HARRISONBURG — The idea began brewing in places where fond memories were created.

In the past five years, James Madison football captured unforgettable victories at Gerald J. Ford Stadium on the campus of FBS Southern Methodist, Delaware Stadium in Newark, Del., and Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas, the site of the FCS national championship game.

Now, Bridgeforth Stadium, the home of the Dukes, will offer beer for the first time beginning this season as announced by Madison on Thursday — just like those mentioned venues already do.

“When we were at SMU and played there, they had beer sales throughout their stadium,” Dukes athletic director Jeff Bourne said. “So we talked to their staff about their experience and looked at other institutions in our league that offered alcohol sales.”

Bourne said his staff started conversations and research internally about whether or not to sell beer throughout the stadium between 12 and 18 months ago.

Previously, only those fans sitting in suites or with access to the club level at Bridgeforth Stadium were able to purchase beer. But when the 2019 home campaign kicks off on Sept. 7 against St. Francis, JMU fans can drink it any section of the stadium.

Beer will be sold on the home side’s upper and lower concourses and on the ground level of the north end zone.

“We looked at both FBS and FCS institutions that offered it,” Bourne said. “Then, we watched the experience at the University of Delaware in the last couple of years and how that went.

“And we monitored the NCAA experience the last couple of years when the FCS championship offered beer in Frisco, and how that experience worked for them and how it worked with regard to a crowd control standpoint. And their results back were very favorable.”

And because the NCAA allows alcohol sales in the playoff rounds ahead the title game, JMU will sell beer at Bridgeforth Stadium should the Dukes host in the postseason again, too.

FCS schools already selling beer throughout their home football stadium include Delaware, McNeese State, Nicholls, Northern Colorado, Southeastern Louisiana and Youngstown State. There are 61 FBS schools that sell it, including West Virginia at Milan Puskar Stadium where the Dukes will visit to open their season on Aug. 31, and 42 Group of Five schools.

Both Richmond and Virginia Commonwealth sell beer throughout the home basketball arenas the two schools play in.

Bourne said Aramark, JMU’s food service provider, is working on pricing for beers at Bridgeforth and have started talks with two local distributors on putting together a “wide line of options.”

“It’s going to be consistent pricing,” Bourne said. “But for an in-game experience, the pricing will be reasonable compared to what you’d expect if you went to other venues like a professional sports venue or something like that where they’ve offered it for some time.”

Bourne said he believes offering beer will improve JMU’s game day environment by giving fans a reason to stick in the stands for a longer period of time.

It’s often on Saturdays in the fall that those thousands wearing their purple and gold love to finish that final drink during their tailgate as the Marching Royal Dukes take the field moments before kickoff only to sneak out of the stadium during the third quarter in order to get a jump on finding where to drink afterward.

“I do think it’ll have a positive impact with regard to keeping fans at the game longer,” Bourne said. “I think it’ll also offer an option for fans to come into the game earlier. We have a lot of fans stay outside the gate and come into the game last minute. Now this is an option afforded within the facility and we feel very strongly it has the potential to bring people into the game earlier.”

Bourne also said the athletic department kept public safety officials and campus police involved throughout the decision process.

Beer sales will begin when the stadium opens through the end of the third quarter, and fans can buy two beers a time, but no more than four during one game.

“It’s a big change on the national front,” Bourne said, “and we always consider ourselves a proactive institution and doing things that keep us at the forefront of fan experience and engagement, so I’m encouraged with how all this will go and I’m excited for our fans to have a chance to experience it this year.”