Water supplies bolstered for Texas A&M football’s season opener Saturday

The sprinkler system waters the grass in Aggie Park on Wednesday afternoon as the A&M campus readies for the 2023 season opening game against New Mexico on Saturday. Water is the word of the week, as most than 180,000 bottles will be ready to relieve fans with temperatures at kickoff near 100 degrees.

Beat the heat is the theme Texas A&M officials are expressing to Aggie fans who plan to attend the A&M football team’s 2023 season opener against New Mexico Saturday at Kyle Field.

Although the high in College Station failed to reach 100 degrees for the first time in 50 days on Monday, the National Weather Service projects high temperatures to hover around and over triple digits for the remainder of this week. Saturday’s forecast is sunny and hot with a high near 102.

“It has been an unprecedented month of August and really July,” A&M athletic director Ross Bjork said on his monthly town hall on Tuesday. “We expect that same thing to continue really for the whole month of September based on the weather forecasts. So, there’s a lot of things that are already in place around Kyle Field to help our fans stay safe, but we’re adding some extra elements getting ready for the week.”

A&M officials said Monday an “unprecedented” amount of water has been loaded into Kyle Field, and 187,000 bottled waters will be available for purchase at 434 points-of-sale around the stadium. Bottles are $2.99 for 20 oz. and $4.99 for a liter.

Fans are also allowed to bring in one clear, unopened plastic water bottle up to a gallon in size. There will be nine free water refill stations around Kyle Field outside sections 122, 126, 132, 233, 235, 241, 334, 401 and 408. There are also four cool zones inside Kyle Field.

“We want to make sure that people are just educated about doing the right things around the heat and protect yourself,” Bjork said. “And if you don’t feel like coming and maybe you can’t handle it, then hey, stay and home and watch it on TV because we want people to be safe first and foremost.”

Kickoff between A&M and New Mexico is set for 6 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN.

Here’s a guide to the remainder of Aggie game day weekend.

The Aggie Fan Zone outside Kyle Field opens at 2:30 p.m. and closes 30 minutes before kickoff.

Kids’ Yell with the Aggie yell leaders is held at 8:30 a.m. at the War Hymn statue on the east side of Kyle Field.

The A&M football team holds its Spirit Walk along the east side of Kyle Field at 3:30 p.m. At 3:45 p.m., the team buses drop off players at the north end of Houston Street near the Koldus parking garage and players walk down Houston Street to the locker room in the Bright Football Complex.

The Corps of Cadets will have a campus march-in on Saturday. Step off is at 4:30 p.m. and a march-in route can be viewed at corps.tamu.edu/event/btho-new-mexico.

Four UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from the Charlie Company of the 1st Assault Helicopter Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment (“Ghostriders”) of the U.S. Army Reserve based in Conroe will conduct the pregame flyover. One of the pilots is Nam Cao, A&M Class of 2020.

A&M is also unveiling a new pregame team entrance on Saturday. Details have been limited on what the new entrance will entail, though.

“I think people are going to be really excited,” Bjork said. “I know our players are excited. There’s new features to it, but also some traditional elements as well. So, basically just show up at 6.”

Most campus parking for football game days is reserved and requires permits, but there are some prepaid and cash options.

Home football parking restrictions for those with A&M parking permits go into effect at 5:30 p.m. on Friday through Saturday on game weekends. On game day, motorcycles can be parked for free in on-campus motorcycle spots, except in Lot 48.

Cash parking is available for $20 in lots near the Bonfire Memorial area, Research Park, Fan Field and on Agronomy Road. Cash parking for $25 is available in Central Campus, Northside and Southside garages.

Prepaid parking can be purchased in certain garages and lots at tamu.pmreserve.com. Prepaid parking starts at $23 and goes up to $61 for the game against New Mexico.

A full game day parking map for reserved and free lots can be viewed at transport.tamu.edu/parkingmap/tsmap.htm?map=ft.

There are free shuttles and designated ridesharing drop-off zones for game days.

Fans can park for free in over 1,000 parking spaces around Downtown Bryan and ride a free shuttle from the Clara B. Mounce Public Library to the Memorial Student Center on A&M’s campus. The shuttle runs three hours before kickoff and one hour after the game. Service is provided throughout the game.

A&M buses will provide free shuttle service on and off campus. A&M bus routes make rounds three hours before kickoff until one hour after the game. Paratransit service is available from Lot 88. For route maps, visit transport.tamu.edu/Parking/events/football.

A free shuttle service to Kyle Field will be available for those who park at Century Square in College Station. The shuttles are located by The George and Calvary Court and will run three hours before kickoff and until two hours after the game ends.

Rideshares and taxis will be available during and after the game in Lot 30e near Albritton Tower, Bizzell Street at George Bush Drive, Lewis Street and Boyett Street at Northgate.

For more parking and transportation information, visit Destination Aggieland in the Texas A&M mobile app.

There are free and paid tailgating spots in Aggie Park, which require reservations through the vendor Revel XP.

Those with tailgating reservations can begin to check in at 7 a.m. Saturday. Check-in will be held at the Aggie Tailgating Tent located near the J.V. “Pinky” Wilson statue at the east end of War Hymn Lawn near Throckmorton Street. Those without reservations can go to the tent and see if there are any available open spaces.

Tailgating spots on A&M’s West Campus and at Reed Arena are secured by “land rush,” which begins at noon on Friday.

Fans are allowed to bring one clear bag no larger than 12 inches (12 by 6 by 12) or a clear 1-gallon resealable plastic storage bag into Kyle Field. The only nonclear bags allowed are small clutch bags the size of a hand.

For more A&M football game information, visit 12thman.com/sports/2020/9/9/kyle-field-gameday.aspx or download the 12th Man Mobile app.

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