Since teaming up with Upland Brewing Company at the start of this season, IU football has played four home games with the new alcohol sales policy in Memorial Stadium.
Within the first three home games, IU sold about $250,000 worth of beer and wine and saw a modest reduction in alcohol-related incidents, Senior Associate Athletic Director Jeremy Gray said.
At the start of the pilot program, there were two main goals: To enhance the fan experience and to reduce alcohol-related incidents.
IU football has historically lacked fan attendance, and one reason for that may be the tailgate atmosphere that the inside of Memorial Stadium has had trouble competing with.
“We don’t really want to go into the games because it’s so much fun out here,” IU senior Sam Oliphant said. “I love IU football, but the whole tailgate atmosphere is too good to leave.”
With the new alcohol policy, IU officials hope to turn this mindset around. While the policy is meant for of-age students as well as older fans, IU officials predicted more alcohol purchases from adults from the general public and faculty due to the price point of $7 and $8 for beer and $9 for a glass of wine. This prediction has been accurate so far, Gray said.
As far as overall fan attendance after three games, it is hard to tell the specific effects of the policy due to the lopsided scores that have caused fans to leave at halftime, Gray said.
And after IU defeated Rutgers 35-0 in the most recent home game, IU officials seem no closer to analyzing fan attendance in a closely contested game.
IU is one of seven Big Ten schools to sell alcohol at home football games. IU’s “modest reduction” in alcohol-related incidents, though hard to attribute to the new policy alone, coincides with the trends found at schools such as Ohio State and West Virginia, Gray said.
Safety is a big part of this new policy, as 10 percent of net alcohol sales support alcohol safety programming through the Indiana University Division of Student Affairs.
“Earmarking that money for these programs is an important thing,” Gray said. “We have an obligation to make sure we’re providing a safe environment and giving back to the campus that we represent.”
With IU’s upcoming final home games against Northwestern and Michigan, some Hoosier fans expect closer scores, which would help IU officials in analyzing the new policy in more closely contested games.
While IU officials have evaluated the policy on a week-by-week basis, it will not be until the end of the season that they complete a broad evaluation to analyze the policy’s success.
Partway through the season, though, Gray said they are happy with how the pilot program is going, as it enhances the experience for IU football fans.
“The better we can make the experience and the fewer reasons we have for people to leave, I think all the better,” Gray said.
Gray is hopeful that a better fan experience will lead to a better team. “I believe that fans do win games,” he said. “If we can keep fans here, and fans are engaged throughout, they can positively impact a team’s performance.”