I guess… Now college students can breathe a sigh of relief. Their wish came true. It’s about time they can open a cold one at a sports title game.
But, of course, this ultimate ruling did not come easy-handed. There was not only extreme backlash surrounding this controversial issue — there was also adversity stemming from this heated debate. And it wasn’t until Wednesday, April 18, in Indianapolis, when a unanimous decision was made by the NCAA Division I Council.
With this victory for many college institutions — including Louisiana State University — a waiver is no longer necessary. So who was responsible for preventing the sale of alcohol at college championship games? Some member schools.
But that’s not all. The whole Southeastern Conference restricts the sale of alcohol in private areas, such as; the premium seating.
Don’t you think by colleges prohibiting the purchase of alcohol will reduce the attendance at games and drive the earnings down substantially at the arenas? For sure. That’s why an amendment was introduced.
I mean, seriously, college students should be able to relax and enjoy themselves at a game with a beer — after all, college is supposed to be one of the best four-years of a student’s life. Also supporting the overturn of the long-tradition ban on alcohol sales was the Southeastern Commissioner Greg Sankey. Let’s all thank him for helping to wipe away this uncalled-for policy.
According to Sankey, he believes the sale of alcohol at sports games will only increase the attendance. Sankey added, “There are a significant number of presidents that thinks this needs to be done.”
And besides for the boost of attendance, maybe there will be less alcohol-related incidents with this new policy enacted? Not maybe… It’s definite. Just in 2016-17 alone, the National Colonial Athletic Association (NCAA) released a document, which showed the pilot program, as a complete success. The association mentioned the results of the program are “highly favorable.” Indeed it is.
While pre-game and early-game alcohol incidents have plummeted, Sankey was certain that Monday late-night games selling alcohol will only drive incidents down. He stated, “If there’s a steady flow (of alcohol) through the game, what are the outcomes?”
“I think that right now this is a part of lengthy discussion and debate. I can remember some NFL games where it flows freely that I have attended where you end up in some really uncomfortable situations, and that’s why I think the responsible way to handle this is to continue the dialogue, see how we can manage oversight properly but still make sure our stadiums are family-friendly, if you will,” he said.
So now that the long-tradition policy has been eliminated, how will some college institutions react to this shocking decision? Will there be some sort of appeal by some of the school members? Or will they just let it go?
Let’s all just wait and see what happens.
