A lot has changed for Nebraska Cornhuskers football over the years. Once a dominating powerhouse on par with Alabama today, they’re now mired in mediocrity and a lack of identity in the Big Ten. But at least the school still has its traditions.
That is, except for the long-standing tradition of releasing red balloons after the team’s first touchdown each home game, which they are suspending due to a global helium shortage.
School athletic director Trev Alberts made the announcement on his radio show Monday. The Nebraska legend also said that the school will not hand out red balloons before home games at Memorial Stadium this season.
The tradition of releasing the balloons after Nebraska’s first touchdown at home dates back to the 1960s.
The helium shortage is part of larger supply-chain issues currently plaguing the United States, specifically tied to sanctions against Russian, which is one of the world’s biggest helium suppliers.
“Acquiring helium in today’s day and age, some of the production of it is really challenged, and it’s been hard to get,” Alberts said. “So we’ve been asked by the university, the helium that we are getting as a university, we need to use for medical purposes at [University of Nebraska Medical Center] in Omaha. And so we are this year not going to be providing the red balloons for the first time at Memorial Stadium.”
The school was actually sued in 2016 for the tradition over claims that the balloons posed a health hazard to young children and wildlife. The school’s student government also voted last year to end the tradition, though they don’t have control over game-day events for football games.
Not every Husker fan is on board with the decision, with one even telling a local reporter that he thinks Alberts should be fired.
One #Huskers fan felt deflated by the ending of the balloon release tradition at football games. https://t.co/UbU9V6vTxS pic.twitter.com/yyVSmPoooD
— Channel 8 KLKN-TV (@Channel8ABC) May 24, 2022
[ESPN]
