Pollard On Student Section

[Die4Cy]

I don't intend to come across as ragging on the students who didn't fill the seats. Just that overselling is a prudent plan by the athletics department, and probably hasn't gone far enough if CA attendance for most games is any measure. Hilton seating is a fixed commodity. You couldn't walk up to the ticket office and buy a seat for the game yesterday, despite there being hundreds of empty ones. The athletics administration will continue to adjust until they get a CA that is full every game.

They aren't running a charity over there.

 

[CynadoAlley]

Class? Sub-zero windchills? Those are the reasons for not standing in line. There's also the thing that some fair weather fans care only about being on tv so they go super early for one or two games.

I'm not saying you should just show up at game time but you shouldn't have to stand in line for double the amount of time the actual game is going on just to get in.

For Iowa we got in line at about 3:30 and were some of the last people to get in. That is 4:30 before the game.

Maybe they need to tweet out estimates or something of how many spots are left. That would help people judge when to come. The rewards system is the best idea as far as I'm concerned. Either way this system is not working.

That's just what you're going to run into when it's first come first serve seating. For Iowa we were there at 10am, for Michigan 8am, and for Kansas 11am the day before the game. Unless the system is changed this is only going to continue to increase as the product on the basketball court continues to succeed. Three years ago, the earliest we ever had to go to get in line and get a great seat was a couple hours before doors. Before that, you could show up when doors opened and get great seats. It is an imperfect system, in a situation where there probably is no perfect system, and an amazing problem to have.

My point of running out of legitimate excuses is in reference to games like yesterday, where we got there an hour and a half before gates opened and still got 5th row. There were plenty of great seats to be had even for those that didn't want to wait in line. (This of course, excludes those participating in DM). Obviously for huge games, it's different.

 

[brianhos]

Saturday afternoon, two top-25 teams, conference game... just over half of the section is full. Every year, we hear complaints that the students need more and/or better seats, but they shoot themselves in the foot by not showing up to games.

I love it most when students call out the rest of the crowd for leaving with 30 seconds to go.

 

[jkclone]

That's just what you're going to run into when it's first come first serve seating. For Iowa we were there at 10am, for Michigan 8am, and for Kansas 11am the day before the game. Unless the system is changed this is only going to continue to increase as the product on the basketball court continues to succeed. Three years ago, the earliest we ever had to go to get in line and get a great seat was a couple hours before doors. Before that, you could show up when doors opened and get great seats. It is an imperfect system, in a situation where there probably is no perfect system, and an amazing problem to have.

My point of running out of legitimate excuses is in reference to games like yesterday, where we got there an hour and a half before gates opened and still got 5th row. There were plenty of great seats to be had even for those that didn't want to wait in line. (This of course, excludes those participating in DM). Obviously for huge games, it's different.

I mean I was at Michigan at 9 and Kansas at like 3. It isn't those games because I got good seats. It is the Iowa game where we almost didn't even get in to the game.

I am fine with waiting in line for a while to get good seats, but I shouldn't have to wait in line for a long time to get in.

Maybe what we need to do is sell two different kinds. Sell tickets that include games like Iowa and Kansas, but only sell the amount there are. Then sell more tickets for other games.

I don't know about you but I have got the feeling that had I tried to sell a ticket for some reason I could sell it for more to non Kansas or Iowa games. People aren't as willing to buy tickets if they aren't even guaranteed to get in.

 

[NorthCyd]

I think somebody said 1,200. But even if all 1,200 of those participating had student tickets (which is unlikely) there still would have been 900 students who had tickets but did not use them.

Unlikely? How about impossible. It's unlikely that half of those attending have season tickets. I would bet a quarter...at most. People need to stop talking about the Dance Marathon. Any student who skipped the game to attend the Dance Marathon should be commended, but it has little to do with lack of attendence yesterday and the overall issue of why the university feels it needs to WAY oversell the student section.

The only way I see to fix it is to reduce the size of the student section. The demand just isn't there to consistently fill up all the current seats, and tickets are in such high demand they will be sold.

 

[ISUCyclones2015]

Can we stop getting ****** at the students on here? The students who frequent this board are not the ones that aren't going to games.

 

[Cycsk]

First, we won . . . so things aren't that bad!

Second, there were probably a lot of factors . . . dance marathon (a great event), weather, 12:45 start, three losses.

Third, the student section still should have been full . . . now there is a job for CA leaders . . . mobilize the students, especially when you can predict a game where attendance might not be as high.

Fourth, Pollard showed once again how smart he is in overselling . . . some who attended might not have gotten a ticket if they only sold to capacity.

Fifth, establish a new policy that requires Student Tickets to be used 30 minutes before the game starts . . . at that point sell $10 General Admission tickets for the remaining spaces . . . or make them free . . . a Facebook post or Twitter comment would mobilize fans in and near Ames . . . getting family and friends to the game who might not otherwise come.

A full Hilton must be a priority!

 

[CyFan61]

You're forgetting there are 35,000 students paying about $40 (or that's what it was in 2012) per semester to the athletics department through University fees.

The Athletics fee is now over $60/year, or very close to $2 million coming in from everyone that goes to ISU regardless of interest in or attendance for athletics.

Even if you assign just one-third of that fee to men's basketball, and add in the student season ticket costs for MBB alone, students are paying a total of about $450 per seat.

 

[CyStorm]

There's no excuse for that many students having tickets and not showing up. There couldn't have been that many people still hung over after noon..

I was definitely hung over after noon :twitcy:, but I was still sitting in my student seat at 11 right where I belong.

 

[Cyclone06]

First thing I asked about when I sat in my spot was the empty rows. No reason for any empty spots all things considered. I bet JP could feel the lack of (something) yesterday. Hilton lacked, I could feel it, and so could other posters who have already stated.

For the students who complain about waiting in line, I can understand that and dont blame you. But there is no bad seat in Hilton, and to not show up because you might have to sit in the upperdeck? Bollocks.

Join us in the upperdeck, I have a good time up there, heck sometimes I get loud.

 

[Cyclone06]

students are paying a total of about $450 per seat.

Is that the occupied or empty seat price?

 

[clonedude]

I like a point system of some kind.

Make it so the ticket gets scanned when the student goes to the game. Then ISU knows which students are using their tickets and are attending. The more you attend, the more points you get. The more points you get, the better reserved seat you get.

If you miss some games, you lose points, and risk getting worse seats or not getting a ticket at all. If you're point total isn't high enough, you just don't even get a ticket at all.

Also, this way, it doesn't matter who uses your ticket, as long as someone does. As long as someone takes your ticket to the game and attends, you get points. So that doesn't penalize you if you can find someone else to go in your place.

 

[Buster28]

It's kind of amusing to see people here who believe that EVERYone's priorities should be identical to their own on every matter, every single day. Some people, for whatever reason, didn't go to the game. Attendance is still far better than it ever way during McDoormat's reign. Talk about first world problems...:err:

 

[bostrem00]

I think the students were boycotting because of Bubu Palo is back!

 

[CycloneRulzzz]

Hilton in general just seemed to be lacking today. No 6th man impact on the game, IMO. The boys just got it done today.

I agree especially the "expensive seats". Why pay big money to be seated when the team needs you most?

 

[hawkadoodledoo]

Only a ********* AD would call out his students for not attending games. He should be happy you guys have one of the best student/fan attendances in ALL of basketball, what a ******.

 

[awd4cy]

I don't at all have a problem with what JP said. Simply stating why they oversell. Student attendance was slightly low (balcony not full) for plenty of conference games last year at times and I am sure this year will be no different.

 

[WhatchaGonnaDo]

I like a point system of some kind.

Make it so the ticket gets scanned when the student goes to the game. Then ISU knows which students are using their tickets and are attending. The more you attend, the more points you get. The more points you get, the better reserved seat you get.

If you miss some games, you lose points, and risk getting worse seats or not getting a ticket at all. If you're point total isn't high enough, you just don't even get a ticket at all.

Also, this way, it doesn't matter who uses your ticket, as long as someone does. As long as someone takes your ticket to the game and attends, you get points. So that doesn't penalize you if you can find someone else to go in your place.

Another thing that can be done with points is "spending" acquired points to get into bigger games, if tons of people being turned away becomes an issue. Thus guaranteeing that the most devoted fans are the ones who get to enjoy the big games

 

[chuckd4735]

Only a ********* AD would call out his students for not attending games. He should be happy you guys have one of the best student/fan attendances in ALL of basketball, what a ******.

I don't think he was calling out the students for not attending. More showing all the people who ******* to him after the Iowa and KU games why ISU is doing things this way.

 

[Luth4Cy]

Only a ********* AD would call out his students for not attending games. He should be happy you guys have one of the best student/fan attendances in ALL of basketball, what a ******.

I'm pretty sure he was just stating why they oversell, because he's gotten some crap about. Based on your username though I'm not surprised that you're overreacting.