Omaha businesses brace for College World Series upset

The waiter, known by his colleagues as a consummate storyteller, begins describing life during the College World Series.

“It was over there,” Menard says, “Booth 16.”

A few years ago, at one of the bar's busiest times of the year, a 6-foot-4, 300-pound man sat at a table in downtown Omaha — not in a booth, not even on the edge of a chair. On the table.

That was Ndamukong Suh, a former Husker football player, 2009 Heisman Trophy finalist, 13-year NFL player and owner of a Super Bowl championship ring.

But rules are rules, even for famous patrons.

A colleague told the defensive lineman to get off the table, but the words were not suitable for public consumption.

There are plenty more past CWS articles to come, with more to come as the event comes to Omaha soon. Games start on Friday, bringing with them a week and a half of booming local economy, especially for businesses near Charles Schwab Field.

The CWS, a 10-day tournament featuring eight of the best teams in college baseball, also creates mayhem, and when that many people gather together to enjoy baseball and beer, naturally anything can happen.

“There's a lot of drunk people here, and they're acting all debauched,” Menard said. “That's why I go to work every day and get out of here.”

Lt. Neil Bonacci said downtown will essentially fall under the jurisdiction of the Omaha Police Department.

They're moving the mobile command center closer to the stadium to keep OPD's operations the same as they always have, and also, if something does happen, they'll be close by.

“Having the College World Series there has created something exciting and exciting. It doesn't always create excitement. “It doesn't matter either way,” Bonacci said, “but there will definitely be an increased police presence during games and at night.”

That buzz and business boom also includes Blatt Beer & Table, named after Rosenblatt Stadium, the CWS' former home, and located across from Schwab Field; Mattress Factory, a block away from the stadium's right-field gate; and Annie's, an Irish pub across from the CHI Health Center, a few blocks away.

“In last year's series, the impact was approximately $115 million, which would support approximately 22,500 jobs and generate more than $3 million in local taxes,” said Amy Hornocker, executive director of the College World Series of Omaha. “This is up from approximately $88.3 million in our last survey in 2019.”

Hornocker has seen the growth of downtown events firsthand, starting as an intern with CWS during Rosenblatt’s time there and joining the staff in 2017.

A year ago, that meant setting an event record with 24,599 fans per game in a stadium with a capacity of 24,000.

“And that's just what's come through our doors,” Hornocker said.

Annie's owner Joe Wells, who has worked at CWS since the pub opened in March 2018, said the bar's business is usually concentrated on Fridays and Saturdays.

But during the CWS, Wells lives every night like it's a weekend. He has to.

There's usually one bartender on duty during the week, but at least one more is added the week the team and its fans arrive in Omaha, there's increased security and a DJ every night.

“You just take your weekday operations and make them more like your weekend operations,” Wells said. “And do that for 10 days.”

Unlike other stores, Annie's usually doesn't get too much fuss, Wells said, and he thinks part of the reason is its location.

Another reason is that Annie's doesn't serve food.

“Not everyone just wants a drink,” Wells said. “This is food. and Drinks event.

Some people just want a drink.

Annie's partnered with the Louisiana State University Sports Foundation last year, and the pub has served as a hub for the sea of ​​purple and gold that's flooding Omaha.

Wells said the preparations are done on an ad-hoc basis, with CWS teams not being ready until just a few days before first pitch.

The Tigers won their third national title this century by defeating Florida in a best-of-three championship series, the final game of which was played on Monday and ended just after 9:30 p.m.

“They called us at about 2:10 a.m.,” Wells said. “They said, 'Hey, can we come over to your place and keep the party going?' And I said no, because we can't serve alcohol after 2 a.m. But they wanted to keep celebrating after the night ended and the bars closed.”

While business is good during the CWS, Wells said it's not “life-changing money.” It varies from place to place.

Menard shared the same sentiment, as did one of his managers, Cindy Murphy.

“Don't get me wrong, everybody loves the College World Series, but we have 350 other days to operate and do business,” said Murphy, who has worked at every CWS since it moved downtown from Rosenblatt in 2011.

“If we can't do good business 350 days a year, we can't survive the other 15. That's always been our mindset. If we depend on that, we'll never be successful.”

The economic impact also changes from year to year, with which teams play playing a big part in the economic impact.

Menard, Wells, Murphy and others are all rooting for LSU to win because they have fans rooting for the team. They're also rooting for Mississippi State because three years ago the school “captivated the state,” Murphy said. They're fans of the teams that sell out the stadiums.

No one knows what will come of the disruption, and this year is no exception.

The story goes on and on, and Menard of There are many storytellers at The Matt.

He will keep on telling stories, too. He pauses for a moment to search through the tales he has from the morning shift for his next story. He says he has a good one in mind, but it will have to wait.

“I need to go check on this table right now,” Menard said. “Just a moment.”

Business isn't stopping, and it's only going to get busier.