I know that schools bid on ticket books, but how do they decide who get where (i.e. ends, sides, etc.)? Is there some magic formula that I don't know? Also, does anyone have any access to old charts (i.e. from the 80's)?
(01-21-2016 06:28 PM)nzmorange Wrote: I know that schools bid on ticket books, but how do they decide who get where (i.e. ends, sides, etc.)? Is there some magic formula that I don't know? Also, does anyone have any access to old charts (i.e. from the 80's)?
Schools do not "bid" on tournament tickets. The sections rotate among the schools. Every school eventually gets good seats and eventually gets bad seats. Each school used to get the same number of tickets in its allotment. Now, to sone extent, it depends upon how many tickets the school asks for. I think the schools who are due for good tickets ask for a lot of tickets not because their fans want to attend but because their fans can make money selling their tickets.
(01-21-2016 06:28 PM)nzmorange Wrote: I know that schools bid on ticket books, but how do they decide who get where (i.e. ends, sides, etc.)? Is there some magic formula that I don't know? Also, does anyone have any access to old charts (i.e. from the 80's)?
Schools do not "bid" on tournament tickets. The sections rotate among the schools. Every school eventually gets good seats and eventually gets bad seats. Each school used to get the same number of tickets in its allotment. Now, to some extent, it depends upon how many tickets the school asks for. I think the schools who are due for good tickets ask for a lot of tickets not because their fans want to attend but because their fans can make money selling their tickets.
1. I was under the impression that the pricing was dynamic when schools asked for tickets. Otherwise, what's stopping a school from asking for *all* the tickets (or at least a huge chunk of them)?
2. I know that there's a general rotation. To clarify, my question question addresses the fact that SU sat next to Clemson and NCSU in 2014 and Clemson and WF last (?) year, and we are sitting next to FSU and VT this year. I would imagine that the easiest way to have equitable seating is to have a set lineup (i.e. UNC, GT, Duke, FSU, etc.), pick an arbitrary location (i.e. behind the basket), and start allotting tickets from that location going down the lineup (i.e. UNC gets behind the basket in yr 1, GT gets behind the basket in yr 2, Duke gets behind the basket in yr 3, etc.). However, the ACC clearly isn't doing that. So, how does the conference decide?
Nobody from FSU will show up so those spots will be available. With all the whining and griping about Greensboro, I predict less than impressive attendance numbers at this site.
(01-21-2016 06:28 PM)nzmorange Wrote: I know that schools bid on ticket books, but how do they decide who get where (i.e. ends, sides, etc.)? Is there some magic formula that I don't know? Also, does anyone have any access to old charts (i.e. from the 80's)?
Schools do not "bid" on tournament tickets. The sections rotate among the schools. Every school eventually gets good seats and eventually gets bad seats. Each school used to get the same number of tickets in its allotment. Now, to some extent, it depends upon how many tickets the school asks for. I think the schools who are due for good tickets ask for a lot of tickets not because their fans want to attend but because their fans can make money selling their tickets.
1. I was under the impression that the pricing was dynamic when schools asked for tickets. Otherwise, what's stopping a school from asking for *all* the tickets (or at least a huge chunk of them)?
2. I know that there's a general rotation. To clarify, my question question addresses the fact that SU sat next to Clemson and NCSU in 2014 and Clemson and WF last (?) year, and we are sitting next to FSU and VT this year. I would imagine that the easiest way to have equitable seating is to have a set lineup (i.e. UNC, GT, Duke, FSU, etc.), pick an arbitrary location (i.e. behind the basket), and start allotting tickets from that location going down the lineup (i.e. UNC gets behind the basket in yr 1, GT gets behind the basket in yr 2, Duke gets behind the basket in yr 3, etc.). However, the ACC clearly isn't doing that. So, how does the conference decide?
Schools are told where their section will be. If BC gets the endzone, they ask for few tickets. If they get centercourt, they ask for a lot of tickets mostly so their supporters can sell the tickets. Some schools, like Duke and UNC always ask for as many tickets as they can get because they have so many supporters who want tickets. Basically what happens is that each school gets 1/15th of the tickets plus an equal share of the extra tickets made available because some schools don't want their 1/15th. Also, some schools like BC find that after they get the tickets they asked for they can't sell all of them. Those tickets get transferred to schools that want more tickets. It's never been clear to me whether those transfers are done school to school or whether they go through the ACC office. There may be some horsetrading going on for those extra tickets. There might even be some bidding. I don't know.
(01-21-2016 06:28 PM)nzmorange Wrote: I know that schools bid on ticket books, but how do they decide who get where (i.e. ends, sides, etc.)? Is there some magic formula that I don't know? Also, does anyone have any access to old charts (i.e. from the 80's)?
Schools do not "bid" on tournament tickets. The sections rotate among the schools. Every school eventually gets good seats and eventually gets bad seats. Each school used to get the same number of tickets in its allotment. Now, to some extent, it depends upon how many tickets the school asks for. I think the schools who are due for good tickets ask for a lot of tickets not because their fans want to attend but because their fans can make money selling their tickets.
1. I was under the impression that the pricing was dynamic when schools asked for tickets. Otherwise, what's stopping a school from asking for *all* the tickets (or at least a huge chunk of them)?
2. I know that there's a general rotation. To clarify, my question question addresses the fact that SU sat next to Clemson and NCSU in 2014 and Clemson and WF last (?) year, and we are sitting next to FSU and VT this year. I would imagine that the easiest way to have equitable seating is to have a set lineup (i.e. UNC, GT, Duke, FSU, etc.), pick an arbitrary location (i.e. behind the basket), and start allotting tickets from that location going down the lineup (i.e. UNC gets behind the basket in yr 1, GT gets behind the basket in yr 2, Duke gets behind the basket in yr 3, etc.). However, the ACC clearly isn't doing that. So, how does the conference decide?
Schools are told where their section will be. If BC gets the endzone, they ask for few tickets. If they get centercourt, they ask for a lot of tickets mostly so their supporters can sell the tickets. Some schools, like Duke and UNC always ask for as many tickets as they can get because they have so many supporters who want tickets. Basically what happens is that each school gets 1/15th of the tickets plus an equal share of the extra tickets made available because some schools don't want their 1/15th. Also, some schools like BC find that after they get the tickets they asked for they can't sell all of them. Those tickets get transferred to schools that want more tickets. It's never been clear to me whether those transfers are done school to school or whether they go through the ACC office. There may be some horsetrading going on for those extra tickets. There might even be some bidding. I don't know.
My question must not be clear because you're not quite answering it. I understand that schools request tickets and that the conference decides who sits where based on the premise that ever school will get good seats some years and bad seats others.
My question is "what is the secret sauce that determines who is where in a given year." Practically speaking, do they lock an intern in a room until he comes out with an answer? Is there a magical computer formula? Do they draw names out of a hat? Do they base it on star alignments cross referenced with lunar cycles? Or, do they have some other method? What's the process?
If there isn't dynamic pricing, what stops a school from grabbing as many ticket books as possible during strong years? If there's a weak nexus between end demand and the conference's internal pricing, there is a massive perverse incentive to grab as many books as possible during unexpectedly hot years. What's the safeguard if it's not some kind of bidding process? (That might read argumentative, but I don't mean it to be)
