Virginia Tech, without fail, provides one of the best atmospheres in college football every single week. However, the students chose not to stick around for a double overtime thriller on Friday night.
They left at halftime.
Now, I cannot blame them for leaving the game early when the college football team they root for is still three wins away from bowl eligibility, but it was still an astonishing visual. Lane Stadium emptied out.
Virginia Tech fans showed up for Enter Sandman.
For those who are not aware, the ‘Enter Sandman’ tradition dates back to Aug. 27, 2000, when the school installed the first videoboard at the stadium. With a new videoboard came a new walkout song.
The “jump” came along a few years later on a chilly night. One of the band members started jumping up and down during the team entrance to warm up. His bandmates followed suit. The entire stadium was jumping right along not long thereafter. It just stuck!
The Hokies decided to celebrate 25 years of their iconic tradition on Friday night.
ENTER SANDMAN AT LANE STADIUM ⚡️@HokiesFB pic.twitter.com/KbVKHWujwe
— ACC Network (@accnetwork) October 24, 2025
Lane Stadium was rocking. Literally.
#Hokies are celebrating 25 years of Enter Sandman in Lane Stadium tonight vs. Cal. Here it is in all its glory: pic.twitter.com/xQfIXyDO66
— David Cunningham (@therealdcunna) October 24, 2025
66,000 fans packed into the seats for a 2-5 team.
Last night Hokie Land was electric. Lane Stadium was rockin! @HokiesFB 42 @CalFootball 34 in double overtime. Go Hokies! 🏈🦃 @espn @ACCFootball pic.twitter.com/7OfBQN78Z7
— Nate Daniels (@NateDanielsDSP) October 25, 2025
Here is a look at the crowd at kickoff:
That did not last long. A good ~20% of the stadium made their way to the exits around halftime.
Students left super early.
Although the initial fan turnout was extremely impressive, student retention was not. This is how it looked before the start of the second half:
More people filed out as the third quarter got underway to where the student section was mostly empty.
I’ve never seen a student section get decimated this bad…
— GFed (@GfedGoCrazy) October 25, 2025
This is full at the start of the game. Generously 20% full at the start of the 3rd pic.twitter.com/dQEmPC9B9h
Those who stayed went tarps off for the boys.
Dudes having a time at Lane Stadium pic.twitter.com/I4y7sdxuUd
— Ben Breiner (@ben_breiner) October 25, 2025
They also got to witness one of the best finishes to a college football game this season. Virginia Tech rallied back from a 17-point deficit at halftime to beat Cal by eight in double overtime.
The student section gave up hope but the Hokies came back to win. It was a great night in Blacksburg.