Smaller Nebraska football spring game attendance brought lower sales in Lincoln’s Haymarket

Lincoln Haymarket businesses were surprised by the lack of buzz around the Nebraska football spring game last weekend.

Rebecca Wohlers is the general manager at Buzzard Billy’s and said it was still a good day, “but it wasn't quite as high volume as years previous."

“I also think it was earlier this year than it has been. Usually it's around mid-April, and it was just a little earlier this year,” Wohlers added, “so that might have played a factor in it feeling a little bit slower, but we still had a great day.”

More than 27,000 fans watched the game in Memorial Stadium — the lowest attendance since 2000. It marked a return to a traditional spring game after head coach Matt Rhule opted for a skills competition instead of a spring game last year.

Wohlers said she hopes next year will be busier now that the tradition has been reestablished.

Chelsey Hieronymus, general manager at HopCat, also noticed business seemed to be down from previous years.

“It was a little slower than we anticipated. I don't think the weather was a great factor for anyone either, because we weren't able to sit people outside on the patio where they could kind of enjoy the feel down here,” Hieronymus said. “But overall, we didn't see very much before the game.”

She said football traffic picked up after the game and added that this year’s Nebraska basketball season was “much more successful than a normal basketball season as well. I mean, we were packed for every single men's home game, and it was dang near some of those football Saturday numbers.”

Despite the slower day, HopCat hosted a handful of football recruits in town for the spring game. One of the most popular orders for players and recruits is the Caesar Salad, Hieronymus added.