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HANK BOUNDS. REPORTER: IT’S A RELUCTANT REVENUE SOURCE FOR COLLEGES AROUND THE COUNTRY. ALCOHOL ON GAMEDAY, INSIDE THE STADIUMS AND ARENAS. >> I’D PREFER THAT IF I’M THERE WITH MY 10-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER THAT SOMEONE DOESN’T SPILL A BEER DOWN HER BACK, YOU KNOW BUT , I THINK WE ALSO HAVE TO RECOGNIZE THAT IT’S PROBABLY COMING. REPORTER: HANK BOUNDS ADMITS HE MIGHT BE OLD FASHIONED. BUT THE OUTGOING UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT ALSO ADMITS, SCHOOL LEADERS ARE TALKING ABOUT IT. >> I’LL BE HONEST, WE’RE HAVING CONVERSATIONS ALL THE TIME ABOUT WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE, HOW WE DO IT, WHERE WE DO IT. REPORTER: ONE GUARANTEED SOURCE OF REVENUE, RIGHT NOW, BIG TEN MONEY. BOUNDS CALLED THE CONFERENCE MOVE IMMEASURABLE FOR LINCOLN AND A GREAT WAY TO MARKET THE UNIVERSITY ACROSS THE NATION. >> SO YOU JUST YOU HAVE TO HAVE , AN APPRECIATION FOR ALL OF THE PIECES. I THINK IT WAS A HOME RUN MOVE FOR THE UNIVERSITY. REPORTER: WHILE BOUNDS WASN’T IN LINCOLN FOR THE BIG TEN DECISION, HE WAS RIGHT THERE AS THE SCHOOL BROUGHT IN NEW ATHLETIC LEADERSHIP. HOW WOULD HE EVALUATE ONE OF HIS MOST IMPORTANT HIRES? >> WE’VE WORKED REALLY HARD ON GETTING GOOD COACHES IN. BILL HAD A LOT TO DO WITH THAT, BUT A LOT OF OTHER PEOPLE HAD INFLUENCE ON WHAT THAT LOOKED LIKE. REPORTER: ONE STRUGGLE FOR THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT, MARIJUANA. FOUR HUSKER FOOTBALL PLAYERS IN TROUBLE IN THE OFF SEASON. AND BOUNDS SAYS THE ISSUE IS ONLY GOING TO GET MORE COMPLICATED. >> IT’S PERVASIVE, IT’S DIFFICULT TO MANAGE. ALL THE LEGALIZATION HAS MADE IT SORT OF OK TO DO ACROSS THE COUNTRY. AND SO I THINK YOUNG PEOPLE GET MIXED MESSAGES. AND SO I THINK THE ISSUE IS GOING TO BE BECOME MORE , DIFFICULT TO MANAGE AND NOT LESS. I MEAN THAT’S ABOUT THE ONLY , PREDICTION I CAN GIVE YOU. REPORTER: MANY HUSKER FANS KNOW BOUNDS FROM HIS HIGH-PROFILE PRESENCE WITH ATHLETICS, BUT ACADEMICS IS PART OF THE JOB TOO. AND WE PRESENTED HIM WITH THE ETERNAL STRUGGLE FOR MARQUEE UNIVERSITIES ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY. DO YOU EVER THINK IN ANY CASE, ATHLETICS IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE ACADEMIC MISSION? >> I DON’T THINK ATHLETICS IS EVER MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE ACADEMIC MISSION, PERIOD. BUT WE ALSO HAVE TO RECOGNIZE THAT EVERYTHING WORKS TOGETHER. AND SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES ON THE FACULTY WON’T APPRECIATE THIS STATEMENT, BUT WE’RE NOT GOING TO GET 90,000 PEOPLE TO COME LISTEN TO AN ECONOMICS LECTURE. WE JUST AREN’T. REPORTER: BOUNDS ARGUES THE LIGHTS AND CAMERAS THAT FOLLOW THE ACTION ON THE FIELD HELP BRING ATTENTION TO THE UNIVERSITY’S SUCCESS IN LABS AND CLASSROOMS TOO. IN LINCOLN

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It's a reluctant revenue source for colleges around the country: alcohol on game days inside the stadiums and arenas.Big Ten schools that will have beer on tap for fans during the 2019 season include Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Rutgers, Maryland and Minnesota.Introducing alcohol in the stands is an ongoing conversation among leaders at the University of Nebraska."I'll be honest, we're having conversations all the time about what that looks like, how we do it, if we do it, where we do it," said Hank Bounds, the NU president who's stepping down from the post Aug. 14.While the conversations are happening among university brass, Bounds said he's personally opposed to the alcohol sales, calling himself "old-fashioned" on the topic."I'd prefer that if I'm there with my 10-year-old daughter that someone doesn't spill a beer down her back," he said during his KETV NewsWatch 7 exit interview. "But I think we also have to recognize that it's probably coming."One guaranteed source of revenue for Nebraska's athletic department has come from the Big Ten Conference itself.USA Today reports the conference distributed about $50 million to each school during the 2018 fiscal year.Beyond the money, it's also a marketing opportunity for the university across a large, highly populated swath of the United States."So you have to have an appreciation of all that," Bounds said. "I think it was a home run move for the university."While Bounds wasn't in Lincoln for the decision to change athletic conferences in 2011, he was in the president's chair as the school ushered in new athletic leadership.One of his most important hires was athletic director Bill Moos, along with new coaches in football (Scott Frost), basketball (Fred Hoiberg) and baseball (Will Bolt) for the Huskers."We've worked really hard on getting good coaches in," Bounds said. "Bill had a lot to do with that, but a lot of other people had influence on what that looked like."One struggle for Nebraska's athletic department has been the persistent presence of marijuana among football players.Four Huskers got in trouble for possession of the drug during the latest offseason. Bounds thinks the issue will only get more complicated."It's pervasive. It's difficult to manage. All the legalization has made it sort of OK to do across the country," he said. "Young people get mixed messages, and so I think the issue is going to become more difficult to manage and not less."And while Bounds has been heavily involved with the university's athletics program, he still sees academics as the most important part of the institution."But we also have to recognize that everything works together," Bounds said. "And some of my colleagues on the faculty won't appreciate this statement, but we're not going to get 90,000 people to come listen to an economics lecture."Bounds argues the lights and cameras that follow the action on the field help bring attention to the university's success in labs and classrooms, too.