected success of this season's team likely has played a role in inflating attendance as well.
"The anticipation of the quality of our team to be nationally ranked" also adds to game day attendance, Littlepage said.
With growing crowds, security and safety is a concern to University officials. The increase, however, has not yet resulted in major security or safety issues.
"Pretty much the game [Saturday] was orderly," University Police Sgt. Cassandra Carter said. "Some people were escorted out due to noncompliance with ushers, such as drinking."
Despite the minor incidences, Carter said, "It was a good game overall."
Carter emphasized that standard precautions are taken at every game to ensure the safety of spectators. A total of 120 police are assigned to specific posts for every game.
In addition, fans are not allowed to return to the stadium after leaving and bags are routinely checked upon entering the stadium.
"Maintaining safety for the people attending the game is a primary concern," Carter said.
Additional security measures are reviewed and revised before and after every game.
"Safety and security is something we monitor during the games and then evaluate and debrief after the game," Littlepage said.
Another important aspect of game day safety is preventing field rushing after a win, an activity from which University students have refrained so far this season.
"We've reached a point where winning a game is not an exception," Littlepage said. "Fans are a lot smarter. They understand the damage it can cause to the field, dangers to fans and players."
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