As the song “Good Time” by Owl City and Carly Rae Jepson blasts in the background of one Boston woman’s TikTok, the irony can’t be missed: There’s one Patriots fan who isn’t having a very good time at the game. Sure, he’s at Gillette Stadium on a picture-perfect fall day in Massachusetts, but his seat situation is tragic.
In Nicolle Healy’s (@nicollehealy) video, which has already gotten 7.4 million views, a Pats fan watches an early November game against the Atlanta Falcons. Everything seems normal. But as the camera pans across the packed stadium, the on-screen text reads: “POV: you show up to the Pats game and have no seat to sit in.”
Then, the reveal happens. Just as the fan stands to cheer, it’s clear he isn’t sitting; he’s squatting. His “seat” is just the seat back. He’s basically been wall-sitting his way through the game.
Healy captioned the video, “Simply can’t make this up.”
The Speedy Repair
As one of the winningest teams in NFL history, the New England Patriots have got an incredibly loyal fan base. So when the Patriots were all set to win their sixth game in a row, perhaps squatting room was better than no room.
Though the video is short, at just 10 seconds, a lot happens (just like in football). In the TikTok, after the seatless reveal, the video cuts to a man in a grey Gillette Stadium hoodie drilling a new seat in place. And the on-screen text confirms the repair. “Installing a new seat mid-game,” it says.
Cheers For The Gillette Stadium Facilities Team
Football fans might be among the toughest in the country, but they’re also generally good-natured. And the comments section seems almost as proud of the stadium’s crew as it is down for the Patriots. “Shout out to the facility crew member who helped you out! insane that this was a problem that got overlooked (looks like a quick fix too),” one commented.
A surprise cameo even came in from DeWalt’s verified TikTok account. “Our man coming through,” the account quipped. Because it sure does look like a DeWalt drill is in the repairman’s hand.
“I would’ve personally requested to be in Robert Kraft’s box with Cardi if this happened to me,” another user joked.
What To Do If You Need Help At A Stadium
It’s the height of football season, so chances are you’ll end up at a game or two, especially if you live in a climate that’s not getting slammed with snow. So what happens if you need help at a stadium?
While this Patriots fan didn’t have an issue with access or mobility, not having a seat probably got old quickly. No one wants to sit, beer in hand, on cold concrete—no matter how well your team is doing. And though stadiums and their fan policies are different, even a quick perusal of stadium sites reveals that they’re trying to be inclusive and accessible and generally not make your day miserable.
Most stadiums back this up with actual infrastructure. Gillette Stadium (for example) has an A-to-Z guide for its facility. In addition to the typical contacts you’d expect to see (bag policy and first aid), they’ve also got a section for gluten-free options, and drones. So it’s pretty clear they’re trying to cover all their bases (apologies for the mixed metaphor).
If you do need help, find a staff member, go to a guest services booth, or text the stadium for help. If it’s a medical emergency, grab a police officer, as they’re trained to handle that kind of thing. But before you go, it might be a good idea to plug some stadium numbers into your phone. Just in case your seat turns out to be of the backrest-only variety, too.
BroBible reached out to Nicolle Healy via TikTok direct message and Instagram direct message. We also reached out to Gillette Stadium via email. We’ll update this if either gets back to us.
@nicollehealy Simply can’t make this up #nflsunday @Hannahk