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UGA to adjust student sections in response to concerns from Auburn game

ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia scored a big win over Auburn in its home opener, but much of the focus has been on what people saw away from the football field.

Georgia welcomed 20,524 fans in attendance at Sanford Stadium for the rivalry game. During the night, ESPN cameras picked up some people in the crowd who looked like they weren’t wearing masks or social distancing.

The crowd shots have drawn mixed reactions. Some raised concerns about the lack of masks especially in the student sections. Others said the stands weren’t as bad as they appeared on TV.

UGA’s policy is for fans to wear a mask into the stadium and in the common areas; however, they may take them off at their assigned seats or pods.

Channel 2 Action News went to get answers from inside UGA. Josh Brooks, UGA senior deputy athletic director, spoke with Channel 2 anchor Jorge Estevez about how the department felt Saturday went.

“By most accounts, 99% was great. Everyone we talked to, the fans that were there, had a great experience,” Brooks said. “There may be a couple of pans with a bad angle or a section that was a little more crowded than it should be. People think that’s a narrative for the whole stadium. But 99% was phenomenal. It was just the 1%. Just like the team improved from Game 1 and Game 2, we’ll make some improvements.”

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Brooks told Estevez the athletic department went through a lot of trial and error over the months leading up to the game, laying out different maps of the stadium before coming up with the staggered pattern.

The department wanted to figure out which option would be the best and safest if it allowed fans to attend games.

“We wanted to A. keep everyone safe social distancing in their pods and B. how many fans can we get in the stadium. So through lots of trial and error, we found the method that was most efficient," he said. "With that staggered pattern, when you look at it straight on, you can’t tell the depth perception. Once you see it through that angle, you get a much better understanding of that gap.”

The biggest area of concern brought up during Saturday night’s game focused on the student section. Brooks said changes can be expected there for the next home game against Tennessee.

“It’s just a small adjustment in the student section. We have three student sections and we have room in the other two sections. So we’re just going to allocate a little differently. Reduce the number in that first section and give more to the other two which will balance it out,” he said.

No. 3 UGA hosts No. 14 Tennessee for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff.