Hooch, Leach add to game day highway worries

A new era will begin at Martin Stadium Saturday, and no, it’s not just the first home show under Head Coach Mike Leach.

For the first time ever, attendees at Washington State University’s home games will be able to imbibe beer and wine inside the stadium, not just in the parking lot.

“We’re a little bit worried, sure,” said Sgt. Brad Hudson, head of the Colfax detachment of the Washington State Patrol. “You open it up that much more and you take more of a chance.”

The university’s Board of Regents approved an amendment to state law that clears the way for sale and consumption of alcohol in certain areas of Martin Stadium.

Alcohol will not be sold in the student section of Martin Stadium and will be limited to ticket holders with premium seats, according to Darin Watkins, press agent for WSU.

“These changes make it so alcohol can be sold, yeah. But it is exclusively contained to the luxury boxes,” said Watkins.

Sgt. Hudson and Whitman County Sheriff Brett Myers worried even that could add to the already-sloshy lines of traffic that drive through Whitman County after Wazzu home games.

“Absolutely, you can see that on game weekends, the number of DUIs across the county - from all agencies - spikes,” said Myers. “Opening it up a little bit more could have more of an impact, or it may not. I guess we’ll just have to see what happens.”

Both Hudson and Myers noted alcohol has been a long-standing tradition in the parking lots outside home Cougar games.

“People have been drinking at Cougar games for years without having it in the stadium,” said Hudson, who said the WSP is bringing in more troopers for game-day patrols.

“Hopefully people, and the university, will police themselves, and the police won’t have to,” said Myers.

Further adding to the load of traffic through Whitman County this weekend will be the attraction of a new Cougar football program under Coach Leach.

Bill Stephens, spokesman for WSU’s football program, said ticket sales rose significantly after Leach was signed to a multi-million dollar contract.

His national persona and high-powered offense, said Stephens, made Cougar home games a hotter ticket than they already were.

“Yes, there will be more traffic,” said Stephens. “But I don’t think they’re going to be any more rowdy than they’ve ever been.”

Watkins noted the advantage of bringing more traffic through Whitman County on game days.

He pointed to the new “Cougar Corridor” initiative designed to funnel southbound traffic from Highway 195 to Highway 27 through Oakesdale, Garfield and Palouse.

“That’s something that could be really big for these small towns,” he said. “I remember hot dogs and hamburgers flying out of a stand in front of Thurman’s in Palouse way back when. That opportunity could come back here.”

As long as they remember to designate drivers, cautioned the local lawmen.

“I’m hopeful people will drink responsibly,” he said. “If it’s consumed conservatively and served conservatively, we should have a great season.”