I got a beer at the Lions game… spilled all over my brand new sports jacket!

Don’t worry. I’m only 20 years old, and even if I was a year older Cornerstone would kick me out for drinking. But any chance of that is now erased after this traumatic experience.

It was absolutely ridiculous.

I felt like turning around to the people behind me and saying in a firmly irritated tone, “I just bought that coat. It was expensive. Pay up!”

Unfortunately, I didn’t have a chance to scream at the drunks behind me because I only realized my coat was ruined after they left.

At the beginning of the game, I had a stingy feeling something would be spilled on my back. “The fans in the cheap seats by us were rowdy and not very interested in the game,” said CU employee Steve Webb, who attended the game with me. The fans were ordering beer after beer and I could picture the beer splattering all over me. All it would take is one fan jumping up to scream at the officials or cheer for a touchdown.  

So instead of wearing the coat when it happened, I decided to hide it under my seat and take the bulk of the potential spill on my Lions T-shirt. I figured the seat would provide a shield and be the most spill-proof location for my coat.

I made it through the game without any beer spilling on my shirt, and got ready to leave on a good note. Then I picked up my coat and it felt wet. Right away, I knew something was wrong. I smelled it, and, sure enough, it was beer.

I hate beer. I hate the smell. I hate the effects. I hate how sticky it is on the floors of sports arenas.

I’m sure I’m not the first person who has had their clothing beer-washed at a football game. My friend Matt Ward, a senior at CU, said it used to happen to him all the time and that the smell will come out in the laundry. I hope so, but that doesn’t change my frustration. I doubt I will ever get used to spilled beer.

Why do we even have beer at football games anyway?

Well, the Detroit Lions are struggling to sell tickets. Television blackouts have threatened several recent games due to low ticket sales. Those fans who do have the courage to sit through a Lions game usually drink the pain away. So selling expensive beers to a crowd that devours alcohol is a smart business move.

I’m all for fan spirit, and as CU student Kyle Dougherty pointed out, “The fans definitely made the game entertaining.” But fan spirit isn’t pouring beer on each other. It’s screaming at the top of your lungs for the Lions to finally win a game.