USF Students Celebrate Tampa’s Win Safely

People around the Bay Area took precautions when it came to watching the Tampa Bay Buccaneers win the title as Super Bowl LV champs, even local university students.

Tampa Bay Mayor, Jane Castor, teamed up with Kansas City’s mayor, Quinton Lucas, in regard to COVID rules and assuring that those who celebrated followed the same precautions that have continued to be enforced throughout the pandemic.

“Mayor @QuintonLucasKC & I may disagree on who is winning the Lombardi Trophy🏆, but we’re on the same team when it comes to COVID-19 safety,” tweeted Castor. “We’re committed to ensuring #SBLV is a fun, safe experience for our cities and football fans everywhere. Mask up & #GoBucs”

Fans who attended the historic game, and even the celebrations beforehand, were encouraged to wash their hands frequently and keep good hygiene, wear their masks and social distance as best they could, according to the City of Tampa’s website.

Many students from the St. Petersburg campus of the University of South Florida took precautions and found safer ways to celebrate their winning team, while also playing a part in reducing the spread of the virus.

USF student, Michelle Lane, shared how she and her boyfriend watched the champs take their victory, safely from home.

“My boyfriend (who I live with) and his family’s favorite team is the Bucs,” said Lane. “They were so amazed that their team made it to the Super Bowl and very disheartened that it had to happen for the first time amid the current chaos in the world. We streamed it at home and did a FaceTime call with his family so that we could share the experience without having to meet up.”

Other students, like Connor Jetton, typically celebrate from home and continued their Super Bowl traditions just like they would any other year.

“My family loves to cook good food for Super Bowl. It’s almost like a holiday for us,” said Jetton.

Another student, Trina Ralph, and her family stayed safe and even found a way to support small, local businesses while doing so.

“We had a COVID friendly “watch party” on our back porch of our house! In other words, it was just me, my brothers, my boyfriend, and my dad, and my boyfriend’s parents,” said Ralph. “We felt it to be more comfortable since we are all together on a regular basis. However, we did make it a point to only shop from small local businesses for our food! I loved this aspect of it because I am sure the Super Bowl is typically a busy day for many restaurants, so we wanted to help contribute since many were not going out.”