LSU Football: Fans want even more beer at Tiger Stadium this fall
LSU fans already have a reputation as one of the best college tailgating cultures in the country. They are obviously overachievers, because they want to make the stadium party even crazier.
Last year, I reported that LSU would be one of the few college stadiums to allow alcohol sales. Fans in the south end zone outdoor-seating area of Tiger Stadium can now enjoy hooch while watching the Tigers beat up on opponents.
This “premium” area, called the Skyline Club, is one of the few spots in the stadium where ticketholders can buy alcohol, and it is also one of the more reasonable spots. Tickets for the Skyline Club range in price from about $45 to $120, which is a bargain compared to the luxury suites and the Stadium Club, where prices for a suite are $69,000 and $2,300, respectively.
The SEC still prohibits selling alcohol to the
unwashed masses
general public, so LSU obeyed the letter of the law — if flouting the spirit — by turning the end zone area into “premium” seating. The school must be making money, because now other SEC schools want to jump on that gravy train.
Some schools, like Texas A&M and Auburn, have followed LSU’s example and opened up special “beer garden” areas in the stadium. Fans can pay a fee of $5 for admittance into the separated areas.
LSU AD Joe Alleva wants to sell beer throughout Tiger Stadium. As the rule stands right now, the NCAA will most likely overturn the rule against alcohol sales at events. The only thing stopping school-wide alcohol sales in the SEC is certain member schools. The SEC would need to overturn its conference-wide alcohol ban.
According to SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey, it would come down to a majority vote of the 14 league presidents.
The next SEC conference meeting is in May in Florida, and if the conference rule gets abolished, alcohol sales will be allowed at the schools that want to sell it. There will be some dry-stadium holdouts, but let’s face it–money talks.
Next: Latest 2018 Mock Draft after trades, Pro Days
Once these schools get a whiff of the lucre that alcohol sales will bring (Texas made over $3 million in alcohol sales), I guarantee those schools won’t stay puritanical for too long.