Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska is home to the College World Series. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
OMAHA, Neb.—Every year in the middle of June, thousands of college baseball fans flock to Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska to watch eight teams compete for the NCAA Men’s College Baseball Championship. This year’s field will feature the University of Virginia and Southern Mississippi University, two teams who have never played at the College World Series (CWS).
The University of Texas will be making their 32nd appearance, the most among the eight teams participating.
Game 5 between Cal State Fullerton University and he University of Virginia at the 2009 College World Series was famous for a very special milestone—the 7 millionth fan to walk through the gates of Rosenblatt attended this game. The University of Virginia wound up winning their first CWS game in school history 7–5 and eliminated Cal State Fullerton.
The milestone was celebrated during the evening game in which LSU beat Arkansas 9–1. The first 3,500 fans received a baseball-stitched keychain with the NCAA CWS logo. Also seven fans were selected at random to watch the game from a private skybox.
While it took 26 years to reach the 1 million-fan mark, it has only taken three years to get from six million to seven million.
“For a city with a population of only a little over a half a million, it is amazing to see that seven million people have enjoyed the College World Series and got to experience the great city of Omaha,” said Betty Camenzind, a longtime Omaha resident.
“It is really cool to hit a milestone like that, especially before they move to the new stadium,” said Blake Lager, a 13-year CWS attendee.
Next year will mark the last year that the College World Series will be played in Rosenblatt Stadium. The new stadium is currently under construction and is scheduled to host the 2011 Men’s College World Series.
The $128 million stadium will have 24,000 seats, 26 luxury boxes, and 1,000 club seats. TD Ameritrade recently purchased the rights to name the stadium at a cost of $20 million.
“TD Ameritrade was founded in Omaha more than 34 years ago,” said Fred Tomczyk, president and chief executive officer at TD Ameritrade at a recent press conference.
“More of our associates live and work in this city than in any other location in the country. We understand what this new stadium means to the city, and we want help make it a reality.”
While the city seems to be split on the building of a new stadium, everyone agrees that keeping the College World Series in Omaha is the right move.
“Our family has had season tickets to the CWS for over 10 years. It has been a highlight for the city of Omaha and for our family,” said Omaha native Lindsay Hollingsworth.
“CWS brings fans from all over the country and that is great for our city—not to mention the fans that get to see what a great city Omaha is! Omaha residents are just as excited for the CWS as the teams who participate.”
The CWS will crown its champion on June 23 unless a tiebreaker game is needed. The tiebreaker would be played on June 24. All games can be seen on ESPN or ESPN2.
