OSU slashing season ticket prices

[sooner12]

Are you really complaining about $150?

Absolutely, I'm complaining about $150. You cannot get students who casually follow men's basketball to pay $150 and commit to attending 15/17 home games, especially when four or five of them were played over the winter break. I get that we can give our tickets to other students if we don't use them and we get credit for them, but how many students actually stay at OU over the break and are willing to use the tickets of students going home? If you're a casual basketball fan, what's the point of buying season tickets if a. you can get single game tickets for $10, and b. getting season tickets would only force you to pawn them off to others or make an unnecessary trip to the LNC, get the tickets scanned and leave?

I read a post above that said the LNC would sell out in the past with these prices, back when our team was good. That's great, but it justifies my point that students will not show up for a 14-18 team. Isn't that the goal of economics, to get your money's worth? If you're debating over paying $150 tickets for a 14-18 men's basketball team or $165 for a nationally ranked, 12-2 football team riding the nation's longest home winning streak? Your guess is as good as mine.

So to answer your question, yes I am complaining about $150 tickets for a 14-18 team. I'm an out of state student with non resident tuition and fees to pay, I am out of my mind for buying season tickets for basketball but I do it because I support the team. I'm not saying make the tickets free, but I am saying make the tickets cheaper or improve performance to attract a larger student base. Simple.

 

[sooner12]

How many seats are in the student section? I would guess about 2,000 to 4,000 (it used to be about 1/4 of the stadium when I was in school but it looks much smaller now). I would think the AD could easily get 2,000 alumni to donate $150 a season if they seriously made an effort to get students at the games.

OU allocates 1,400 seats for students. They claimed to have sold out during the 09-10 season, but I think I only ever saw a near-full student section against Texas that season.

 

[campbest]

Absolutely, I'm complaining about $150. You cannot get students who casually follow men's basketball to pay $150 and commit to attending 15/17 home games, especially when four or five of them were played over the winter break. I get that we can give our tickets to other students if we don't use them and we get credit for them, but how many students actually stay at OU over the break and are willing to use the tickets of students going home? If you're a casual basketball fan, what's the point of buying season tickets if a. you can get single game tickets for $10, and b. getting season tickets would only force you to pawn them off to others or make an unnecessary trip to the LNC, get the tickets scanned and leave?

Whoa there. So you want them to be free? If OU tried to include the tickets as a "fee" on your bursar bill, kids/parents would throw a fit about it. It's a pretty easy economical decision in my mind, if you can't attend at least 15 games, buy individual passes. Could probably find some student tickets for free on some game nights.

I read a post above that said the LNC would sell out in the past with these prices, back when our team was good. That's great, but it justifies my point that students will not show up for a 14-18 team. Isn't that the goal of economics, to get your money's worth? If you're debating over paying $150 tickets for a 14-18 men's basketball team or $165 for a nationally ranked, 12-2 football team riding the nation's longest home winning streak? Your guess is as good as mine.

Maybe your goal is to get your money's worth, but the athletic department's goal is to find the price point to extract the highest gross margin.

Welcome to OU basketball, that's just how it works...people don't show up unless we're winning. There is reason ADs fire coaches on slumping ticket sales, if they could just keep lowering the price to attract crowds, they would. Winning plays a major role, that can't be denied.

So to answer your question, yes I am complaining about $150 tickets for a 14-18 team. I'm an out of state student with non resident tuition and fees to pay, I am out of my mind for buying season tickets for basketball but I do it because I support the team. I'm not saying make the tickets free, but I am saying make the tickets cheaper or improve performance to attract a larger student base. Simple.

Out of state studnets pay what, mid $20k a year? If that is the case, $150 is a drop in the bucket. That's not a material amount and you shouldn't worry about it. Hate to think you're giving up some Nick Thompson, high-flying basketball for only $150.

 

[SoonerBabyy]

It would be nice if we slashed our student season ticket prices...

if you go to all the games or at least get them scanned you get all your money back? & they are like $190 & theres like 15ish home games.. thats not too expensive to me.

edit: just read through the entire thread lmao @ them being too expensive when you can get all your money back.

 

[zup78]

LOL.

Incorrect.

The funds were invested in BP Capital Fund, a fund that is tied to the energy market.

So, when the global financial collapse happened, and global energy commodity prices fell about 60-70%... yeah... the fund took a bit of a hit.

However, I don't know if you've cracked a newspaper in the past 18 months, but energy prices are once again... ummm... strong. So how do you think money that's invested in an energy-focused fund is doing right now?



Jeff, Sorry as you are wrong. I am good friends with a doctor who is on several key committees at OSU and when all that crap hit the fan, they made Holder take all the money that was left out of Pickens funds and into extremely safe investments. So, NO it doesn't matter how high gas or oil goes, OSU gets NO benefit from it. That dumbed down practice facility they are THINKING about building now is proof of the lack of money there.

 

[sooner12]

Whoa there. So you want them to be free? If OU tried to include the tickets as a "fee" on your bursar bill, kids/parents would throw a fit about it. It's a pretty easy economical decision in my mind, if you can't attend at least 15 games, buy individual passes. Could probably find some student tickets for free on some game nights.

Maybe your goal is to get your money's worth, but the athletic department's goal is to find the price point to extract the highest gross margin.

Welcome to OU basketball, that's just how it works...people don't show up unless we're winning. There is reason ADs fire coaches on slumping ticket sales, if they could just keep lowering the price to attract crowds, they would. Winning plays a major role, that can't be denied.

Out of state studnets pay what, mid $20k a year? If that is the case, $150 is a drop in the bucket. That's not a material amount and you shouldn't worry about it. Hate to think you're giving up some Nick Thompson, high-flying basketball for only $150.

Like I said in the last paragraph, it was not my intention to suggest that the tickets be free. Please read through the entire post.

A drop in the bucket? You must be making big money to think that $150 is 'a drop in the bucket.' Students don't have that kind of money laying around, at least I don't, and it's hard to explain to your parents why there's such a charge on your Bursar to watch a poor team. I'm not giving up on OU basketball and I will still get season tickets next year. I just see why people wouldn't show up to games. If the Athletic Department truly cared about student support, they would do something about it.

We agree on the same thing: people will not show up to games if we don't win. Also, we agree on the fact that if you can't make it to all the games, buy individual game tickets. I just think it's a shame that the Athletic Department doesn't seem too interested in student support.