Nebraska Examiner Press Release
Nebraska regents to consider opening door to alcohol sales at Husker football, volleyball games
Proposal would set up a plan that could let booze flow as soon as fall 2025 in Memorial Stadium and Bob Devaney Sports Center
BY: ZACH WENDLING – SEPTEMBER 27, 2024 12:03 PM
More than 92,000 fans crowded into Memorial Stadium for “Volleyball Day,” setting a new world record for attendance at a women’s athletic event. Aug. 30, 2023. (Paul Hammel/Nebraska Examiner)
LINCOLN — The University of Nebraska Board of Regents could do away with case-by-case approvals of alcohol at athletic events and move to more blanket approval as early as next year.
The NU regents will meet at the University of Nebraska at Kearney next Friday to consider a wider approval process that would let campuses develop safety and management plans to sell alcohol at all or specific athletic events. Regents will also consider an update to its campaign-related policy and the advancement of other athletic-related construction projects in Lincoln.
Possible expansion of alcohol sales
The regents opened the door to sell alcohol at designated athletic events in February 2022, requiring approval for each individual event or venue over time.
A portion of sales would be diverted back to alcohol safety education or services to combat alcohol abuse, though the percentage has not yet been identified.
“The University of Nebraska has put a great deal of thought and care into how we approach alcohol at our athletic events,” NU President Jeffrey Gold said in a statement. “I’m very pleased that we have shown we can do this safely, responsibly and in a way that makes sense for our fans, our student-athletes and the institution as a whole.”
Should the regents give approval, Husker Athletics intends to move forward with a plan that could let alcohol flow for the 2025-26 season, including for football and volleyball games.
Across the Big Ten that the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is a member of, UNL stands alone in not currently approving alcohol at football games.
Melissa Lee, a spokesperson for NU, said the immediate plan is to expand sales to Bob Devaney Sports Center and Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, not at either UNK or the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Huskers Athletic Director Troy Dannen noted that in the two years of alcohol sales at UNL, such as at wrestling, baseball or softball games and at Volleyball Day in Memorial Stadium last year, safety was a key priority and they are ready to expand full time to other facilities.
“We are committed to providing a first-class game-day experience and amenities in all our athletic venues,” Dannen said.
NU reports “no major alcohol-related incidents” at any such events in Lincoln. Alcohol has also been sold for years at UNO Maverick hockey games.
Past regents comments on alcohol
Regents Jim Scheer of Norfolk, Kathy Wilmot of Beaver City and Barbara Weitz of Omaha have in the past opposed expanding alcohol sales.
Wilmot has consistently done so, arguing it does not “enhance” the experience for all fans, just adults, and ignores the family friendly environment that some fans crave.
For Volleyball Day last year, Scheer joined Wilmot in opposition over concerns that some of the 80,000 ticket holders for the event might have been caught unaware of the change, after they had already bought tickets.
And in April, NU partnered with NEBCO to allow alcohol sales at Haymarket Park in Lincoln for Husker softball and baseball games. Weitz joined Wilmot in opposition, stating that the regents needed to move beyond a “piecemeal approach to alcohol” and examine its related policies.
Scheer voted for the proposal in part because the sales went directly back into needed capital improvements at the park.
Regent Rob Schafer of Beatrice, board chair, has consistently pointed to successful events without issue and has said that he believes in “treating adults like adults.”
Other agenda items
Also on the agenda is a slew of policy updates, including one to clarify that no administrative officer within NU, such as campus chancellors, shall participate directly or indirectly in regents campaigns. The policy would be expanded to include attending, speaking at, organizing or sponsoring campaign events for such candidates.
Lee said the policy changes overall — including updates to disability accommodations, equal opportunity employment and employee incentive programs — are part of a larger effort that began under former NU President Ted Carter as a “red tape review.”
Other agenda items include proposals to:
- Increase the budget for the phased replacement of the outdoor track for the Huskers by nearly $10 million. The project got first approval in October 2019.
- Consider a $6.2 million project for replacing and renovating the grass practice fields as the Huskers’ Osborne Legacy Complex to improve soil health and maintenance for student-athlete safety.
- Rename the north tower of Memorial Stadium from the Osborne Athletic Complex to the Cornhuskers Athletic Complex, because Osborne’s name was placed instead on the newly built football facility.
- Approve Anne Barnes of the University of Nebraska Medical Center as interim vice president and chief financial officer for NU. Current CFO Chris Kabourek, who led NU as interim president from Jan. 1 to June 30, will resign Oct. 1. Barnes would continue to serve as UNMC’s vice chancellor for business, finance and business development.
Regents will meet at 9 a.m. next Friday at UNK’s Regional Engagement Center, Room 120.
