Ask the AD 5/30

[hammb]

Kudos to GC for trying up the buyout so we can hopefully maintain some of our future home games.

On the subject of season tickets, I have only missed 1 home game in the last 7 or 8 years, and I still have never purchased season tickets. If they want to sell season tickets they must do something to make it advantageous to purchase them. Sitting in the same seats each week isn't enough for me, because I usually just end up sitting wherever I want anyhow.

As it currently stands they end up having so many deals and giveaways that there are always tickets available at some discounted rate. Honestly I rarely even pay to get in the games as there's usually somebody tailgating that has extras they're just willing to give away.

I'm not sure what they can do, because it's a fine line between hampering attendance and devaluing your product with the giveaways and whatnot, but as it is I think they've devalued the ticket to the point that it doesn't make much sense to buy season tickets. I know plenty of people on here do buy them, and that's great, but for me I really just don't see the point.

Hambb,
I know as well as anyone that you're a true BG fan...but your position on the season tix issue is all wrong IMO. True, it's "easy", probably too easy, to pick up a ticket from a fellow AZZer (I've given away several through the years when someone couldn't come with me), or buy into some of the promotions. But, when the school is practically BEGGING for people to buy tix (read: last year's Miami game), it seems to me that the $79 or $89 INVESTMENT in BG football isn't that big a deal. When you take or buy a ticket from someone else's purchase, it just means one LESS ticket that BG can sell...and I don't see that helping the situation. Now that your "favorite" field turf is being installed, I think you mentioned that you wouldn't even join the Falcon Club this year. As I said, this makes little sense to me. Hope you won't take offense to this, but I can't agree with your position, especially since you usually sit near us on the 50 yrd. line anyway. Why not just pay for a ticket and help the cause?

I know I'm not right in the way I do the tickets. And I'm seriously considering buying season tickets this year, simply for the reasons you stated. Extra money to the program. Despite my hatred for the FieldTurf, I won't be dropping my Falcon Club donations anytime soon either...merely idle threats.

That said my point remains. If they want to sell season ticket packages they must make them worthwhile in some regard. As I clearly outlined above I can watch every game and usually do so in pretty good seats without purchasing season tickets. Even if I do choose to buy season tickets this year, that's great, but I'd be doing it as a way to support the program, NOT to make things better for me as the consumer. I'd be doing it solely because I am a die hard fan and I want to support this program. However, there are a lot of people around BG who are not going to look at it that way.

Most people are going to look at this through the eyes of the consumer and want to get the most for their money. As it currently stands there is almost no practical reason to buy season tickets other than to support the university. If you look at it purely as a consumer, why would you? You're buying tickets up front to all the games, thus forcing yourself into going to all the games. Conversely you can wait for the good or great ticket deals and scoop some buy one get one free type things. Or maybe you can find free tickets. Or maybe the weather sucks and you don't want to sit out in the cold. Whatever the case may be, the only 2 real reasons I can see to buy season tickets are A) always having the same seats, and B) supporting the university. I think its a given that most casual fans are not going to buy the tickets solely to support the university, so that leaves always having the same seats as the lone reason to purchase season tickets. Is that really worth it when you can save quite a bit of money over the course of the season and end up sitting someplace other than where your ticket says anyways at most games?

My point is simply that they have devalued the single game tickets through these promotions, and they have devalued the location of seats by not enforcing it to the point where there is really no inherent value of buying a season ticket (through the eyes of the consumer). As a result a great deal of fans, even us die hards, say they'll just get them at the gate. Those are lost sales any time something comes up that those people cannot make it to the game that day, or they find a free ticket, etc. I'm not sure what the solution to this problem is, but it is absolutely the reason why we don't have high season ticket sales.

[Class of 61]

Love this new feature of asking the AD questions. Great discussion this week. I love that $500K buyout clause. You wanna break the contract? Fine. Give us half a million.

GC is doing a fine job so far, IMO. I'm looking forward to the Barnstorming Tour in Cleveland on June 14. Den, will you be there? Anyone else going from NE OH? 100th Bomb Group.

GO FALCONS!!!!! 93 days....

Mike, I'm planning on the Bomb group thing..if you've never been there, it's kind of a unique atmosphere..Joyce has something else going so I'll go alone that day..looking forward to it.

Great! See ya there. Isn't it downtown?

NO! It's across Brookpark Rd. from the airport...If you want to go together give me a ring and we can set up a time. You'd have to come by Sagamore Hills from Twinsburg anyway.

[Warthog]

I know most people are excited and happy about the $500,000 buyout clause, but allow me to look at the other side of the coin.

Let's say, and this is an optimistic arguement, that we develop into a mid-major powerhouse this year. We have a ton of players coming back and we are hoping to pull a Boise St and make it to a BCS game in Jan 2009. In order to do that, we will have to play and beat a few decent teams. But if we have signed deals that have us playing Western KY, FIU, La Tech, or the likes, we have also written a deal we can't get out of because of the huge buyout. There is no way we can make a BCS game playing in the MAC with a couple of those low major teams on our schedule as well. We will have to have four solid teams and four solid wins on our non-conference schedule. But a huge buyout would prevent us from getting out of these games and putting a respectable BCS team on the schedule.

My point is the huge buyout could hurt us sometime as much as it helps us.

[Jacobs4Heisman]

I like that he's starting to up the ante with questions. I hope the trend continues.

As far as the Minnesota deal -- as I said when it was announced, I'll believe it when I see it. It looks great on paper, but so have a lot of contracts lately.

I posed the question: "How much input did you have into this year's football schedule, and how much say did the MAC office have in that process". I'd pay to hear that answer.

[Schadenfreude]

As far as the Minnesota deal -- as I said when it was announced, I'll believe it when I see it. It looks great on paper,

Heck, it's probably unprecedented on paper, as far as I know. Only thing I can think of to compare it to was the Wisocnsin series and an Iowa State home-and-home we had in the 1970s.

[1987alum]

I know most people are excited and happy about the $500,000 buyout clause, but allow me to look at the other side of the coin.

Let's say, and this is an optimistic arguement, that we develop into a mid-major powerhouse this year. We have a ton of players coming back and we are hoping to pull a Boise St and make it to a BCS game in Jan 2009. In order to do that, we will have to play and beat a few decent teams. But if we have signed deals that have us playing Western KY, FIU, La Tech, or the likes, we have also written a deal we can't get out of because of the huge buyout. There is no way we can make a BCS game playing in the MAC with a couple of those low major teams on our schedule as well. We will have to have four solid teams and four solid wins on our non-conference schedule. But a huge buyout would prevent us from getting out of these games and putting a respectable BCS team on the schedule.

My point is the huge buyout could hurt us sometime as much as it helps us.

Warthog:

Good points. I wish we were in that situation. Our immediate concern, though, is having schools bail on us. Let's take one step at a time - field a competitive team, stop schools from bailing on us, schedule better teams, field a great team, etc.

[footballguy51]

I must be missing something...what is this Minnesota thing?

[Class of 61]

I must be missing something...what is this Minnesota thing?

Minnesota is tentatively scheduled to come to BG in 08... several guys on the site have expressed doubts that it will ever actually happen, based upon things like FIU and S.Fla cancelling, and the Boise St. game, which also never took place due to MAC schedule problems (supposedly)

[BGorDeath]

I must be missing something...what is this Minnesota thing?

Minnesota is tentatively scheduled to come to BG in 08... several guys on the site have expressed doubts that it will ever actually happen, based upon things like FIU and S.Fla cancelling, and the Boise St. game, which also never took place due to MAC schedule problems (supposedly)

I thought we were playing Michigan, not Minnesota.

[Falconboy]

There's nothing to say except........

[MACMAN]

I know most people are excited and happy about the $500,000 buyout clause, but allow me to look at the other side of the coin.

Let's say, and this is an optimistic arguement, that we develop into a mid-major powerhouse this year. We have a ton of players coming back and we are hoping to pull a Boise St and make it to a BCS game in Jan 2009. In order to do that, we will have to play and beat a few decent teams. But if we have signed deals that have us playing Western KY, FIU, La Tech, or the likes, we have also written a deal we can't get out of because of the huge buyout. There is no way we can make a BCS game playing in the MAC with a couple of those low major teams on our schedule as well. We will have to have four solid teams and four solid wins on our non-conference schedule. But a huge buyout would prevent us from getting out of these games and putting a respectable BCS team on the schedule.

My point is the huge buyout could hurt us sometime as much as it helps us.

I have Orange and Brown glasses...but dam that will never happen!

[TG1996]

There's nothing to say except........

May I politely ask what the hell it is you're even talking about?

[Falconfreak90]

Love this new feature of asking the AD questions. Great discussion this week. I love that $500K buyout clause. You wanna break the contract? Fine. Give us half a million.

GC is doing a fine job so far, IMO. I'm looking forward to the Barnstorming Tour in Cleveland on June 14. Den, will you be there? Anyone else going from NE OH? 100th Bomb Group.

GO FALCONS!!!!! 93 days....

Mike, I'm planning on the Bomb group thing..if you've never been there, it's kind of a unique atmosphere..Joyce has something else going so I'll go alone that day..looking forward to it.

Great! See ya there. Isn't it downtown?

NO! It's across Brookpark Rd. from the airport...If you want to go together give me a ring and we can set up a time. You'd have to come by Sagamore Hills from Twinsburg anyway.

Ahhh....I thought it was out there but checked Mapquest and it had some location downtown! Wasn't there a Brown Derby out there years ago?

I can swing by after leaving work...a few minutes early.

[galojay]

Season tickets for WKU this year are 25$ (5 games, reserved bleacher and GA). For a family of four, that is not a bad deal. (and half of BG's season ticket cost. They are really trying to get the 15K avg attendance goal and have made tickets pretty cheap.

They are also working on a 37.5 million dollar stadium renovation.

Exactly. I don't expect the $25 ticket price to stay past transition. NCAA requires the 15K attendance even during transition. That is tough, so the $25 tickets help.

[Bleeding Orange]

Season tickets for WKU this year are 25$ (5 games, reserved bleacher and GA). For a family of four, that is not a bad deal. (and half of BG's season ticket cost. They are really trying to get the 15K avg attendance goal and have made tickets pretty cheap.

They are also working on a 37.5 million dollar stadium renovation.

Exactly. I don't expect the $25 ticket price to stay past transition. NCAA requires the 15K attendance even during transition. That is tough, so the $25 tickets help.

In all sincerity, I wish you and yours nothing but the best of luck!