Before last night’s primetime football game, legions of fans poured into Byrd Stadium wearing uniforms matching the jet black sky. The student section became a wall of black, the cheerleaders pranced behind the end zone in black warm-up suits and the Terp players stormed the field in gold-trimmed black jerseys.

Student groups had encouraged fans to wear black for weeks prior to the game in an attempt to rouse school spirit in the fight against No. 3-ranked Virginia Tech. Despite some dispute over whether to stick to the traditional red, it was evident “Byrd Blackout 2005” had gripped Terp fans with enthusiasm and optimism as they trekked to the stadium.

“It’s such a sick idea,” sophomore business major Justin Berger said as he darted between cars on Route 1, heading for the game. “[The black] is going to make us look awesome on national television and it’s getting everyone psyched up for this.”

The athletics department paid to make the black shirts with the Terps logo that were handed out at the game, said Meg Hatfield, director of public relations for the Student Government Association. However, athletics department spokesman Doug Dull could not confirm this, and Senior Associate Athletics Director Michael Lipitz did not return calls for comment yesterday. The Red Army student group worked closely with the SGA to bring the black shirts to the students, but plans fell through, said Red Army co-founder Zach Wahl.

“We didn’t find out until 5:30 p.m. that someone did the shirts,” Wahl said. “It went really well, though. It definitely seemed to unify students and it was a great change of pace. I’m sure we’ll work closely with the SGA to do something like this for a big game in the future.”

Hatfield said she sat in the back of the student section and watched the turnout of the blackout, which “looked awesome,” she said.

However, not everyone agreed. Event staff usher Jimmy Clift stood perched atop sections 11 and 12, disliked the sea of black.

“I don’t like it,” he said during the third quarter, as the despondent student section waited quietly for a comeback. “I think if you’re on TV, you want to see the fans. Fill the stands with red or white. The black isn’t anything special. It sucks, and I’ve heard many students agree.”

In upper sections of the stadium, the red glow from North Campus dorms’ windows covered in cellophane shined onto the Virginia Tech fans roaming the concourse. Hokie fan Willis Rotenizer rode up from Hillsville, Va., which is 60 miles south of Virginia Tech’s home, Blacksburg, for the game. He graduated from Hillsville High School three years before Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer.

“Of course we notice the black up here, it’s hard not to,” he said, playing with the maroon and orange beads that dangled over his bright orange Hokie jersey. “It looks great, but we have 15,000 more fans than you guys have.”

As the game wound down and the score stacked up, the blackout began to fade away. Students began to filter out in the third and fourth quarters as the Hokies charged their way to a 28-9 victory.

Rachel Herskovitz, a junior government and politics major, left the student section as the third quarter ended, happier with the turnout for the blackout than the game.

“This is a nice example of school spirit,” she said. “But we can’t throw a ball and catch it.”

Contact reporter Geremy Bass at sports@dbk.umd.edu.