Police Issue Reminders for Safe Football Season

By: Stephanie Morrissey - Email

Updated: Sat 8:31 PM, Sep 01, 2012

Click HERE to read more on Lincoln's drinking ordinances.

Husker gameday. It's a time when fans cheer for their team, deck out in red and have a great time. But a plastic cup is one red thing they can't bring with them.

Tailgaters were up at dawn for the Husker home opener and it's not only those red cups Lincoln Police are worried about. They're goal is to have a safe football season so they're reminding fans how to help make that happen.

They've issued reminders about drinking ordinances. They include things like: drinking on public streets, alleys, sidewalks, parking areas or roads is illegal. It's also against the law to drink inside of a vehicle on public property. Passengers in a vehicle can't have an open alcoholic drink in their possession while on public property.

But how well does Husker nation know these rules?

"I think if you're of drinking age, 21 years or older, you can drink at tailgates. I don't think you can walk along the streets and get too close to the stadium," said one fan.

"I think they're supposed to have all alcohol in a container so you're not supposed to have an open container. Just cups and such," said another fan.

"I know you can't have them on the street. I'm not really sure if you can have them here on my tailgate lot or not," said a third fan.

There's one more law that slipped these fan's minds completely. Littering isn't allowed anywhere in the city.

"I think when people have too much to drink there's probably no way to stop them from littering," suggested one fan.

Tailgaters say obeying those rules isn't hard but there's one thing that will really get you in trouble.

"They're more lenient on gamedays unless you act like a fool. That's any day though. Don't bring attention to yourself and act like a fool and everyone is going to have a good time," said a 7-year tailgating veteran.

Most fans say they think Lincoln's drinking laws are similar to those in other cities. They know they're in place to keep them safe during husker season.