cyclone alley exists mainly because studets were being jackasses and season ticket holders didnt want to sit next to them so they put the students in the endzones to try to please both the students and seasn ticket holders. If students nowadays weren't such knuckleheads and cheered in a respectable manner things might get back to the way it used to be.
I don't really remember it being that way, or see it that way today.
There was a fair bit of lobbying when I was in school in the early 90's for a student section. But as it goes, student wanted great seating and not pay for it - understandable given college finances.
Then of course we hit our first conf championship of any kind in about a thousand years, and some good NCAA teams under Floyd and Eustachy, and the big donors wanted more and better seats, displacing the students. I think CA ended up being a decent compromise for both parties - for better or for worse.
I might be right of wrong on that reasoning - but I really don't think CA was any type of "punishment". However I don't see things reverting back. When you fork over $2500 got get your seats, you won't readily give them up for students paying a hundred or so. The only real change I can see is students losing seats and only because of lackluster attendance. JP will do the math and see that he can make a $100 or so for an empty seat, or $1000 or so for an empty seat. The $$$'s prevail and that would be unfortunate. I like CA. I haven't been close enough to be a good judge, but I think they're well behaved, at least as well as students were when I was one. They're far more organzed and can be a great benefit to the atmosphere. I just wish there were more of them game in and game out.
Out of curiosity, what is a student season basketball ticket go for nowadays?