Season Ticket Sales

[Green Guy Bass]

Indeed. We're talking about an annual increase in the student fee of less than two 12-packs of beer and a box of condoms.

still arguably more fun than a game at Fouts

[Kelly Green]

When I was a student, I made sure to use the printing labs in the libraries for my printing needs. NOT because I enjoyed sitting CLOSELY to sweaty athletes or people who thought they could work in groups in a space the size of the front seat of my Honda Civic, but because I had already paid for the paper and printer in my student fees.

Paying the athletic fee might encourage students to attend more sporting events because they know they are already contributing to it. It also provides a stronger sense of ownership and involvement. At least, these are my hopes.

[meangreen-mba]

I have an idea for the student ticket program. This will give us "SOLD" tickets to report for attendence, plus I bet puts more students in the stadium. I say offer a 5 game package to the games as an option when registering, and let it be paid out like tuition. I say 5 ticket for $20, as a fee in the tuition, then they get a packet in the mail with their tickets. Parents/Students will not see it as paying for the students to go to the games, just another fee. If tuition is paid out over the semester, who will feel the crunch of $20 over 4 months. If you chose not to buy the packet of tickets, the single game tickets are $5 per game. Add value to the tickets. Most students will just say, I might go to the game its only $20, put the tickets in my tuition. Those that dont, may be compelled to buy single game ticket because their friends that bought the packet are going to the game.

Also, get the greeks involved in the games. Have competition and prizes for the most spirited (lame phrase) fraternity/sorority. The frat/sor that has the most students at this weeks game, gets a student "reserved section" for the next home game..........and recognized over the PA system, and on the Jumbo-tron. Make if fun for the students to go to the game. Give away 12 hrs of tuition for a ticket holder that is present at the game if their ticket number is called (what would that really cost the university?) Have club day, and recognize them at each game.

This is not rocket science. If the job existed to create buzz around campus to go to the games, and it paid what I make now, I would take it in a heart beat.

[Green Buckeye]

I have an idea for the student ticket program. This will give us "SOLD" tickets to report for attendence, plus I bet puts more students in the stadium. I say offer a 5 game package to the games as an option when registering, and let it be paid out like tuition. I say 5 ticket for $20, as a fee in the tuition, then they get a packet in the mail with their tickets. Parents/Students will not see it as paying for the students to go to the games, just another fee. If tuition is paid out over the semester, who will feel the crunch of $20 over 4 months. If you chose not to buy the packet of tickets, the single game tickets are $5 per game. Add value to the tickets. Most students will just say, I might go to the game its only $20, put the tickets in my tuition. Those that dont, may be compelled to buy single game ticket because their friends that bought the packet are going to the game.

Also, get the greeks involved in the games. Have competition and prizes for the most spirited (lame phrase) fraternity/sorority. The frat/sor that has the most students at this weeks game, gets a student "reserved section" for the next home game..........and recognized over the PA system, and on the Jumbo-tron. Make if fun for the students to go to the game. Give away 12 hrs of tuition for a ticket holder that is present at the game if their ticket number is called (what would that really cost the university?) Have club day, and recognize them at each game.

This is not rocket science. If the job existed to create buzz around campus to go to the games, and it paid what I make now, I would take it in a heart beat.

I like your thinking. Speaking of getting people involved, I don't think advertising the home games a bit more would hurt...even on campus. I was shocked at the number of students I met that were oblivious to the fact there was a home football game on Saturday. The only game that's heavily advertised to the general student population (not greeks/Talons/etc.) is Homecoming. Even those that DO know about the game just go to tailgate anyways (a winning team would bring them in but that's another topic). We have a lot of buildings on campus that have featureless brick faces, so why not put up a banner or something advertising the home games? It's not like it would take up much space, we only have 5 games at Fouts...

[UNTLifer]

I like your thinking. Speaking of getting people involved, I don't think advertising the home games a bit more would hurt...even on campus. I was shocked at the number of students I met that were oblivious to the fact there was a home football game on Saturday. The only game that's heavily advertised to the general student population (not greeks/Talons/etc.) is Homecoming. Even those that DO know about the game just go to tailgate anyways (a winning team would bring them in but that's another topic). We have a lot of buildings on campus that have featureless brick faces, so why not put up a banner or something advertising the home games? It's not like it would take up much space, we only have 5 games at Fouts...

Tell me how the game turns out on Saturday.

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

When I was a student, I made sure to use the printing labs in the libraries for my printing needs. NOT because I enjoyed sitting CLOSELY to sweaty athletes or people who thought they could work in groups in a space the size of the front seat of my Honda Civic, but because I had already paid for the paper and printer in my student fees.

Paying the athletic fee might encourage students to attend more sporting events because they know they are already contributing to it. It also provides a stronger sense of ownership and involvement. At least, these are my hopes.

--That is very good idea and has some merit.... and besides it sort of sends a message that they should support athletic events. Just keep the fee very reasonable...

[Green Mean]

--That is very good idea and has some merit.... and besides it sort of sends a message that they should support athletic events. Just keep the fee very reasonable...

Or it might just give them more ammo to whine or bitch. I guess we are probably in a lose-lose situation.

[KRAM1]

97 and 03...Oh, those poor poor broke students. I can hear the chant now! Give me a break here...First, I am not "on the students"...being a two time grad of UNT and a one time grad of two other universities, I know full well what it takes to put oneself through college...AND, I also know that the money is there for the things that are really important to the students. Yes, there are plenty of exceptions, but, generally speaking the disposable income of college students is plenty high enough to afford a small fee for tickets IF they choose to buy them. Just prance yourself through the Student Union sometime and take a look at what they are eating, drinking and buying...most items are NOT the necessities of life that the poor downtrodden and over expensed college student would be buying if on the subsistence level of income you suggest.

By the way, I am a member of the Mean Green Club, I am a member of the President's Council, I am a life member of the Exes or whatever it is called these days, and I do buy season tickets!!!

AND, as a student I went to the games! Both as an undergrad and a grad student, so I do, with 14 years of college life, a few degrees and lots of more years with kids (3) while being a grad student know a bit about what it takes to "make it" on one's own dime as a college student.

AGAIN...and hear me on this...I realize there are plenty of exceptions, BUT not in relation to the number of students who actually attend games!

I am not getting "on the students"...been there...done that life several times...go back and read my post...I believe I mentioned students being ONE of several parties to help fund the new stadium.

When the students start actually showing up at the games, the FREE games for students and supporting the program, well, maybe what they say can be heard a bit louder to all the "decision makers" on campus. Which, of course, is not me.

GO MEAN GREEN....thanks for all you do for our students 97 and 03...your efforts ARE appreciated. See you at Fouts!

[Guest GrayEagleOne]

First, I don't think that North Texas will ever charge students an admission price (of any amount) if they are already paying an athletics fee.

Some universities do charge their students a reduced rate but at least one of those that I know of does not charge a student athletics fee. Of course, they sell out home games in a stadium of more than 100,000 and get huge revenue from TV as well.

Another that I'm aware of (and Texas Tech may begin doing this as well) charge students an athletics fee but require them to pick up their football season tickets in advance (without charge). A downside to that might be that you won't know how many students plan to attend until they actually pick up their packets.

I know that university tuition and fees are very expensive these days but I don't think that an additional $150 a year is going to deter a student's ability to attend college.

[Green P1]

The students DON'T show up now in any significant numbers at all...and it is FREE. I don't think UNT risks much in the way of student attendance by adding a small fee for tickets. Besides, in spite of wjhat some on this board think, I would hazzard that over 2/3 of the students do not pay their own way to UNT. They have help from Mom, Dad, Grandparents, scholarships, etc. Yes, some of those work part-time for their spending money (as I did), but "most" UNT students of the undergrad variety are probably NOT paying the full cost of their education on their own. Those that are, well, don't pay the extra for the tickets and keep buying text message minutes, paying bar tabs, smoking those cigs and cigars, and drinking those $4.00 Starbucks coffees, etc. It's all about choices folks...if you don't want to pay the extra small fee for tickes (which might actually "help" get some students to show up at the games), well, don't pay it and don't show up...these folks aren't showing up now in any significant numbers.

Probably won't happen, but many schools are doing this, and yes, I agree, that you get a better turnout for OU and Texas than you do for MTS, Tulsa, ULL, etc., etc.

Took me a while to notice this one.

Yea, right on, screw the students, those spoiled rotten immature little jerks.......

Edited August 21, 2008 by Green P1

[JesseMartin]

On students' finances...

Again I'm sure the number is a bit different but probably not much...near the end of my time at UNT, 76% were on financial aid and 82% worked. Our student body's overall makeup is not the same as most other large schools'.

On the "package deal"...in addition to what I mentioned before, that's another option...get people into it as soon as they're on campus, and as our finances increase you could drop portions of the mandatory fees and increase the amounts of the opt-in fees. It's all workable. I wonder if anybody at UNT, or in the AD specifically, has done a probability analysis of different fee combinations. Probably not, if everything's the same...budgeting was pretty cut-and-dried for a long time, barring the work of people getting grants and sponsorships and such. But it would be cool to get an outlook on how different fee combinations would stack up and the overall revenue likely to be generated from each.