Baton Rouge is well known nationally as a “drinking town with a football problem.”Our football “problem” has only grown during the last six years after winning two BCS National Championships.Tailgating on Saturday night is special in itself. Regardless of the game, the feeling of sharing a moment with over 300,000 people, counting stadium attendance and its surrounding area, is an experience treasured and savored by Tiger fans, young and old.Too bad the surrounding area, including fans entering the stadium, focuses too much on getting as plastered as possible before game time.As many future alcoholics can testify, tailgating before an LSU game centers around drinking as much as possible, since Tiger Stadium is largely alcohol-free. If you’re lucky enough to score a stadium box, you can booze to your heart’s content while enjoying the game.But for years now, students and fans alike have clamored for legal alcohol within the confines of Death Valley.Not to disappoint legions of Tiger fans, but I wholeheartedly agree with those wishing to keep the Valley an alcohol-free zone.Think about it logically for a minute.Tiger Stadium, without alcohol, is still the scariest place to play college football. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee famously quipped, “Unfair is playing LSU on Saturday night in Baton Rouge.”We, the fans, and largely the student section, have caused not one but two earthquakes with crowd noise, the most recent disturbance coming seconds after scoring the game-winning touchdown against Florida in 2007.The only logical reason to allow the sale of alcohol in Tiger Stadium is the deep cut in our budget. Presumably, the University could earn a staggering amount from alcohol sales.However, when people think of the University, and Louisiana in general, their first few thoughts involve something related to drinking. Our reputation, stated in the first sentence, is old news to Louisiana and the rest of the nation.Alcohol-related deaths among college students rose from 1,440 in 1998 to 1,825 in 2005, while binge drinking, defined as five or more alcoholic drinks in one sitting, increased from 42 percent to 45 percent, according to a June 15 news release by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.These numbers haven’t stopped the University of Memphis from allowing stadium alcohol sales to help cushion the city’s budget shortfall. Locally, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette recently became the second school in the state, after Tulane, to allow stadium alcohol sales.Lowering the drinking age will take a constitutional amendment at the very least. This still doesn’t legitimize the sale of alcohol at the stadium.Bottom line: The student section doesn’t have to buy beer at the stadium to affect the game.In the “Second Earthquake Game” against Florida, the lack of alcohol sales didn’t prevent the student section,  after hours of boozed-up tailgating,  from screaming chants so vulgar, the microphone on the band by the student section was muted.Ultimately, it is the student section’s job to scream, shout and root for the Tigers at the top of our lungs. But three hours is a heck of a long time to stay amped.This is why I propose Tiger Stadium offer Red Bull to students. Our energy level would skyrocket, making Death Valley even more impossible to visit and depart with a victory.Enough with Bud. Enough with Natty.This season, this Red’s for you.Eric Freeman Jr. is a 22-year-old political science senior from New Orleans. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_efreeman.—- Contact Eric Freeman Jr. at [email protected]