A day after university officials announced a decision to close a popular student tailgate due to "safety concerns'' related to alcohol consumption, Rutgers Athletics Director Pat Hobbs issued an open letter to the students.

Hobbs, who garnered national attention Tuesday when a video showing him sipping a beer following a successful attempt to calm a rowdy crowd went viral, called on students to continue their support of the football team and discussed at length the reasons for why his department shut down the student tailgate nicknamed "The Alley'' near High Point Solutions Stadium.

The decision to shut down The Alley has drawn widespread criticism from Rutgers student organizations on social media and one student created a Change.org petition calling for a "boycott (of) Rutgers football games until the Alley is reopened.''

The Scarlet Knights play host to Iowa for their Big Ten opener on Saturday, 12 p.m., at High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway.

Hobbs said in his letter multiple departments across the university will work with student leadership on ways to modify The Alley or find an alternative solution.

"The Alley came about as a result of many conversations with student leaders and your desire to have a designated tailgate area where you could come early to the Busch Campus and be with your fellow students,'' Hobbs said. "Its popularity exceeded everyone's expectations. Yesterday, due to concerns about our ability to ensure student safety, we made the decision that The Alley could not continue to be used as an area for student tailgating. There are concerns with the capacity of the space, the availability of services and alcohol consumption. It's our duty to ensure a safe and fun environment for you and I know you understand that.

"After meeting this morning, Athletics, Student Affairs and Public Safety have agreed to work together to see if we can find a way to make modifications to The Alley or find an alternative site which will address the concerns. We will, of course, work with student leadership to see how this might be accomplished.''

A letter from AD Pat Hobbs to the students regarding The Alley: https://t.co/eUkoKIFgCe — Rutgers Scarlet Knights (@RUAthletics) September 21, 2016

Here is the complete letter:

Dear Students,

First, I want to thank all of you for the tremendous support you've shown our football team this year. It's been awesome. Coach Ash, our football staff and players have commented on how much they appreciate your energy and enthusiasm. Our student section has been a sea of Scarlet Knights. We need that passion to continue this Saturday against Iowa and for the rest of our home schedule. Our team has worked incredibly hard and I know you'll be there for them.

The Alley came about as a result of many conversations with student leaders and your desire to have a designated tailgate area where you could come early to the Busch Campus and be with your fellow students. Its popularity exceeded everyone's expectations. Yesterday, due to concerns about our ability to ensure student safety, we made the decision that The Alley could not continue to be used as an area for student tailgating. There are concerns with the capacity of the space, the availability of services and alcohol consumption. It's our duty to ensure a safe and fun environment for you and I know you understand that.

After meeting this morning, Athletics, Student Affairs and Public Safety have agreed to work together to see if we can find a way to make modifications to The Alley or find an alternative site which will address the concerns. We will, of course, work with student leadership to see how this might be accomplished.

While we work toward a resolution, I urge you to remember our Creed, "Our enthusiasm on game day helps to recruit the nation's best!" There will be over one hundred recruits at the game this weekend. Our team needs you. Coach Ash needs you. Rutgers needs you.

So I urge you to join with us this Saturday to create an awesome game day environment. Join me for the Scarlet Walk at 9:30 a.m. as our team arrives to enter High Point Solutions Stadium. I know it's early, but you made it to The Alley, so hopefully you can make it there. Let's pack the student section before kickoff, cheer wildly throughout the game and join together in a rousing rendition of the Alma Mater afterwards. That would be a wonderful statement of your commitment to Rutgers and your respect for everything we are trying to achieve.

See you Saturday. Go RU!

Pat Hobbs Director of Intercollegiate Athletics

LISTEN: Episode 3 of NJ.com's Rutgers Football podcast

Rebuilding Rutgers: From The Ashes takes you inside the new football regime. This episode dives into Ash's recruiting efforts his first year on the job.

Keith Sargeant may be reached at ksargeant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KSargeantNJ. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.