Welcome to Tradition Tuesday, a weekly look at the iconic rituals, traditions and moments that make college football game days so special.
Today, we’re heading to Blacksburg for one of the sport’s most recognizable pregame traditions: Virginia Tech’s entrance to Metallica’s “Enter Sandman.”
If you love college football, you know there are traditions you watch, and there are traditions you feel.
At Virginia Tech’s Lane Stadium, that feeling starts with a few familiar guitar riffs.
When Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” begins to play over the soundsystem, more than 60,000 fans jump in unison — and they don’t stop.
As the song builds, the Hokies make their way onto the field, greeted by a wall of noise from the crowd.
It’s loud. It’s wild. And it’s hard not to get caught up in what has become one of the most recognizable traditions in college football.
The song may be familiar, but hearing it with thousands of Hokies jumping around you is an experience that belongs to Blacksburg — and one that starts before the game’s first snap.
The tradition
- The tradition debuted on Aug. 27, 2000, and the Metallica song was picked to show off Lane Stadium’s new videoboard. Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle” and “Sirius” by The Alan Parsons Project were also considered, but “Enter Sandman” won out.
- The jumping did not start immediately. On Dec. 1, 2001, before a game against top-ranked Miami, members of the Marching Virginians band began jumping to stay warm. The trend spread to the students and eventually the entire stadium.
- In 2011, a seismograph detected noticeable activity when the Hokies entered the stadium before a game against Miami. It happened again in 2015 before the season opener against Ohio State and before the 2021 opener against North Carolina.
- The tradition goes beyond football. The men’s and women’s basketball teams take the floor at Cassell Coliseum to “Enter Sandman,” and it has been played at graduations.
- Metallica, which embraced the pregame tradition, played a sold-out concert at Lane Stadium in May 2025 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the electrifying entrance.
Quote of note
“It’s just a different type of feeling. I get chills every time I think about it — the stadium actually shakes.” — former Virginia Tech wide receiver Ali Jennings, who had 162 receptions and 21 touchdowns for the Hokies
READ MORE: From fight songs to mascots: Every ACC school’s most iconic football traditions
Mike Garbett is a content specialist working with McClatchy’s Content Innovation Lab.