LINCOLN, NE - APRIL 21: Linebacker Alex Davis #22 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers and linebacker Mohamed Barry #7 and linebacker Pernell Jefferson #32 and lineman Carlos Davis #96 and linebacker Dedrick Young #5 lead the defense on the field during the Spring game at Memorial Stadium on April 21, 2018 in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)Nebraska football will hold its annual Red-White Spring Game on May 1. Athletic director Bill Moos says that the school is preparing to host fans at Memorial Stadium, and “lets of them.”
Fan attendance is a particular point of pride for the Husker program. Nebraska has a sellout streak dating back to 1962, which the school didn’t consider broken by the pandemic this fall (which is fair). The Spring Game is also a huge event, and given dropping transmission rates and the uptick in vaccinations, Moos seems optimistic about fans being in attendance for the event.
The athletic department is currently ramping up its plans for the event, and it sounds like Moos believes this could be a sign of things to come for the fall. He believes that the Big Ten will move towards local health officials determining appropriate capacity limits in the fall, rather than an overarching Big Ten policy.
“I think the Big Ten will let local health officials decide it,” Moos said according to the Omaha World-Herald. “The presidents were so concerned about the pandemic and the health of students, and rightfully so.
For this week's First Downs and Second Guesses column, @tomshatelOWH caught up with #Huskers A.D. Bill Moos, who made a prediction about fans returning to Memorial Stadium and provided insight into how the Big Ten may handle capacity limits moving forward https://t.co/wEkjaXm8yG
— World-Herald Big Red (@OWHbigred) February 22, 2021
“But now they are going to have athletic departments going broke. They know what that means to the big picture of the universities themselves.”
That number could vary based on how the COVID-19 metrics look locally. If we ramp up vaccinations in a major way between now and the fall, perhaps we could see something close to normal. That would be a welcome sight after one of the weirdest college football seasons that we’ve experienced, especially for a passionate fan base like Nebraska football.
Of course, it all depends on how well local areas and the country as a whole are at battling the virus moving forward. Health and safety should still take precedence here.
