The interview was held on the phone after the College World Series Pre-Game Press Conference on 16 June.
The image below is from 12 June 2019 at TD Ameritrade Park.
We’ve just heard about a lot of changes with the College World Series but there are a lot of positives too. What are your favorite new things that will be happening this year?
My favorite new things … well, with tongue in cheek, I would say all of the digital ticketing and the touchless concessions because it’s a new experience for those of us who have been used to paper tickets and being able to pay with cash. So, that is going to be a new experience. I think it will be very big over time and people will get used to it and it will be more efficient …We are glad to have tailgate continuing. I think it will be a renewed energy of tailgating this year just because people want to get out and enjoy some sense of normalcy.
Most importantly, I am looking forward to getting to watch some great baseball.” The Greatest Show on Dirt” for the 71st time here in Omaha, Nebraska!
There are some specific activities that I am looking forward to. One of them is … I want to see how many people wear their boots on a 95 degree day. We are having Country night on Friday of the College World Series, so bring out your boots.
We are also having Kid’s Day, Monday afternoon, and Throwback Thursday. People can wear their old hats and College World Series shirts.
So, there will be a lot of fun things to do; video boards, some games and so forth.
Most important thing is we got the College World Series and there is going to be some wonderful baseball.
I am looking forward to it. I don’t know what day I am coming but I will be wearing my cowboy boots.
There you go.
When did you first learn that the College World Series was going to be coming back?
Actually we had always…This goes back to the beginning of the year. We were confident working with the NCAA that it was coming back. The only thing that we did not have a good handle on amongst ourselves and the NCCA, at the time, was the percentage of participation that was going to be available for fans.
Originally, we thought… we were going to have a College World Series with probably no more than 25 percent. Then, it went up to 50 percent which is what we thought it was going to be for baseball. That was in April.
Then based on a variety of things (CDC guidelines, inoculations, cases were going down, hospitalizations were going down and the way things are going on here in Nebraska), the NCAA agreed to not have a “one-size-fits-all” and for having them subject to the protocols that were going on in a particular state or city. So when that happened on, I think, May 19th, it was decided to go to 100 percent.
So, we’ve been slowly but surely evolving since the first of the year. It’s been 24/7 since early May but we are excited to be where we are and having no limitations on the number of fans that can be in the stadium.
We are hoping everyone is going to take advantage of it.
Thank you for all the hard work and all the extra hard work to make returning the College World Series possible and thank for the interview.
You got it. No problem. Thank you for covering it. We appreciate it. You make it a great day.
