BLUEFIELD — Area residents are still being asked to buy their tickets early for Friday’s big Beaver-Graham game at Mitchell Stadium.
All of the tickets for Friday’s game must be purchased online through GoFan, which is the same process that has been utilized in the past for Bluefield High School playoff games, according to Don Jones, assistant principal for Bluefield High School.
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“The SSAC (West Virginia Secondary Schools Activities Commission) has been using this for quite some time,” Jones said Wednesday. “All of our playoff games have been through GoFan.”
Tickets can’t be purchased with cash. They must be purchased online with either a debit or credit card.
With thousands expected at Friday’s game — a crowd upwards of 10,000 is possible — the more people who buy their tickets online now the quicker the line at the gate will move Friday evening. The weather is expected to be nice Friday — there is currently no rain in the forecast — which could further drive up attendance at the big game.
Bluefield High School will have officials at the gate before Friday’s game to assist anyone who may need help purchasing and downloading their tickets online through GoFan, according to Jones. Residents can also still visit the high school today and Friday if they need help purchasing their online tickets.
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Jones said some have already visited the high school for help with buying their tickets. But the ticket sales are still cashless as per the WVSSAC rules and require a debit or credit card.
“Everything is through GoFan,” Jones said. “We are asking as many as possible to go ahead and get your tickets before the game and also have your ticket ready when you get up to the gate. And please do not screenshot your ticket.”
Jones said Bluefield High School will have at least four people at the gate Friday evening to assist those who may need help buying their tickets online. They will need a cell phone or other internet connected device to purchase the $8 ticket.
Those who have already purchased their tickets in advance are asked to pull up their tickets on their phones when they approach the gate at Mitchell Stadium, Jones said.
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Bluefield City Manager Cecil Marson sought to clarify Wednesday how the process will work. Marson said the city isn’t involved with ticket sales, but the city is encouraging everyone to buy their tickets early through GoFan. Marson said volunteers from Bluefield High School will be checking tickets at the gate and assisting those who may need help with purchasing and downloading their tickets at the gate.
“Ticketing is not being done by the city,” Marson said. “That’s the high school.”
As the countdown to the 2025 edition of the “Battle of the Bluefields” continues, so are pre-game activities.
Marson said there was good participation Wednesday morning at the annual golf tournament held at the Fincastle in Bluefield, Va. Proceeds from the tournament will benefit the athletic departments of both Bluefield High School and Graham High School.
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”We are doing great,” Marson of the Bluefield Cup Golf Tournament. “Fincastle did a good job with the tournament.”
Marson said pre-game activities scheduled for today include the “Meet the Beavers” rally at Bluefield High School at 6 p.m., which will be followed by the Legends of the Game event at the Granada Theater that will get underway immediately after the rally. A “Meet the G-Men” rally also will be held today at 6 p.m. on the new field at Graham High School.
The G-Men are coming into Friday’s contest as the defending Virginia High School League Class 2 state champions. This will be the 114th meeting between the Bluefield Beavers and the G-Men at Mitchell Stadium in a series that dates all the way back to 1911, according to the city of Bluefield.
Contact Charles Owens at cowens@bdtonline.com