Warning Ticketmaster thread

[CUSU]

The students saved us last week.

Student turn out was great, wish the ticket situation was better so it was like that every game.

There will be more people in the seats this week than last counting the students. High 30s. The lack of Louisivlle fans that travel doesn't help.

Ticketmaster doesn't look any worse than the past few years for anything but the Clemson and FSU games.

 

[Orangejet]

This will be terrible to see on national TV if the Dome crowd is weak. Hoping HCDB doesn't take the lack of attendance personally for it could lead him to consider jumping to another university where sellouts are commonplace if the Cuse starts winning games.

 

[Scooch]

We have a notoriously late-buying crowd, so people should take a step back from the ledge.

That being said the pricing structure for the seats between the 20s has been broken for a decade. Why Gross never addressed it was beyond me, it's among his biggest failings IMHO.

 

[Rocco]

Well that's what they are doing. People pay hundreds if not thousands for preferred seating donations. I've said for several years they have to start over with the seating plan and significantly cut the donation. Then increase it as they win. Cause people are right, walk ups and single game buyers aren't going to pay $100 per. But it's absolutely bad business to charge donors what they do and then charge everyone else just the price of the ticket game after game. Too many donors would just stop donating.

It would be a lot easier to get people to donate $200-250 than $5000. Broad-based fundraising seems to appease to the greater CNY community than anything else. There will always be the big fish you can go after, but I agree, they need to start over and completely redo their entire thought process about ticket sales and donation levels.

Winning will help to cure the majority of these problems, but they still need to revamp all things SU Ticket Box Office.

 

[rrlbees]

It would be a lot easier to get people to donate $200-250 than $5000. Broad-based fundraising seems to appease to the greater CNY community than anything else. There will always be the big fish you can go after, but I agree, they need to start over and completely redo their entire thought process about ticket sales and donation levels. Winning will help to cure the majority of these problems, but they still need to revamp all things SU Ticket Box Office.

This would have been the perfect season to have redone it with a new coach, an exciting offense and a promising future. Should have started working on it when last season ended. Didn't help losing the AD but I don't know if he had plans to look at it.

 

[upperdeck]

its almost like every casual fan bought season ticket and no one else.. in past years there has been some walk up demand, its crazy demand seems to have gone down. but then there has been almost no push on the marketing , no special deals. they better we hoping the students come back. this game begged for doing something to get a crowd on national TV

 

[CuseCactus]

No offense folks, I am as die hard as they come. But I completely understand the mediocre turn out. $100 (per person) is a lot of money - coupled with everything else (food, parking, getting a baby sitter if you have little kids, etc.)

First of all, a Friday night game isn't optimal. If you have a family, it means the kiddos aren't in bed until midnight or 1. That, coupled with absolute s*** football the last 3 years, makes it a hell of a lot easier to sit at home (with family) and watch the game on a 60 inch TV.

I'm sure folks will say - buy a cheaper ticket - well, that's not appealing to me at my age (when I can sit effectively at the 50 yard line at home).

If the team was coming off of a 10-3 season, I'd be more worried. The last several years were just such a drag. Hard to overcome after just one game against a D2 opponent.

I expect things to "normalize" starting in '17. By normalize, I mean 40+K per game.

I have deep respect for all of you investing in the Program and going to the games. Please don't misconstrue my post. Just being honest from my perspective.

 

[Scooch]

Another factor is that it's still early in the season. Historically our biggest crowds have come in October and November. Yes we've popped 45K+ in September before, but that's typically been when (a) we were good and playing a good opponent (Florida '91, Tennessee '98, Michigan '99, Auburn '01), and (b) the Sep game was a home opener and had all summer's marketing effort behind it (WVU '05 Minnesota '09).

 

[KellySyracuse]

people worry too much about pre-game ticket sales IMO. People are either going to go or they're not, the season ticket holders keep the program afloat regarding attendance. Can't expect the casual fan to fork over a few hundred dollars for a Friday night game when there is no proof in their mind that it's worth the money. This is squarely on SU to figure out the pricing structure if they want to sell more tickets to games before the team starts winning on a consistent basis.

 

[Scooch]

people worry too much about pre-game ticket sales IMO. People are either going to go or they're not, the season ticket holders keep the program afloat regarding attendance. Can't expect the casual fan to fork over a few hundred dollars for a Friday night game when there is no proof in their mind that it's worth the money. This is squarely on SU to figure out the pricing structure if they want to sell more tickets to games before the team starts winning on a consistent basis.

I agree. This program put 48K in the stands for Clemson, and 44K for LSU. The community will support the program, it just needs some evidence that the program doesn't suck. Because the program has largely sucked for most of the past decade. And don't pull the 2012 card with me! We were 4-5 that year before we made that late season run, and then the coach up and left after the bowl win, totally killing the perceived momentum of the program.

I'll be disappointed if there's only 35K there on Friday night, but people will return if Dino is who we think he is.

 

[KellySyracuse]

 

[CanadianSU]

not going to diss attendance since I will not be there but it is a sad state for the program if they cannot get 38k at least for this game... all I will say.

 

[OburgOrange]

No offense folks, I am as die hard as they come. But I completely understand the mediocre turn out. $100 (per person) is a lot of money - coupled with everything else (food, parking, getting a baby sitter if you have little kids, etc.)

First of all, a Friday night game isn't optimal. If you have a family, it means the kiddos aren't in bed until midnight or 1. That, coupled with absolute s*** football the last 3 years, makes it a hell of a lot easier to sit at home (with family) and watch the game on a 60 inch TV.

I'm sure folks will say - buy a cheaper ticket - well, that's not appealing to me at my age (when I can sit effectively at the 50 yard line at home).

If the team was coming off of a 10-3 season, I'd be more worried. The last several years were just such a drag. Hard to overcome after just one game against a D2 opponent.

I expect things to "normalize" starting in '17. By normalize, I mean 40+K per game.

I have deep respect for all of you investing in the Program and going to the games. Please don't misconstrue my post. Just being honest from my perspective.

College football is meant to be played on Saturdays. End of rant

 

[saltine44]

No offense folks, I am as die hard as they come. But I completely understand the mediocre turn out. $100 (per person) is a lot of money - coupled with everything else (food, parking, getting a baby sitter if you have little kids, etc.)

First of all, a Friday night game isn't optimal. If you have a family, it means the kiddos aren't in bed until midnight or 1. That, coupled with absolute s*** football the last 3 years, makes it a hell of a lot easier to sit at home (with family) and watch the game on a 60 inch TV.

I'm sure folks will say - buy a cheaper ticket - well, that's not appealing to me at my age (when I can sit effectively at the 50 yard line at home).

If the team was coming off of a 10-3 season, I'd be more worried. The last several years were just such a drag. Hard to overcome after just one game against a D2 opponent.

I expect things to "normalize" starting in '17. By normalize, I mean 40+K per game.

I have deep respect for all of you investing in the Program and going to the games. Please don't misconstrue my post. Just being honest from my perspective.

It should also be noted that to the casual fan the Dome experience sucks.. its hot as f*@K, the bleacher seating is miserable, the corridor is claustrophobic, and the parking is atrocious. A modern venue is pretty much the opposite in all these categories.

 

[CanadianSU]

If we can't get a good crowd against a top 15 ACC opponent on a freaking Friday night, then we aren't going to have a good crowd all year.

exactly

 

[Scooch]

I don't think the day matters. We've had some good crowds on Friday nights. And for every person that prefers Saturday there's someone that finds Friday works better.

 

[Scooch]

It should also be noted that to the casual fan the Dome experience sucks.. its hot as f*@K, the bleacher seating is miserable, the corridor is claustrophobic, and the parking is atrocious. A modern venue is pretty much the opposite in all these categories.

Eh, those are all things people ignore if the team is good. Aside from the heat all those negatives apply for hoops (and hoops has the added challenge of driving through snow to get to the game), and yet attendance for that sport is best in the country.

People overthink this stuff. Football attendance is poor because the team has been poor for a lonnnnnng time.

 

[KellySyracuse]

gotta love the people complaining about attendance that hasn't even been established yet, but they can't find a way to get to the game. I guess it's on everyone else to make sure people are there

 

[SUfaninAZ]

Boise St. became who they are by playing Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday games. Being on TV and winning helped that school tremendously.

 

[bnoro]

I really don't want to hear anyone blame the students ever again if this game is under 35k gate.

 

[Scooch]

The worst part of our attendance issue is that the Dome looks utterly weird. We get full end zones and large areas of empty space between the 30s. It's unlike every other stadium because of our bizarro pricing.

If 38K was packed between the 20s it'd look a million times better on TV.

 

[Ottoble]

I've always thought that they should offer for sale every other row, when they open sections fill the place more evenly.

 

[storange]

It should also be noted that to the casual fan the Dome experience sucks.. its hot as f*@K, the bleacher seating is miserable, the corridor is claustrophobic, and the parking is atrocious. A modern venue is pretty much the opposite in all these categories.

You have a great venue, one of the best stadiums to watch football I haver been in, great site lines, its compact and your on top of the action, crowded concourses are in every stadium you got to in America. It was actually not that hot at all last game. And when we get ppast early September the temperature is not a factor. The dome is a great place to watch a game from someone who has been to multiple major college stadiums. You wan't a crappy experiance go sit in the last row at Beaver Stadium in Happy Valley.

 

[bnoro]

You have a great venue, one of the best stadiums to watch football I haver been in, great site lines, its compact and your on top of the action, crowded concourses are in every stadium you got to in America. It was actually not that hot at all last game. And when we get ppast early September the temperature is not a factor. The dome is a great place to watch a game from someone who has been to multiple major college stadiums. You wan't a crappy experiance go sit in the last row at Beaver Stadium in Happy Valley.

or go to Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend. Talk about an awful view.

 

[orange44]

Eh, those are all things people ignore if the team is good. Aside from the heat all those negatives apply for hoops (and hoops has the added challenge of driving through snow to get to the game), and yet attendance for that sport is best in the country.

People overthink this stuff. Football attendance is poor because the team has been poor for a lonnnnnng time.

Could not agree more.