University Bans Kegs From All Sporting Events At Harvard

Kegs will be banned on or near the Harvard athletic complex during all home events, University administrators announced this week.

The new ban is an extension of a previously announced ban on kegs at the Harvard-Yale football game.

While alcohol of other types may still be consumed by parties of legal drinking age in and around campus stadiums, individuals who bring kegs to athletic events will now be asked to leave by the Harvard University Police Department (HUPD).

The ban is a response by the administration, HUPD and the athletics department to excessive drinking and resulting unsafe behavior at the Harvard-Yale football game two years ago, according to Dean of the College Harry R. Lewis ’68.

“Our hope is that eliminating kegs will minimize the worst excessive consumption of alcohol,” Lewis wrote in an e-mail.

“No one wants to eliminate good times at football games, but we do want to eliminate people’s getting out of control and becoming dangers to themselves and others,” he wrote.

In addition to the “no keg” policy, all bags, containers, and coolers will be prohibited inside Harvard Stadium and all student tailgates will be restricted to the Comnock Field area of the athletic complex.

According to HUPD spokesperson Steven G. Catalano, enforcement of the new policy means more police officers at home games.

“We’ll be more visible both before and after the games to make sure everyone has a good time and is acting appropriately,” Catalano said.

Henry Weschler, a social psychologist and lecturer at the Harvard School of Public Health, and one of the country’s foremost experts on collegiate drinking, echoed Lewis’ concern for drinking at sporting events.

Weschler said he believes that one major source of binge drinking is the large supply of cheap alcohol—which is the definition of a keg.

“Kegs are like alcoholic buffets. You get a cup and keep getting in line for more,” Weschler said.

Weschler said he also believes that making great amounts of beer less accessible to fans will limit the possibilities of binge drinking.

“While a no keg policy is certainly not going to stop all drinking, it will slow down the amount of alcohol consumed,” he said.

Despite the administration’s rationale for the ban, student groups like the H-club, which seeks to boost school spirit and undergraduate attendance at athletic events, said they are disappointed and skeptical of the new policy.

“A keg ban is very characteristic of an administration infamous for cracking down on finals clubs and the student union and giving undergraduates the shaft,” said Hillary Robinson ’03, president of the H-club.

Robinson said she believes the new policy may decrease student attendance at home games, since many fans are attracted to the party-like atmosphere created by tailgating and drinking.

She also questioned whether the ban is realistic.

“One hundred thousand people attend the Harvard-Yale football game. How many police officers would it take to eliminate all communal sources of alcohol there?” she asked.

Harvard fans like John L. Naguit ’06 shared Robinson’s concerns.

“The kegs are what makes the games so interesting. When you take them away from the students, you take away part of the fun,” he said.