Penn State Athletics released a statement Friday morning regarding Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf’s temporary ban on spectators at in-person sporting events.

The updated guidelines, of course, prevent Penn State from hosting family members at Penn State football games, starting with this weekend’s matchup with Michigan State. Although they wouldn’t have been permitted on the field anyway, family members would’ve celebrated Senior Day Saturday.

“We are extremely disappointed for our football seniors, their parents and their families,” Athletics said in a statement. “They have been looking forward to their Senior Day and making arrangements to attend Saturday’s game, so this timing has proven difficult for all parties.”

Despite the frustration, Athletics said it understands “the gravity of the pandemic” and knows the decision was made with the community’s safety in mind.

Wolf’s updated policies, which will stretch for at least three weeks starting at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, December 12, come as coronavirus cases and deaths skyrocket across Pennsylvania. The state reported record highs of coronavirus cases in each of the last two days and reported close to 1,100 coronavirus-related deaths over the past week.

Head coach James Franklin previously said he wanted to make Senior Day “as special as possible” for his oldest student-athletes who embarked on perhaps “the most successful four-year stretch” since Penn State joined the Big Ten. Unfortunately, that goal might be a bit tougher now.

On the bright side, all current seniors received an extra year of eligibility thanks to an October NCAA ruling. Hopefully, if they choose to stay, they’ll get a proper Senior Day send-off next fall.