There was a time not too long ago where selling alcohol at a stadium used to be taboo in college sports. Those days seem long gone now.
Per The Oregonian, Oregon State is “nearing completion of an agreement that would allow stadium-wide alcohol sales at Reser Stadium for the 2018 football season.” So cheers Beavers fans, you may soon be able to drown out your football sorrows during the game instead of being limited to the tailgating before and after home games.
A formal announcement on the policy is expected in the coming days or weeks and follows the lead of in-state rival Oregon, which expanded beer and alcohol sales at Autzen Stadium following a few changes at the state level that opens things for both the Ducks and Beavers.
One other thing that might change in Corvallis is the entry-exit policy at Reser to something similar to what will now happen in Eugene. Previously fans were allowed to leave the stadium (like at halftime) to go back to the parking lot but that will no longer be the case at Autzen and probably will wind up being the case for OSU fans at home games as well.
The formal addition of Oregon State to the ranks of schools allowing alcohol at games is part of a growing nation-wide trend in college football that’s designed to not only provide an additional revenue stream but also cut out much of the binge drinking that goes on at every campus on Saturday. The Pac-12 would now have five programs where those of age can buy an adult beverage in 2018, including Arizona, Arizona State and Washington State.
It’s possible that a few others out West could join in on the trend before the season actually starts but either way it’s pretty clear that this is only the beginning of schools opening up alcohol sales and we probably aren’t too far from just about everybody jumping on the bandwagon eventually.