Nebraska Board of Regents to approve alcohol sales at University of Nebraska athletic events

The Nebraska Board of Regents has called an October meeting and will discuss alcohol sales at Nebraska athletic events. NU is currently the only Big Ten school that doesn’t sell alcohol in its football stadium.

The matter was posted under the Business and Finance section of the agenda and listed as the first point. The agenda read, “Approve request to permit alcohol sales at University of Nebraska athletic events, Addendum XI-B-1.”

The board will meet Oct. 4 with approval of alcohol sales on the agenda. Fans can purchase beer and alcohol at Haymarket Park, Bowlin Stadium and Pinnacle Bank Arena – but none of those buildings are university owned.

This season, Michigan and Wisconsin announced their plans to sell beer and alcohol at their respective stadiums. That meant Nebraska was the only Big Ten program that didn’t allow vendors to do so, although there appears to be movement for change.

After taking over for Trev Alberts as Nebraska athletics director, Troy Dannen addressed the idea of selling alcohol at football games. While he said it wasn’t likely for the 2024 season, he said there would need to be a “broader analysis” about more than just football in order for it to happen.

“There will be a point in time in which I’m sure that we will go to the board and ask for that consideration,” Dannen said in May, via Husker Online’s Sean Callahan. “Certainly not this year. When I was at the meeting where the board approved it for baseball, there was talk about a more comprehensive look at alcohol. We sell alcohol at all of the facilities that we do not own, in which Nebraska plays athletics. Not at the ones that we do own.

“The other comprehensive look will be for those events that are coming in, as we talk about how do we utilize the stadium and monetize the stadium beyond the seven Saturdays or whatever per year, alcohol will have to be sold in order for those events to take place. They won’t come if you don’t. I think there’ll be a broader analysis, not specific to football that needs to take place.”

Memorial Stadium is also preparing to take on a new look when renovations begin. The $450 million project will now focus on the East and West Stadiums, which is a shift from the initial plan to focus on the South Stadium, Dannen said.