The Cost of Winning

To a whole $5/game (they had been $1/game). Not only that, but they’re going to start offering unsold student tickets to the general public beginning the Thursday before each home game. Capitalism at its finest. They’ve also introduced an “all-access pass” for students, which includes tickets to all 5 Fayetteville home games, both LR games, and every home basketball game (including the one in LR) for $65. It wasn’t too long ago that basketball student tickets were $100+ for the entire season. Looks like they’re afraid they’re bracing for poor basketball ticket sales, and are trying to compensate for it by tying them to football tickets. Very schrewd.

that the $150 donation for “mid-field lower-level football” seats is accurate. From personal experience, I donate a little more than that per seat and have been stuck in the goal-line to ten yard line area for 3 years (though I am on the 25 in little rock). And I have friends who donate way more than that and they can’t get past the 30. However, if it’s true, WTF ticket office?

dxf04, it could be worse. As a pledge in 1997 I had to buy a student ticket book for football. I recall the price for each game being something like $10-15, it certainly wasn’t a dollar/game. Needless to say, the Danny Ford swan song did not provide much bang for the buck.

it would be nice if Long would explain to me exactly how the additional money will be spent and exactly how that is going to mean more games in the win column. I’ll pony up, but I don’t like to pony up on command. Educate me. For I am not 100 percent sold on the idea that just because you spend more money you’ll win more games. We are at the bottom on ticket prices, but we’ve still been to the championship game more times than half of the league members. How did that happen?

When the piggies sell out Don W. for every conference game in one season, then a price hike can be justified. We haven’t been able to consistently sell that stadium out since it went to 70k+ seats, which under normal supply and demand laws (which probably don’t apply to SEC football tix) absolutely precludes a price hike. So, to me, that’s a pretty simple explanation for having some of the lowest prices in the SEC. I mean, if you can’t put folks in the seats at, let’s say $45, then how do you expect to do it at $65? Especially with every game being broadcast on TV now. Oh, I know, “hey, we’re about to be so good that we will be selling out the Don consistently.” We’ll see. But even if that statement is true, take it from this die hard hog fan, one or two years of down cycle will clear the seats again. That may be cynical, but that’s what I’ve seen for the last 20 years, so that’s the theory I’m sticking with.

And lastly, “predicting that ticket price increases are on the way?” They increased ticket prices for this season. The LSU ticket is $65. They increased conference prices by $10, plus LR games are increased an additional $10, conference or not. Of course they say LR tix were raised more because of the lower gate numbers and concessions, but I would like to point out that War Memorial sells out basically every game and certainly every conference game. Now that’s a price hike I can understand: sell out consistently, raise the price.