More than 80 fans were packed into the press box, and many, such as MSU alumnus Justin Fales, said they enjoyed getting the chance to watch the game from premium seating.

“We just wanted to come out here and enjoy the game, get an opportunity to come up to the press box and see what it’s like,” Fales said. “I haven’t been up to this part of the stadium yet since they built it.”

The George Webster Scholarship Fund was announced in February 2007 by Jim Nelson, a donor and MSU alumnus who knew Webster, a former MSU football player who later played in the NFL.

Timothy Stedman, associate athletics director for development, said the idea behind the press box program was to help the scholarship financially. Given its success, as it sold out most of the 100 tickets available, he said the program could be brought back.

“We were really pleased with the number of tickets that we sold this year,” Stedman said.

“Because it was just the first year, I’m sure that it’s something that we’ll look at for the future, in addition to other opportunities to generate more dollars for the George Webster Scholarship.”

For fans such as MSU alumnus Carl Kraley, getting the chance to contribute to the scholarship was enough of a reason to attend.

“I think it’s a great cause, it’s why my girlfriend did it,” Kraley said. “We could get in for free, but she decided it was a good cause and a good experience, so we decided since it was going to something positive and beneficial to former athletes, we decided to do it.”