WKU students are gearing up to celebrate Super Bowl 55 on Sunday while trying their best to still follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID-19 guidelines.

A common sentiment among students is to avoid large gatherings and to watch the game with friends or family you have already been in contact with.

“I think it depends on how big the party size is… if it’s a group of people you’re not already surrounded by then I don’t think it’s the safest idea,” said WKU student Sara Powell. “If they’re all really close friends and spend a lot of time together then it’s alright.”

Sophia Scharosch, another WKU student, echoed Powell’s sentiment, saying that “if it’s a big get-together, then no, that’s not ok.”

Some students explained that they will be watching the game with close family and wearing masks to avoid spreading the disease.

“I’ll probably just be hanging with my family who will be making food,” said student Hannah Wilson. “It’s just my parents and my sister coming.”

Other students were concerned that while they themselves would be observing COVID protocol and staying safe, they still felt like their peers would ignore guidelines and throw large parties anyways.

“Due to COVID we can’t attend a party as it would break WKU’s party regulations,” said Southwest Hall resident Ralphy Gardner. “It probably isn’t safe but you know people are going to (throw parties) anyways.”

Gardner said he will be adhering to COVID guidelines “to the best of my ability, social distance, wash my hands, wear a mask, and pray that Tom Brady loses.”

Student Gabriel Drake expressed his concern about parties potentially spreading COVID and mentioned some ways they would need to be modified in order to curb spread but said social gatherings are still necessary to regain a sense of normalcy.

“I think a party would need to be in a large place and there would need to be a limit on how many people could come,” Drake said. “I hate that it has to be that way, but I think that’s the only thing that you can do… it still wouldn’t be normal, but it could still be done.”

“People still need interaction with one another, you can’t stop doing everything because there’s a pandemic… we were born to have interactions with other humans.”

If you are planning on attending a gathering this Super Bowl Sunday, the CDC recommends you wear a mask, stay at least six feet apart from others, avoid sharing food and drink, and use plenty of hand sanitizer.