LINCOLN, Neb. (KMTV) — For the first time since 2019, Memorial Stadium was a packed house. However, it wasn’t for a Big Red game, the first time in 34 years.
“Extremely excited, Garth is our favorite,” Brooke Defrain said. “We are very pumped!”
When the tickets for country music star Garth Brooks went on sale on May 21, over 70,000 tickets were sold in the first 47 minutes.
“I told my husband, ‘Ok, they go on sale at this time you need to be ready like a half hour before’ and he was,” Defrain said.
“We did get them right when they came out,” James Dean said. “Garth has been a favorite of ours for years and we just kind of fell in love with him when we started dating.”
Nobody was missing the chance to see Garth at Memorial Stadium.
“This place is going to be on fire tonight,” Josh Grabbe said. “I mean, of all people to bring here – Garth Brooks.”
This is the first opportunity some music fans have had to go to a concert since the pandemic began.
“It’s really exciting. COVID has shut everything down for a long time and it’s nice to feel normal again,” Dean said.
With the rise of the delta variant, Nebraska Athletics strongly recommended fans to wear masks inside the stadium for what was the largest crowd that Garth Brooks had ever played in front of.
On top of all the history, it is the first time alcohol is being served inside Memorial Stadium. Something some fans hope sticks around for the football season.
“Well I’d love it, because unless we get a little better we’re going to need a lot of booze to get through these games,” Grabbe said. “I mean, I’m a diehard Husker fan but we need some booze.”
“Anytime you open a beverage or two with your friends in low places it’s going to make for a great night,” Corey Reeves said. “I think the sing along is going to be loud and proud tonight here at Memorial Stadium.”
Garth Brooks and his team say after Saturday night’s concert, they will be taking a three-week break to reasses whether to continue future dates on his Stadium Tour, in light of the rising number of COVID-19 cases across the country.
