Behind the scenes: How Thompson-Boling Arena will sell beer this weekend

• UT gave Knox News a behind-the-scenes look at where beer will be sold Saturday at Thompson-Boling Arena.
• UT's Jeff Maples said he's "not concerned at all" with beer sales starting Saturday.
• Selling alcohol could increase concessions revenue from between $2 and $4 per person to between $10 and $12.
• The university plans to sell alcohol at upcoming events but is still looking at Neyland Stadium.

Beer stands are in place at Thompson-Boling Arena, with six types of alcohol on the menu for Saturday's Alice Cooper concert on the University of Tennessee-Knoxville campus. 

But even though alcohol has never been sold at the arena, a member of UT-Knoxville Chancellor Donde Plowman's alcohol task force said he's not worried about the venue's ability to pull it off. 

"I'll be perfectly blunt with you: I'm not concerned at all," said Jeff Maples, the university's senior associate vice chancellor for finance and administration. "I think we've got a good plan in place. Just like with everything, there may be unforeseen issues that we don't see." 

Things to look out for, Maples said, are mostly logistics — like making sure people are able to move through lines quickly Saturday when thousands of hard rock fans pile into the arena. 

But on Friday, the arena was practically empty, and Maples gave Knox News a behind-the-scenes look at where alcohol will be served.

What's on the menu?:Here's what kind of alcohol will be sold at Thompson-Boling Arena

Look for beer at kiosks, not concessions

There are five beer kiosks set up in the concourse area, with four light beers, one IPA and one spiked seltzer available. 

Each drink will be either 24 or 25 ounces, except for the 19.2-ounce IPA and the 16-ounce seltzer. All drinks will be poured into clear cups and are either $12 or $13.

The kiosks are decked out with signs explaining how alcohol sales work. At the Knoxville Beer Board's request, there are also signs listing the punishments for providing alcohol to a minor. 

Anyone who attempts to purchase alcohol will have to show a valid photo ID. 

"We’ve emphasized over and over again that you could be carded multiple times if you have a beer in your hand and don’t look 21," Maples said. "Believe me, that will happen." 

Arena staff and law enforcement will be keeping an eye out for people who are intoxicated or handing alcohol to minors. The arena should have roughly the same level of security it had prior to alcohol being sold, Maples said.

"We staff this building very well," he said. "We believe we’ve got adequate staff to do what we need to do.”

A large projected increase in revenue

During a normal event at Thompson-Boling, Maples said, concession stands generate between $2 and $4 per person. When beer is thrown into the mix, that number goes up to between $10 and $12. 

That extra money means the venue can offer incentives to artists who might not come to Knoxville otherwise. In fact, according to Maples, the Alice Cooper concert would not have happened without the possibility of alcohol sales. 

Maples said the bands on Saturday's concert bill were "taking a risk" by agreeing to play at Thompson-Boling before the Knoxville Beer Board approved alcohol sales. But they were aware of a legislative bill signed by Gov. Bill Lee in April that opened the door for beer at the arena. 

The point of the bill, Maples said, was to attract more performers. Maples said he anticipates an extra four or five entertainment groups coming to Knoxville per year now that alcohol is available. 

In addition to bringing more events, Maples said, alcohol sales should increase revenue by drawing more people to the arena who will then buy more concessions. 

The university gets a set percentage of alcohol sales, and vending company Aramark gets the rest. 

"(Aramark's) got the experience, they've got the history," Maples said. "They're bringing people in (Saturday) night, as well, from their corporate office to help us." 

Aramark was already a UT vendor prior to alcohol sales and works with multiple professional and collegiate sports venues. 

Will beer sales continue?

Although Saturday's concert is supposed to be a test run for beer sales, Maples said the university already plans on selling alcohol at upcoming events. That includes WWE Raw in September. 

“As far as football at Neyland Stadium, we're still looking at that as to whether we're going to do that for the first game or not," he said. "That’s still up in the air.”

A decision could be influenced by how Saturday night pans out.

Once the university takes a look at how things worked at the concert, it could look at selling beer at regular concession stands. 

"It happens every day at restaurants, at bars," Maples said. "Again. I think some of the limits we've got here will really not lend itself to over-consumption."