Stanford Football vs San Jose State Gets a Start Time

Sep 20, 2024; Pullman, Washington, USA; San Jose State Spartans helmets sit during a game against the Washington State Cougars in the second half at Gesa Field at Martin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-Imagn Images | James Snook-Imagn Images

Last Saturday, Stanford won their first game of the season. In a shootout against Boston College, the Cardinal stayed stable all night, pulling through for a 30-20 victory over the Eagles. After an 0-2 start, it was key to get their first home victory of the year.

This week, the Cardinal plays on the road at Virginia, followed by their second home game of the year, this time against San Jose State. Per Stanford football’s social media page, the game time for Stanford vs San Jose State is set for 4:30 PM PT. Although it could be a solid start time, a night game definitely would be a better environment.

Last Saturday, when Stanford hosted Boston College, a huge part of the victory was the fact that it was at night. People can clown on the attendance numbers at Stanford Stadium, but the night atmosphere truly helped the Cardinal get the victory. The tailgating, fans, and playing under the lights just make the atmosphere so much better.

Although a night game against San Jose State would be awesome, a day game isn’t really too bad. Fans get to wake up a bit earlier, and get to show up to the stadium earlier for a peaceful Saturday. In addition, San Jose State fans can make the quick drive up to Stanford Stadium and enjoy the hot sun along with the Cardinal supporters.

The game will also probably be even more packed due to the rivalry and geography that the two teams represent. With the South Bay rivalry getting more interesting every year, fans get to travel easily, and the stadium should be more packed than usual, like it was last year at CEFCU Stadium in San Jose.

Finally, night games have to be reserved for true big games. For Stanford and San Jose State’s sake, it is a big game, but at a national level, not so much.

Stanford hosts Florida State on homecoming for a night game in a few weeks, and will probably get one more against either Cal or Notre Dame, or even both. That’s already going to be three or four night games this season.

Stanford Stadium needs to have their fair share of day games, especially when they match up against group of five opponents, and this one perfectly makes sense for the direction of Stanford’s program in the future. As the program continues to build up their national prominence, more night games may follow.