Having performed all over the world for the past four decades, Metallica has seen every type of crowd imaginable. And with the band selling over 125 million albums, the group knew how to fill a stadium. But for the Virginia Tech Hokies, Metallica held a special place at the school as the university used the band’s hit song “Enter Sandman” as the hype song for the football team. Playing the song for the last 25 years, fans received a special treat when Metallica traveled to the stadium to play the song live, causing the fans to set off the Richter scale.
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Currently on their M72 World Tour, Metallica walked onto the field on Wednesday night for their first performance at Lane Stadium. Knowing the legacy the band held at the school, the group made sure to offer them a performance they would never forget. With over 60,000 fans in the stands, Metallica kicked off “Enter Sandman.” And it wasn’t long before thousands of fans started to jump up and down.
Thankfully, fans who attended the concert shared the moment on Twitter. Already gaining nearly 500,000 views, the video showed just how many people packed the stadium. Not seeing a single vacant seat, the electric crowd could barely stay on their feet.
Virginia Tech fans set off the richter scale when @Metallica played "Enter Sandman" in Lane Stadium ⚡️
— ACC Network (@accnetwork) May 8, 2025
(via @hokiesports) pic.twitter.com/fTo203oyLe
Not The First Time Metallica Helped Virginia Tech Shake The World
Online, fans commented on the experience, writing, “Literal chills. Walked into this concert not having much interest in ever attending one by Metallica but wasn’t going to pass up a ticket. Walked out with this performance easily being one of the best I’ve ever seen! Absolutely epic experience.” Another person continued, “My ears are still destroyed from last night so checks out.”
Setting off the Richter scale might sound like a big deal, but for Virginia Tech fans, it seemed like a normal moment. Looking back at the school’s history, fans set off the scale back in 2011 when going against Miami. Jumping forward to 2015 and the scale moved once again when competing against Ohio State. And the last time was in 2021 with North Carolina.
For Virginia Tech junior Luke Dalton, he continued to process the experience. “Experiencing that live; the actual band playing it rather than the games because we already get hyped from the games themselves, but hearing Metallica playing in the stadium live, it’s awesome, man.”
Packing up the stage, Metallica will travel to the Sonic Temple Festival in Ohio on Friday, May 9th, to continue their M72 World Tour.
(Photo by Jeremychanphotography/Getty Images)
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