https://www.thelantern.com/2019/09/ohio-...than-6500/

Quote:Ohio State is getting sacked in student football ticket sales this season.

Whether due to financial reasons, a preferred game day experience or a move from paper to digital tickets, a Lantern analysis of Ohio State football season ticket sales data shows that more than 6,500 fewer season student ticket packages were sold for the 2019 season than in 2018.

Diana Sabau, deputy director of Ohio State Athletics, attributes the decrease to the tickets’ change in medium and the lack of a certain game on the schedule.

After selling 28,392 total student ticket packages in 2018, sales have dropped to 21,716 for the 2019 campaign. That’s a decline of nearly 24 percent.

While the athletics department feels that the switch to mobile tickets may cause a temporary dip in sales, Nick Signore, a third-year in accounting, said he actually finds the new mobile method more convenient.

“[My friends] said that they’d rather tailgate before the game than actually go to the game and I’m kind of with them,” Signore said. “I have more fun tailgating before the game, and I can just watch it on TV, than actually going to the football game.”

“Historically, football has always been a printed ticket, and if they still want a printed ticket, they can certainly have one,” Sabau said. “We were just trying to make a mobile ticketing concept easier for our students.”

Comments:

Quote:Schools should keep hard copy tickets. Fans want something to remember the game with. Also easier to give to a friend or sell to another fan if they choose not to attend. Mobile is a hassle to transfer and older fans are Leary of the new technology required to use the ticket. Not to mention the problem of having everyone in line at the same time to go through the turnstiles. Sporting events should keep hard copy tickets as an option or risk losing some of their older season ticket holders.

Quote:I agree with the hard ticket sentimental value. I still have the ticket from the first game I attended as a freshman (sorry snowflakes. I mean as a non gender specific first year student). Also have the ticket of the first game I took my son to see. I carry last years ticket from the blowout against TTUN in my wallet

Quote:Paper tickets make selling them easier. People probably can’t attend every game, paper tix enable students to sell a few for beer money. At least that’s how it worked for me as a penn state undergrad in the 90s.

Quote:The online tickets suck. Bring back paper

I will guess that the athletic department is moving away from paper tickets because they don't want students to scalp paper tickets.

Obviously it's a big temptation for students who are perpetually short on cash to (1) get their parents to buy them a football season ticket and then (2) sell the paper tickets for cash.

The students claiming that the paper tickets have huge sentimental value should be taken with a grain of salt. Or maybe a whole box of salt. On the other hand, forget the salt, because salt isn't enough to neutralize the smell of BS.

The Jaguars are digital, but programs are part of the ticket cost, which has a cardstock "stub" inside. Florida AD Scott Stricklin thinks this may be a compromise on how they will handle their digital conversion next season.

https://twitter.com/ScottStricklin/statu...4485898241

(09-12-2019 11:13 AM)Renandpat Wrote:  The Jaguars are digital, but programs are part of the ticket cost, which has a cardstock "stub" inside. Florida AD Scott Stricklin thinks this may be a compromise on how they will handle their digital conversion next season.

https://twitter.com/ScottStricklin/statu...4485898241

The whole NFL went to 100% digital ticketing this season.

(09-12-2019 11:03 AM)Wedge Wrote:  I will guess that the athletic department is moving away from paper tickets because they don't want students to scalp paper tickets.

Obviously it's a big temptation for students who are perpetually short on cash to (1) get their parents to buy them a football season ticket and then (2) sell the paper tickets for cash.

The students claiming that the paper tickets have huge sentimental value should be taken with a grain of salt. Or maybe a whole box of salt. On the other hand, forget the salt, because salt isn't enough to neutralize the smell of BS.

I have no idea how they do it now, but when I was school we had paper tickets. Certainly we could scalp the tickets, but we had to present a student ID when entering the stadium. That limited the pool of potential buyers, but it also allowed some kids to make a little extra cash.

At least back then, and this wasn't that long ago, a lot of college kids could have used the cash. These days, feels like most of the kids have rich parents and everything is being provided for them.

Either way, probably not a good idea to do anything that makes it less likely for the students to buy tickets.

I have to pay an extra $5 plus "shipping" to receive printed tickets from Carolina. It's well worth the expense as there is a BOGO offer for a cajun filet biscuit from Bojangles on the back side of the ticket.
Also interesting to note that the OSU students had to buy tickets.

(09-15-2019 06:58 AM)XLance Wrote:  Also interesting to note that the OSU students had to buy tickets.

They don't let students in for free at UNC, do they? Couldn't possibly do that for basketball.

(09-15-2019 11:43 AM)Wedge Wrote:  

(09-15-2019 06:58 AM)XLance Wrote:  Also interesting to note that the OSU students had to buy tickets.

They don't let students in for free at UNC, do they? Couldn't possibly do that for basketball.

All students pay an activity fee. This fee covers the cost of athletic tickets.

(09-15-2019 12:57 PM)XLance Wrote:  

(09-15-2019 11:43 AM)Wedge Wrote:  

(09-15-2019 06:58 AM)XLance Wrote:  Also interesting to note that the OSU students had to buy tickets.

They don't let students in for free at UNC, do they? Couldn't possibly do that for basketball.

All students pay an activity fee. This fee covers the cost of athletic tickets.

I'm pretty sure tOSU doesn't have a student athletics fee. So charging something for tickets is reasonable.

Mobile ticketing is trying to counteract fraud among PDF tickets. The huge downside is old folks who are mostly luddites can't handle this. Most of them think their Jitterbug phone thingie is too complex. I wanted to transfer two tickets to neighbors for a game...after coaching them in how to do it, it still was futile. I told them to meet at the tailgate and I would give them some card stock tickets.

(09-12-2019 10:43 PM)AllTideUp Wrote:  

(09-12-2019 11:03 AM)Wedge Wrote:  I will guess that the athletic department is moving away from paper tickets because they don't want students to scalp paper tickets.

Obviously it's a big temptation for students who are perpetually short on cash to (1) get their parents to buy them a football season ticket and then (2) sell the paper tickets for cash.

The students claiming that the paper tickets have huge sentimental value should be taken with a grain of salt. Or maybe a whole box of salt. On the other hand, forget the salt, because salt isn't enough to neutralize the smell of BS.

I have no idea how they do it now, but when I was school we had paper tickets. Certainly we could scalp the tickets, but we had to present a student ID when entering the stadium. That limited the pool of potential buyers, but it also allowed some kids to make a little extra cash.

At least back then, and this wasn't that long ago, a lot of college kids could have used the cash. These days, feels like most of the kids have rich parents and everything is being provided for them.

Either way, probably not a good idea to do anything that makes it less likely for the students to buy tickets.

When I was in undergraduate when the parents came to the campus you did what your parents wanted. Things are so spoiled today that parents come to the campus to do what their kids want. So yes, the kids today are spoiled and the professors realize it as well as the kids make demands upon the professors rather than the other way around.

Personally, I think this trend is going to wreak havoc societally within the next decade. We have a group of isolated "me" thinkers instead of people who are socialized to work together for success, which of course was the whole purpose of team sports in the first place. Never has a couple of generations so desperately needed 4 years of military service to learn the need for chain of command and teamwork. The computer and high tech hand held devices are doing a marvelous job of breaking down society and its interdependence which is necessary for functionality and success.