As you have likely heard, Nebraska wants their game against Southern Cal to be a “blackout.” The team will be wearing new black alternate uniforms. Notably, fans are being asked to wear black in an attempt to turn the “Sea of Red” into the Black Sea.
This simple request has spawned an overflow of ridiculous, over-wrought, shark-jumping discourse revolving around the game day fashion choices of the 85,000 fans who will enter Memorial Stadium Saturday night.
Sides are being drawn. Ageism is on full display. Threats are being made. Presumptions are trumping the benefit of the doubt.
Let’s all take a deep breath. We’ll examine the concerns, questions, and most importantly — why this one will be different.
But we’ll start off hot…
The boomers are bound to (expletive) this up
– Twitter user @phzonx
“The boomers are bound to (expletive) this up” — Twitter user @phzonx
The widely held assumption is that the “blue hairs”* (i.e., older, longtime season ticket holders) will stubbornly refuse to participate and ruin the effect.
*I would love to know when the blue hairs became the scapegoats for any fun-hating activity inside the stadium. In my college days (which occurred in the previous century), we criticized the blue hairs for not being loud enough, not participating in the wave, and other egregious offenses that seem silly in retrospect. This means many of the blue hairs of my youth have likely passed on, and are being replaced with my peers.
Uncomfortable fact: if you were old enough to legally drink alcohol during the 1990s championship seasons, you’re likely at (or very near) blue hair status.
Any social media post about the blackout game from the last two months is guaranteed to have multiple responses like the one quoted above.
But here’s the kicker: I have yet to find a Husker fan – of any age – who has said they plan to wear red to the game. And I’ve been looking since the blackout was announced in August.
The Huskers wore black jerseys in 2013 against UCLA, and a fair share of fans followed suit. / Bruce Thorson-Imagn Images
The closest thing I’ve seen is a podcast host who said he’s “fine with it” but plans to wear red while sitting on his couch.
This has not stopped the social media posturing about how anybody who doesn’t participate in the blackout “is not a real fan”, “hates the players”, or “should just stay home”. I have seen multiple people suggest that fans who do not wear black should have their tickets revoked – sellout streak be damned.
I saw one response – presumably made sarcastically – that anybody in red would end up wearing black by the end of the game… in the form of a black eye.
Hilarious.
Nebraska has tried blackouts before, but they didn’t work. None of the old people wore black.
– composite of multiple Reddit comments
To the best of my memory and research, there are have at least three other attempts at a Memorial Stadium blackout:
Each of these previous blackout attempts had the same fatal flaw: none were sponsored – or promoted – by Nebraska’s athletic department.
Prior to the 2013 UCLA game, Sean Callahan tweeted, “NU is not officially endorsing Saturday as a ‘blackout’ at Memorial Stadium. That is a grassroots deal.” For anybody on the fence, that likely sealed their decision to wear red.
How many season ticket holders are aware of the Iron N student group, let alone follow them on social media? Their blackout attempt in 2014 conflicted with a “red out” campaign by the Team Jack Foundation. That’s unfortunate timing.
The student section during the 2017 Wisconsin-Nebraska game. / Nebraska Athletics
In 2017, Iron N got KETV in Omaha to mention the blackout. But anyone west of Lincoln would likely be out of KETV’s signal range. Also, it’s worth noting that the official Huskers account tweeted out a reminder about the clear bag policy with the instructions “WEAR RED.”
So, even if Bob and Dorothy in North Platte heard about a blackout before leaving home, they probably would have assumed it was just for the students because NU didn’t mention it.
I cannot stress this enough: The official endorsement and communication is why the USC blackout will be different from the previous attempts.
Season ticket holders received an email from NU on Aug. 15 letting them know about the blackout. I’ve lost count of how many times the blackout has been mentioned in the emails I receive from Nebraska athletics over the last two months. I received another one this morning: “all fans are encouraged to join (the Huskers) by wearing black to the game (emphasis from the NU email). Help us black out Memorial Stadium and create an unforgettable experience for our fans and an intimidating environment for our opponent!”
The blackout is being referenced in articles, columns (thanks for reading!), on TV, radio, and pretty much everywhere Husker fans congregate. The number of people attending the game who are truly unaware of the blackout will likely be very low.
Whether or not they choose to wear black is a different story.
When you walk in here, you see nothing but red. I can’t recall walking into another stadium and seeing such an amazing, monochromatic scene and so much loyalty.
– Chris Fowler, ESPN college football broa
The Sea of Red.
Memorial Stadium has long been known for two things: 1) a sellout streak dating back to the 1960s, and 2) Husker fans all wearing red. Right?
Well… I guess it depends on your definition of “all” fans wearing red. If you take a look around the stadium on a game day (or look at the photographs from any game), you’ll see that the majority of fans are wearing red. But in any picture, you’ll find notice that approximately 10-20% of Nebraska fans are not.
For the record: that’s perfectly fine. When people pay for a ticket, they get to wear whatever color(s) they choose. I might wish the folks who are very insistent that ALL fans wear black on Saturday brought that same energy into maintaining the Sea of Red the rest of the year.* But I’m not the fan police, and have zero desire to take on that role.
*Yes, other than the “Red Out Around the World” game in 2010, I can’t remember Nebraska specifically requesting that fans wear red for home games. But after 50+ years, I would hope that “wear red to home games” is an implied expectation.
So, while I’m not going to tell fans to “wear red, or else!” for the rest of the home slate, I will point out that the reasons fans want the blackout to be successful (the visual effect, impress recruits, intimidate the opponent, etc.) still apply regardless of what color is being worn.
Only way (a blackout) works is if they put free shirts on the seats.
– Twitter user @mediumcool_
I’ve got bad news for you, that is never going to happen. Let me count the reasons why:
- Costs. I don’t have a good estimate of how much it would cost to purchase, print, and distribute 85,000 t-shirts, but let’s low-ball it at $1.50 per shirt. That’s over $125,000.
- Budget priorities. NU’s athletic department – which is already looking for ways to generate more income for cover the $20 million in revenue sharing – is not going to spend the money.
- Profit margins. Adidas, Nebraska’s apparel partner, would rather sell you a black shirt for $30 (such as the one Matt Rhule wore in Monday’s press conference) than give you one for free. Actually, they’d really like it if you bought a $70 hoodie, or better yet, a $140 replica jersey. NU would prefer this as well.
- Optics. While the athletic department has a separate budget from the rest of the university, there are currently is a severe financial shortfall on the UNL campus, which will likely result in programs being cut, tuition being raised, and faculty buyouts. That makes the optics of handing out 85,000 shirts for the sake of a photo op hard for the academics to swallow.
- Weather. As of this post, the forecasted high for Saturday is 51 degrees, with the low dipping down into the mid-30s. Even you got a free t-shirt, it would likely be covered by a coat or hoodie.
But mostly, we won’t get free shirts because Nebraska and Adidas want us to buy something new. Selling fan apparel is the biggest reasons alternate uniforms exist.
People should be asked to put on black or leave. The fans need to mercilessly bully any narcissistic red wearer they see.
– Twitter user @Sahrkazum
Do I really think that verbal altercations and fights are going to break out in the stands based on the color of their shirt? Of course not. People love to talk tough online.*
*Plus, I’m willing to believe that a person whose handle reads like “sarcasm” might not actually be serious.
By the time the game kicks off on Saturday, I’m believing the consensus opinion is that the Memorial Stadium blackout was a success.
Yes, there will be some who do not wear black.* Some of those people may have landlines and receive letters from AARP. But I guarantee there will be people under 30 in red as well.
*I plan to wear the new black shirt I bought in August, but it will likely be under a black hoodie or jacket.
Bottom line: The overall visual effect will be reached.
Then, the game will start. We’ll forget all about this silliness and focus on the football.
And that’s okay.
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