Just saw that LSU has refunded all $ from tickets purchased from the LSU ticket office from last weekend's opener with McNeese State that was cancelled after 10 plays. I was shocked that ALL tickets were originally sold for $35 or $25 per ticket. So evidently it is possible to build a nationally prominent football program without charging an exorbitant amount per ticket, IF it's managed well. It's time for the excuses to end and some production to be demonstrated. The current state of affairs CAN'T CONTINUE. IT'S EMBARRASSING!
Ticket Prices - Really?
- Thread starter krs84
- Start date
Tickets may be $35 . . . but don't forget the money that is donated to the athletic department to earn the 'right' to pay $35/ticket.
https://www.lsutaf.org/images/CMS/P...AF Priority Points Procedures Revision(1).pdf
Having lived in the south - don't be fooled - the SEC teams are printing money through donations that doesn't even begin to approach anything that Purdue is doing. It's an eye-opening experience, that in the Big 10 is only remotely matched by OSU and Michigan.
https://www.lsutaf.org/images/CMS/P...AF Priority Points Procedures Revision(1).pdf
Having lived in the south - don't be fooled - the SEC teams are printing money through donations that doesn't even begin to approach anything that Purdue is doing. It's an eye-opening experience, that in the Big 10 is only remotely matched by OSU and Michigan.
Dude, they're being successful in Dekalb!! What advantages did Tiller have when he got here over anyone. If you're good and hungry and you can get players that are somewhat good and very hungry with one or two playmakers, you can be good anywhere.
I challenge anyone who thinks it's all advantages come with me to Dekalb
As you mention, it has more to do with supply/demand than anything. There are some schools that get it, some do not. There are plenty of Big 10 schools that fundraise well. Wisconsin and Michigan bring in more than Alabama.
At many schools, there's a lack of parking, which makes it very lucrative to make a donation based on parking access - not necessarily tickets. But of course, the more people going to games, the more competitive parking is.
Penn State is a great example of supply/demand. Penn State's ticket revenue has remained fairly consistent - they're still selling similar amounts of tickets, but there isn't as strong of a demand. With that, there's less competition for seats, which means lower donations. Penn State has lost $10 million in donations, primarily seat related, over the last 3 years. No coincidence with less successful seasons.
This is why I think Morgan Burke's handling of Ross-Ade was one of his worst decisions. The notion of expanding to 80,000 was a pipe dream. There was no shred of evidence that Purdue could ever sustain that size of stadium. Even in 2000, Purdue did not sell out every game in a 67,000 seat stadium - and that was the most hyped Purdue team in decades. And when they renovated Ross-Ade, they should have fixed the south endzone problem then and there. Tear the crappy bleachers out and build a football facility there - that could have been phase 2, as long as the seats were out.
It's not just about ticket sales and having a huge capacity. When you have great demand - it drives up donations to get access to tickets and parking. Ten years ago, in 2015, Purdue was bringing in MORE donations than Oregon. In the last 10 years, Oregon has tripled that. Why? Because they've kept their stadium relatively the same size (50,000) and the demand has increased year after year. Increased demand means you have to donate more to get the tickets you want.
You're saying I can't buy season tickets to Oregon unless I make a donation to the school??
I think most people buy individual tickets from a secondary broker. Obviously donations don't matter at stubhub.
And are you referencing donations soley to football, or the athletic department, or the school in general?
Where are you getting this info on tripling donations, and are you sure you're comparing apples to apples?
I think most people buy individual tickets from a secondary broker. Obviously donations don't matter at stubhub.
And are you referencing donations soley to football, or the athletic department, or the school in general?
Where are you getting this info on tripling donations, and are you sure you're comparing apples to apples?
http://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/finances/
This link is undated (nice content mgmt USA today) - so difficult to validate date. But supports that Oregon is #1 in budget.
Purdue athletic budget is $71M. Impressive...except Indiana is $84m, Iowa is $105m, Wisconsin is $127m and beyond. Oregon is $197m....imagine if purdue athletic budget was nearly 2.5x what it is today each YEAR. Other way to think...where are our passionate Billionaire alums.....who love sports?
That difference isn't from ticket sales. It's from marketing, merchandising and donations. And this is annual budget. It's not difficult to see how a school like Purdue can be left behind.
Of course others succeed. But it's on field success. That breeds passion and attendance that drives marketing and merchandising. Basic supply and demand. Unfortunately, our supply sucks now and so not much demand. The limited $ makes it hard to improve the supply.
I think the biggest mistake Burke has made is he held into Tiller and Keady 2-3 years too long each and he did not upgrade the coaching staff as those two stepped away. As a result the trajectory in both programs slipped and recovery has been difficult. The limited budgets then handicap our ability to hire coaches and recruit. Maybe we catch lightening in a bottle every 20-30 years like we did with Brees and big dog. Til then, we are what we are.
This link is undated (nice content mgmt USA today) - so difficult to validate date. But supports that Oregon is #1 in budget.
Purdue athletic budget is $71M. Impressive...except Indiana is $84m, Iowa is $105m, Wisconsin is $127m and beyond. Oregon is $197m....imagine if purdue athletic budget was nearly 2.5x what it is today each YEAR. Other way to think...where are our passionate Billionaire alums.....who love sports?
That difference isn't from ticket sales. It's from marketing, merchandising and donations. And this is annual budget. It's not difficult to see how a school like Purdue can be left behind.
Of course others succeed. But it's on field success. That breeds passion and attendance that drives marketing and merchandising. Basic supply and demand. Unfortunately, our supply sucks now and so not much demand. The limited $ makes it hard to improve the supply.
I think the biggest mistake Burke has made is he held into Tiller and Keady 2-3 years too long each and he did not upgrade the coaching staff as those two stepped away. As a result the trajectory in both programs slipped and recovery has been difficult. The limited budgets then handicap our ability to hire coaches and recruit. Maybe we catch lightening in a bottle every 20-30 years like we did with Brees and big dog. Til then, we are what we are.
I don't agree Tiller and Keady were kept too long. The lack of support ($$) caused the problem, attracting/retaining staff, facilities kept up to date. Burke has mismanaged this program for years, should have invested in income producing sports first. Instead he killed the golden goose (Tiller's football program).
I've posted multiple times about this kind of stuff. How Purdue handles donations for seats is 1990s style. Most schools have a donation requirement per seat that you have to make to purchase that ticket. For example, a certain area of the stadium may be a $50/seat donation requirement to purchase season tickets there. So if you want 4, you have to make a $200 donation + the cost of the season tickets. Usually there is a wide range of donation requirements for this. Many schools have a $25/seat donation - it may not be big bucks, but a few thousand seats with a $25 donation does add up - plus gets people used to giving.
Here's an example from Michigan State.
As you can see, Michigan State offers a wide range depending on your budget. Purdue's "premium" donation they added was for a wide area of seats and didn't offer more customizable solutions. And then because that didn't work, they added the legacy fee - a blanket fee that's ON TOP of your JPC donation (or in this case, Spartan Fund above). I don't know of hardly any schools that operate this way - other than good ole Purdue.
Parking is also a heavily utilized benefit for donations. Oregon has a parking lot adjacent to their stadium like the lot north of Ross-Ade that they utilize reserved spots for tailgating. Parking around Autzen is very limited (it's mostly wetlands and neighborhoods surrounding the area). Each space is numbered and that's your space every game. This is a $4,500 donation to get 1 spot. Many schools offer reserved spaces for parking/tailgating - and they can charge a premium for this. That lot probably has over 500 spots - so Oregon is pulling in $2.5 million/year just on that lot alone. Purdue has somewhat limited parking in the immediate area around Ross-Ade, but never really took full advantage. Yes, it had minimum JPC levels to get into lots or what not - but offering a reserved parking spot that you get the same spot every game, you get to know the people you tailgate around, etc. is a different experience.
