I am not happy at all with this new pricing structure.

What used to cost 750 donation(my section pricing) is now 150 per seat. The donation level was for up to 8 seats and anything after that was priced on a per seat basis (1/8 of 750 per additional seat). Let's use 8 seats as an example. What cost me last year 750 will now cost 1200. That is real money. I have way more than 8 tickets. Will not get rid of all my tickets but will not buy close to 14 this year. Maybe 4. If a big 12 invite comes that changes the equation. As of now, UC is way overcharging for the teams that come to town. 350 per ticket plus donation to watch Tulane, Memphis, houston, etc, etc, etc...in my section, each ticket will cost roughly 60 per game plus donation. No longer is UC a less expensive alternative to NFL football.

And no I am not changing sections to a lower price point.

For all of you who are excited for the smaller 5/3 arena renovation. Just wait. If you have good seats be prepared for massive price increases or to be priced out of the equation altogether in lieu of businesses who will be the only people(and dossbig) who can afford tickets.

(02-25-2015 09:19 AM)Bearcat2012 Wrote:  

(02-25-2015 09:14 AM)BearcatShane09 Wrote:  So we have dedicated 6 sections to the visiting team? Is that more than we've had? I'd be surprised if anyone on this schedule brings more than 700 visiting fans.

Duane Wallace ‏@dunewall 20h20 hours ago
@RepOfCincinnati @CincinnatiUCATS Why more visitor seats?

UCATS ‏@CincinnatiUCATS 20h20 hours ago
@dunewall @RepOfCincinnati There are not more visitor allotment seats. 213 is a new UC section and was not a visitor allotment in 2013.


UCATS ‏@CincinnatiUCATS 19h19 hours ago
@dunewall @UCTickets -Confirm?


UC Ticket Office ‏@UCTickets
@CincinnatiUCATS @dunewall definitely no increase. We're obligated to hold same # of seats we always have for visitors & wouldn't increase

213 was visitor allotment in 2013. The first week I joined UC I went up there to check out the view and was astonished. It is a great vantage point. I bugged our business office literally 2-3 times per week to get that section changed to a home section and was very pleased to see it converted. I wanted the front part of 214 as well but was unsuccessful in that regard. I am buying my season tickets in 213.

(02-25-2015 10:58 AM)Ash_UC_Tix Wrote:  213 was visitor allotment in 2013. The first week I joined UC I went up there to check out the view and was astonished. It is a great vantage point. I bugged our business office literally 2-3 times per week to get that section changed to a home section and was very pleased to see it converted. I wanted the front part of 214 as well but was unsuccessful in that regard. I am buying my season tickets in 213.

Those really are my favorite seats in the 212-214 area. For the price point you cant beat it . Easy in ..easy out. Excellent straight view of the scoreboard and the entire field in front of you . Right over the students and if its not a sell out you can breathe a little bit . (but id give that up for every game at nippert to be sold out). My friend talked me into latching on to his seats in 206 though on the 50 at the top. But I always suggest those sections to those that ask. Good job ,Ash .

(02-25-2015 10:48 AM)ucnaticat Wrote:  I am not happy at all with this new pricing structure.

What used to cost 750 donation(my section pricing) is now 150 per seat. The donation level was for up to 8 seats and anything after that was priced on a per seat basis (1/8 of 750 per additional seat). Let's use 8 seats as an example. What cost me last year 750 will now cost 1200. That is real money. I have way more than 8 tickets. Will not get rid of all my tickets but will not buy close to 14 this year. Maybe 4. If a big 12 invite comes that changes the equation. As of now, UC is way overcharging for the teams that come to town. 350 per ticket plus donation to watch Tulane, Memphis, houston, etc, etc, etc...in my section, each ticket will cost roughly 60 per game plus donation. No longer is UC a less expensive alternative to NFL football.

And no I am not changing sections to a lower price point.

For all of you who are excited for the smaller 5/3 arena renovation. Just wait. If you have good seats be prepared for massive price increases or to be priced out of the equation altogether in lieu of businesses who will be the only people(and dossbig) who can afford tickets.

UC is less expensive than most major college programs and the NFL. While there still are some issues with the pricing structure it is still better than most sports options out there. You mention some opponents (none of which are on the home schedule this season) but Bearcat fans should be at Nippert to see the Bearcats. Overall its a decent home schedule, roughly on par with UC's Big East schedule season when Louisville and WVU were not on the home schedule.

I can imagine the complaining on this board if UC earns a power five invitation and ticket prices increase. You already mention the possibility of price increase with a renovated basketball arena, which to me is legit possibility and should be handled with care. The problem I have is that so many UC fans want the Bearcats to be a major program in a power conference; however, they are not willing to understand the consequences that go with playing at the highest level. Those consequences include paying more money for tickets against high profile opponents, higher prices and increased donation requirements in renovated stadiums and arenas, and potential losing seasons against stiffer competition.

(02-25-2015 10:48 AM)ucnaticat Wrote:  I am not happy at all with this new pricing structure.

What used to cost 750 donation(my section pricing) is now 150 per seat. The donation level was for up to 8 seats and anything after that was priced on a per seat basis (1/8 of 750 per additional seat). Let's use 8 seats as an example. What cost me last year 750 will now cost 1200. That is real money. I have way more than 8 tickets. Will not get rid of all my tickets but will not buy close to 14 this year. Maybe 4. If a big 12 invite comes that changes the equation. As of now, UC is way overcharging for the teams that come to town. 350 per ticket plus donation to watch Tulane, Memphis, houston, etc, etc, etc...in my section, each ticket will cost roughly 60 per game plus donation. No longer is UC a less expensive alternative to NFL football.

And no I am not changing sections to a lower price point.

For all of you who are excited for the smaller 5/3 arena renovation. Just wait. If you have good seats be prepared for massive price increases or to be priced out of the equation altogether in lieu of businesses who will be the only people(and dossbig) who can afford tickets.

If you would like to set up a time to meet and discuss the situation please feel free to call me directly. My number is 513-556-0543.


Just as an fyi, 41% of all renewals will see a decrease in donation requirements due to the new structure. It makes it more reasonable for the family that has 2-4 season tickets to upgrade now to a higher priced section. Also, if you have basketball season tickets you get a discount on your basketball per seat donation.

Besides the club seats, will there be any other sections with chair backs & arms or will the chair back situation be unchanged, i.e., just the little seat cushion things?

(02-25-2015 11:10 AM)bearcatlawjd2 Wrote:  

(02-25-2015 10:48 AM)ucnaticat Wrote:  I am not happy at all with this new pricing structure.

What used to cost 750 donation(my section pricing) is now 150 per seat. The donation level was for up to 8 seats and anything after that was priced on a per seat basis (1/8 of 750 per additional seat). Let's use 8 seats as an example. What cost me last year 750 will now cost 1200. That is real money. I have way more than 8 tickets. Will not get rid of all my tickets but will not buy close to 14 this year. Maybe 4. If a big 12 invite comes that changes the equation. As of now, UC is way overcharging for the teams that come to town. 350 per ticket plus donation to watch Tulane, Memphis, houston, etc, etc, etc...in my section, each ticket will cost roughly 60 per game plus donation. No longer is UC a less expensive alternative to NFL football.

And no I am not changing sections to a lower price point.

For all of you who are excited for the smaller 5/3 arena renovation. Just wait. If you have good seats be prepared for massive price increases or to be priced out of the equation altogether in lieu of businesses who will be the only people(and dossbig) who can afford tickets.

UC is less expensive than most major college programs and the NFL. While there still are some issues with the pricing structure it is still better than most sports options out there. You mention some opponents (none of which are on the home schedule this season) but Bearcat fans should be at Nippert to see the Bearcats. Overall its a decent home schedule, roughly on par with UC's Big East schedule season when Louisville and WVU were not on the home schedule.

I can imagine the complaining on this board if UC earns a power five invitation and ticket prices increase. You already mention the possibility of price increase with a renovated basketball arena, which to me is legit possibility and should be handled with care. The problem I have is that so many UC fans want the Bearcats to be a major program in a power conference; however, they are not willing to understand the consequences that go with playing at the highest level. Those consequences include paying more money for tickets against high profile opponents, higher prices and increased donation requirements in renovated stadiums and arenas, and potential losing seasons against stiffer competition.

This.

My sister is a Louissville grad. She and my brother-in-law have season tickets to UofL football. Season tickets for football runs in the $300-1000 range in their first two lower bowls. They have a third deck which they charge in the $150-200 range. If you were looking to get a general admission ticket to a UoL football game it will cost you $70 and up. They didn't charge a lot less when they were in the Big East either.

As to our "peers" in the AAC, I just checked UCF's site and they have annual gifts ranging from $50-$1,750 per seat with tickets prices in the $150-250 range.

(02-25-2015 10:48 AM)ucnaticat Wrote:  I am not happy at all with this new pricing structure.

What used to cost 750 donation(my section pricing) is now 150 per seat. The donation level was for up to 8 seats and anything after that was priced on a per seat basis (1/8 of 750 per additional seat). Let's use 8 seats as an example. What cost me last year 750 will now cost 1200. That is real money. I have way more than 8 tickets. Will not get rid of all my tickets but will not buy close to 14 this year. Maybe 4. If a big 12 invite comes that changes the equation. As of now, UC is way overcharging for the teams that come to town. 350 per ticket plus donation to watch Tulane, Memphis, houston, etc, etc, etc...in my section, each ticket will cost roughly 60 per game plus donation. No longer is UC a less expensive alternative to NFL football.

While your prices are going up, many people will be paying less now. Going to a per seat donation was the right way to go. These tickets are still a bargain compared to many other universities and other athletic events. Plus it will increase the number of UCATS members which is also a very good thing.

(02-25-2015 12:14 PM)subflea Wrote:  

(02-25-2015 10:48 AM)ucnaticat Wrote:  I am not happy at all with this new pricing structure.

What used to cost 750 donation(my section pricing) is now 150 per seat. The donation level was for up to 8 seats and anything after that was priced on a per seat basis (1/8 of 750 per additional seat). Let's use 8 seats as an example. What cost me last year 750 will now cost 1200. That is real money. I have way more than 8 tickets. Will not get rid of all my tickets but will not buy close to 14 this year. Maybe 4. If a big 12 invite comes that changes the equation. As of now, UC is way overcharging for the teams that come to town. 350 per ticket plus donation to watch Tulane, Memphis, houston, etc, etc, etc...in my section, each ticket will cost roughly 60 per game plus donation. No longer is UC a less expensive alternative to NFL football.

While your prices are going up, many people will be paying less now. Going to a per seat donation was the right way to go. These tickets are still a bargain compared to many other universities and other athletic events. Plus it will increase the number of UCATS members which is also a very good thing.

Yep

Shocked it took so long. For years I made the same donation and bought 2 tickets. The guy next to us got 8 tickets for the same donation. In the UCATS ranking we were the same despite me contributing 4 times as much per seat.

Ash - couple of questions

1) will there be faculty discounts?

2) My cousin who worked at A&S usually got us faculty priced tickets, so our 7 seats are in her name. She usually paid the UCATS fee for those 7 tickets and I joined UCATS separately. If I am paying the UCATS per seat fee, how will I get that applied to my account? My seats are going from $445 for two to $700, so I want those UCATS fees applied to my account, not hers. Thanks.

(02-25-2015 11:50 AM)Dannyboy Wrote:  Besides the club seats, will there be any other sections with chair backs & arms or will the chair back situation be unchanged, i.e., just the little seat cushion things?

Only the new premium additions. Hopefully in the future more chairs can be added.

Thanks. I'll be staying in section 121 I hope. It's a nice section.

(02-25-2015 03:24 PM)edetzel Wrote:  Ash - couple of questions

1) will there be faculty discounts?

2) My cousin who worked at A&S usually got us faculty priced tickets, so our 7 seats are in her name. She usually paid the UCATS fee for those 7 tickets and I joined UCATS separately. If I am paying the UCATS per seat fee, how will I get that applied to my account? My seats are going from $445 for two to $700, so I want those UCATS fees applied to my account, not hers. Thanks.

1. Yes. any section that the ticket portion is $275 (not including UCATS) and up gets $50 off the ticket price per seat. The UCATS requirement is still required in full for whichever seating location.

2. If she buys 7 seats with the discount, the UCATS payment will have to be under her account. Otherwise her account would still reflect a balance due.

(02-25-2015 11:11 AM)Ash_UC_Tix Wrote:  

(02-25-2015 10:48 AM)ucnaticat Wrote:  I am not happy at all with this new pricing structure.

What used to cost 750 donation(my section pricing) is now 150 per seat. The donation level was for up to 8 seats and anything after that was priced on a per seat basis (1/8 of 750 per additional seat). Let's use 8 seats as an example. What cost me last year 750 will now cost 1200. That is real money. I have way more than 8 tickets. Will not get rid of all my tickets but will not buy close to 14 this year. Maybe 4. If a big 12 invite comes that changes the equation. As of now, UC is way overcharging for the teams that come to town. 350 per ticket plus donation to watch Tulane, Memphis, houston, etc, etc, etc...in my section, each ticket will cost roughly 60 per game plus donation. No longer is UC a less expensive alternative to NFL football.

And no I am not changing sections to a lower price point.

For all of you who are excited for the smaller 5/3 arena renovation. Just wait. If you have good seats be prepared for massive price increases or to be priced out of the equation altogether in lieu of businesses who will be the only people(and dossbig) who can afford tickets.

If you would like to set up a time to meet and discuss the situation please feel free to call me directly. My number is 513-556-0543.


Just as an fyi, 41% of all renewals will see a decrease in donation requirements due to the new structure. It makes it more reasonable for the family that has 2-4 season tickets to upgrade now to a higher priced section. Also, if you have basketball season tickets you get a discount on your basketball per seat donation.

Thanks for the offer to call and discuss. I was proactively reached out to by UC and have talked to UC ticket/Ucats representatives. I want to first thank you for your hard work and support of UC athletics. I hope you realize anything said in this forum negatively about UC/ticket issues is not a direct attack on you or any other employee of the Universtiy. It is simply an opinion of people like myself.

Back to my opinions(directed to the general audience)

My biggest concern about this policy change is this(I have expressed this with UC). While it makes it easier for smaller groups to upgrade their donation levels to get better seats, there is no guaranty that anyone does this. 40 percent of people will see a decrease in cost for tickets. 20 percent will see little to no change. 40 percent will see an increase. My concern is the group that will see the increase is the group who is the most generous and the biggest supporters of UC athletics. Generally people with 5 or more tickets. If I implemented this business model in my businesses, I would be out of business quickly. UC is going to Charge the most loyal and biggest spending customers more and give the small/one time purchasers a discount. For those of us who buy extra tickets to give away/bring friends it makes us feel exploited/taken advantage of. I can not speak for every large group out there, but have talked to others that I know personally and each feels the same way.

It seems to me that there could have been some hybrid model used to give discounts to the large groups to accomplish UC's goal and keep pricing similar to the levels today for the "best customers".

I believe this policy was implemented to increase the number of Ucats members. During my conversation with UC employees, I was asked several times if people in my group(family) would pull out of my group and join Ucats on their own. They would be able to keep the same seats. Our answer is and will be no because of the point structure/system which we have invested many years to climb.

I am also under the understanding that football donations no longer apply to basketball tickets. Above ash said we will get a discount towards basket per seat donation levels. Correct me if I am wrong, but for many of us our football donation covers or comes close to the amount needed for basketball tickets or the other way around. I will be curious to see if this will negatively impact one sport's ticket sales. I personally buy basketball tickets because I have already made the donation requirement to buy season tickets in an section I like.

I don't feel like quoting the above threads, so this is a general response to like 3/4 posts from the previous pages. And apologies as I just had some caffeine, so this is a long post.

Judging by the $150 donation, we can assume he's paying $350 per ticket as that's the only ticket out there with a $150 donation. He's looking @ $500 a pop per ticket, or $83 per game.

He makes a valid point that @ $83 a game, it puts him close to even in terms of going to a Bengals game. His options are to see UC play Alabama A&M, Temple, TUlsa, Tulane and Miami FL. Or watch the Bengals play Seattle, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, KC, San Diego. Yeah, that's no contest-- even as a huge UC fan, I'll admit that the Bengals have a more desirable home schedule than the Bearcats. Watching the Bengals play is a better product on the field than watching UC.


Not to mention, he's dropping $500 per ticket, so he's looking @ a 2K outlay this year at a minimum if he buys just 4 seats. $$ spent on UC are entertainment dollars, and there are alternatives. Unfortunately UC is one of the few teams that play in a city with a Professional football team. That has to be factored in. Other schools don't have the threat of consumers going to watch an NFL game instead of a college game, and thus they can charge a bit more.

Having the Bengals in Cincinnati does help to lower the prices for the UC games.

Yes, UC has cheaper ticket prices than alot of schools. One would expect that, since they aren't in a top conference. I would expect Alabama, LSU, Michigan State tickets to be more, just like I would expect tickets to Georgia Southern or some other team in a weaker conference to be cheaper.

Cost is correlated to quality of the games. The problem is that ticket prices (in some sections) are increasing, and unfortunately the quality of play by UC and the quality of opponents has been decreasing the past few years.

A few years ago, the Big East was doing better in football than the ACC. It was a top 5 conference. Now with all of the defections, the AAC ended up 7th last year, behind the Mountain West in terms of quality of conference.

Ticket prices should be correlated strongly based upon the quality of the opponents and the overall quality of the UC team.

If UC is playing Alabama A&M, I don't want to be paying $83 a game for that. But a little less. On the flip side, if UC ever got a home game vs a team like Alabama, LSU, Ohio State, Oregon etc-- I wouldn't mind if my $83 ticket became a $150 ticket for that particular game, while the conference games were $83 a pop.

Games should be priced better based upon the quality of the opponents. I have no problem if UC gets into the BIg XII and my tickets go up by 50%. I'd rather pay more to watch them play Texas, Oklahoma, TCU, Baylor, OK State, WVU, than watch what we currently have.

With the piss poor AAC, it would be nice to at least have a premium non conference home game each year-- and no, I don't count BYU or Miami FL as one.

Yes, UC has some nice deals-- like the $99 section. However UC set the bar high under Brian Kelly, and the quality of the team, and the opponents has been on a decline the past few years.

I feel bad for the ticket office who now has to try and sell tickets to games like Tulsa and Temple, when a few years ago it was WVU and Louisville.

UC really needs to do their best to at least add perennial top 15 team to their home schedule year in and out to help offset the garbage that is their conference schedule.

My only hope is that the playoffs do expand to 8 teams, and more teams look to strengthen their non conference schedule because they know 1 loss doesn't knock them of a chance to get to the playoffs--- even with 2 losses, you still have a shot @ being a top 8 team. Hopefully that increases the chance that UC can add a premier team @ home every year.

Right now, I'm in the same boat as UCnaticat. If the prices go up another $20 or so per ticket I'd seriously consider paying $100 a game to see the Bengals vs UC. This is my 10th year as a season ticket holder. Not as long as many here on the board-- but honestly, I can't see myself making it another 10 years if the best game each year is vs the likes of BYU or Miami Fl.

Remember different strokes vs different folks. We all have our different reasons for attending UC games. I'm one that prefers to see quality opponents. For other people, that may not be a big deal.

(02-26-2015 10:25 AM)ladeda Wrote:  Right now, I'm in the same boat as UCnaticat. If the prices go up another $20 or so per ticket I'd seriously consider paying $100 a game to see the Bengals vs UC. This is my 10th year as a season ticket holder. Not as long as many here on the board-- but honestly, I can't see myself making it another 10 years if the best game each year is vs the likes of BYU or Miami Fl.

Remember different strokes vs different folks. We all have our different reasons for attending UC games. I'm one that prefers to see quality opponents. For other people, that may not be a big deal.

Yeah, take shots at me and call me a fair weather fan or whatever, but I don't know if I'll continue buying season tickets if the prices were to increase dramatically and we were still playing this crappy competition. There were times this past year where I was very excited about driving an hour down 75 from Dayton to watch them play some of the teams they played this year. Luckily, I sit in the cheap seats and only buy two tickets, so my cost actually went down a little(shrug).

I miss the days where we had rivalries. I was just talking with another alum at work today about how much fun the Louisville games were.

Also, regarding the bowl games... I'd love to set money aside throughout the year to attend a bowl game and make a vacation of it. But, I can't justify making the trip based on the results of the past two years. CTT seems like he doesn't care about winning bowl games and sees it as a vacation.

For the first time as an alum at Nippert, I'm actually weighing the pros and cons of just buying tix on the open market for games I am interested in.

Also , little bummed they nixed our seats as visitors section now. First row of Shank was berry berry good to us over the years. Doing the math and if it ends up way cheaper, we may save $$ and skip the FCS and bottom of the barrel AAC teams. Dunno yet.

B12 would change that thinking obviously.

Unreal.

Obviously, the need to make these changes is imperative for the athletic bottom line. The fan support I'm seeing here is why we're in a P5 conference. Oh. Wait.