Inside the 100-year journey of a Nebraska season ticket

School soccer is a recreation of custom.

In most locations, the rivalries, battle songs and nicknames date again a long time and are handed down from technology to technology. The coaches, gamers and directors all come and go, however the followers are the one fixed.

For so long as Memorial Stadium has stood in downtown Lincoln, Lee Potter and his relations have been there.

Over the course of their 100 years of assist, the seats have been moved and practically misplaced twice.

However, that’s what makes it so particular — it was by no means concerning the seats themselves.

It was concerning the recollections made there, of which there are a lot of.

It began in 1922 when Roland Drishaus acquired a season ticket because of his participation on Nebraska’s monitor staff. That first season ticket was located within the previous Nebraska Area, situated at North tenth and T St., and it got here throughout a a lot completely different period for Nebraska soccer.

In search of to boost funds for his or her new stadium, the soccer staff bought tins of sweet as a approach followers may assist this system. Drishaus’ spouse, Leah Potter, bought a kind of tins and used it as her stitching field for the remainder of her life.

When the Huskers moved from Nebraska Area to Memorial Stadium in 1923, the season ticket was initially positioned in West Stadium. They added a second season ticket not lengthy after, in 1926.

Within the subsequent few years, the seats migrated to East Stadium the place they’ve remained to this present day — Part 5, Row 38, Seats 18 and 19. A pair of seats in row 39 and row 40 got here later, too.

At its begin, Memorial Stadium seated simply 31,080 — a far cry from the 90,000 individuals that may pack into the stadium now.

They noticed the Huskers be part of the Huge Six Convention, they noticed Dana X. Bible lead this system to one among its most profitable runs from 1929-36 and so they additionally noticed the struggles of 9 straight dropping seasons within the Nineteen Forties.

Even for essentially the most passionate followers, that stage of dropping can take a look at their endurance. So, with two younger ladies that wanted their consideration, the couple made the choice to cancel their season tickets.

“About three or fourth months later, they realized they had been going to overlook their associates,” Lee Potter mentioned. “They referred to as the ticket workplace in panic mode, and fortuitously they nonetheless had their seats accessible.”

These younger ladies had been Potter’s cousins, Charlotte Egenberger, who now lives in Minneapolis, and Mary Fritts, who lives in Lyons, Nebraska.

For Potter, his first reminiscence of the seats dates again to 1966, a season the place Bob Devaney gained a fourth Huge Eight title in 4 seasons.

“It was an enormous deal for me then, you understand I used to be younger and simply studying find out how to drive,” Potter mentioned. “Heck, I believe I even parked inside two blocks of the stadium!”

With many relations to go round, Potter was solely part of the shared expertise within the household’s two seats.

From Devaney’s nationwide championship groups in 1970 and 1971 to the beginning of the Tom Osborne period, numerous relations and associates bought to absorb video games from the seats.

“I do know it sounds a little bit foolish, however till you’ve truly gone to a recreation it’s arduous to grasp the sentiments of custom and delight,” Potter mentioned. “You’ll be able to put all of your troubles within the previous package bag and go benefit from the day with lots of people. It’s an expertise to be at a soccer recreation, and there’s nothing else that matches up on this state. There simply isn’t.”

Extremely, the seats have solely been handed down as soon as when Leah Potter died in 1987. Egenberger grew to become the caretaker of the season tickets and would typically name up Lee Potter as one among their native choices to make sure the tickets had been used.

“It’s all the time been an enormous thrill; simply give me a name and I’ll go is what I advised them,” Potter mentioned.

That’s, till Potter took over the household duties in the previous few years. Now, he’s the one who’s answerable for ensuring the tickets find yourself in prepared arms. Potter’s two sons, his daughter and his grandchildren have all attended video games within the seats, as have shut associates and different kin.

At this level, that’s the legacy of the season tickets — they don’t actually belong to 1 particular person; they belong to all.

“I give them away as a result of I believe it’s such a coveted prize that it simply makes me blissful and it makes another person blissful,” Potter mentioned. “No person ever pays for a ticket.”

The 2022 season marks 100 years of the household attending soccer video games courting again to Drishaus’ first yr on the college, however they nearly didn’t make it there.

Through the COVID-shortened 2020 season the place no followers had been allowed contained in the stadium, Egenberger determined she would quit the seats.

“I’m like, ‘You’ve bought to be kidding,’” Potter mentioned. “I referred to as up the ticket workplace immediately and I requested what they did with the tickets and the girl mentioned, ‘Oh, nothing. Lots of people gave up their seats final yr and we didn’t assume they had been critical.’”

Potter relayed that info to his cousin and positive sufficient, Egenberger referred to as again two weeks later saying she would preserve the tickets “in an effort to preserve the custom alive.”

Nonetheless, the on-field product hasn’t all the time made that straightforward.

Forward of a marquee nonconference recreation towards Oklahoma, Potter thought he’d haven’t any bother discovering takers for his seats.

A couple of calls later, and nothing had materialized. Very similar to the run Husker followers endured within the Nineteen Forties, 5 straight dropping seasons had sapped among the state’s collective ardour.

“90,000 individuals count on to go see a very good ball recreation, and so they don’t go to see the opposite staff,” Potter mentioned. “As a matter of truth, I had a tough time discovering any individual that will take free tickets to the College of Nebraska towards Oklahoma. It simply type of damage my coronary heart.”

What hurts too is even pondering that this streak will finish someday. Since Potter is just the caretaker of the tickets which can be in Egenberger’s title, the custom will possible finish there. Sometimes, the College doesn’t permit season tickets to be handed down greater than as soon as.

“I simply know that when my cousin passes, if I’m nonetheless alive, I’ll be achieved,” Potter mentioned. “After 100 years it simply appears (unfair) that it’d occur that approach, however I perceive that there’s such a requirement for tickets so I get it. However, I do know at that cut-off date I’ll be crushed; I’d give them a examine for the tickets for the subsequent 10 years tomorrow, however that’s not going to fly.”

However, there’s nonetheless time to rejoice as we speak whereas fascinated about tomorrow. The world might have modified and the stadium might have developed, however Saturdays in Lincoln have all the time been there.

With each recreation that follows, extra recollections might be made and among the identical traditions that had been there in 1922 will nonetheless be noticed.

For Potter, that’s the takeaway.

“It overwhelms me to assume that it’s been so a few years,” he mentioned. “Each time I used to be at a College of Nebraska soccer recreation, that was vital for me. I simply can’t get previous that custom, and I believe you’ll discover about 90,000 those that agree.”