Northwestern produced a stirring second-half comeback to stun Nebraska in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic amid chaotic scenes at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday evening as a WiFi malfunction led to officials giving out thousands of pints for free.
Issues with card readers at the Aviva Stadium caused long queues at the bar, with stadium officials eventually deciding to give out free pints to the delight of the 40,000-strong crowd.
Word quickly spread throughout the stadium, leading to "pandemonium" at the different bars located throughout the ground.
The internet at the Aviva stopped working during this evening's American football game, so they started giving away pints for free. This was the queue ?pic.twitter.com/NLP53AuBc0
— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) August 27, 2022
"Everyone in the Aviva Stadium is losing their minds as all the card machines in the entire stadium have broken, so everyone's getting free pints. I've never seen so many happy Irish people in all my life," wrote one delighted Twitter user.
Irish sports writer Maurice Brosnan shared images of the queue on Twitter, showing hundreds of people waiting in line for their free pints, which were limited at two per person.
At the College Football game in the Aviva where the IT system is down and the tills don't work so they are giving away pints for free. Here's the queue for the bar. pic.twitter.com/gzwvAq4NpU
— Maurice Brosnan (@m_brosnan) August 27, 2022
One ecstatic college football fan described Ireland as "the best country in the world" after the malfunction.
On the pitch, fans were treated to a hugely entertaining spectacle, as Northwestern upset the odds to land a shock 31-28 win.
Nebraska did all the early running and raced into a 14-3 lead midway through the second quarter.
However, Northwestern scored two quickfire touchdowns before halftime to take a 17-14 lead in at the interval.
Their lead was short-lived, however, as two Nebraska touchdowns saw them establish a 28-17 lead in the third quarter.
A Northwestern touchdown reduced the deficit to four points toward the end of the third quarter and the comeback was complete three minutes into the fourth quarter thanks to an Evan Hull touchdown.
TOUCHDOWN NORTHWESTERN ?@NUFBFamily is back on top in the 4th quarter! pic.twitter.com/qCjcGiw7bW
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) August 27, 2022
The Northwestern defense withstood fierce Nebraska pressure as the clock wound down and sealed victory with an interception one minute from the end.
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