LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by an Omaha man seeking to ban the release of balloons at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln.

U.S. District Judge Laurie Smith Camp dismissed the case Friday. The judge found that the University of Nebraska was a state agency and, therefore, has sovereign immunity from such lawsuits.

In his lawsuit, Randall Krause sought an injunction to keep the university from promoting the balloon release, which marks the first score by Nebraska in a football game. The tradition has been a part of Cornhuskers’ football games since the late 1950s.

Krause said the mass release results in the open dumping, violating the 1976 Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and puts endangered species at risk.