September 23-29, 2002
Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Journal
Online at: www.sportsbusinessjournal.com

College Football Ticket Prices: Schools' strategies all over the field

By JENNIFER LEE, Staff writer

The University of Michigan increased football ticket prices in each of the last two years to strengthen the financial stability of its athletic department. Ohio State increases prices every year.

And since football tickets are the largest revenue source for big-time college athletic departments, pricing is of strategic importance.

Prices vary from zero at some schools to $87 dollars at one school, according to a SportsBusiness Journal study of Division I-A college football ticket prices. Prices are based on a combination of demand, departmental needs and the ticket prices of comparable schools.

Michigan had been running in the red for three straight years, but after raising prices dramatically in 2001 and moderately this year, it has operated self-sufficiently.

"We, like everyone else, have our challenges to have a balanced budget," said Michigan CFO Jason Winters. "And we're trying to balance a reasonable ticket price with providing the resources we need for the overall athletic program."

Many schools raise prices every few years, but today, it's not unheard of for a program to increase prices every year. "Our ticket prices go up about 5 percent every year because we know salaries are going to go up, benefits are increasing and travel cost is increasing," said Ohio State Athletic Director Andy Geiger. Ohio State, with eight home games this season, projects its football ticket revenue to be about $21.7 million, which is about 28 percent of the department's $79 million budget this year.

Division I-A football rankings Single-game tickets: Most expensive Students: Michigan State ($24) General public: Ohio State ($45)

Single-game tickets: Least expensive* Students: Arkansas ($1) General public: N.M. State/Temple ($5) * Excludes schools that offer free admission to students For a complete list of I-A ticket prices, see pages 40-42.

Ohio State, which recently finished a $195 million renovation and expansion of Ohio Stadium, added a ticket surcharge for three years to help pay for the facility. Texas also recently added a ticket surcharge to pay for its stadium renovations.

On top of simply increasing ticket prices, college football programs continue to toy with other price variances.

Prices can vary not only based on seat location but on which games you want to attend, whether you're a student or a nonstudent, and, at some schools, whether you want bench seats or seats with backs.

And to complicate things, many I-A programs require that individuals make donations to a school or its athletic department just for rights to buy a ticket.

According to SportsBusiness Journal research on Division I-A football prices, schools in the Big Ten and Big 12 charge the most for tickets. Non-BCS conferences such as the Sun Belt and the Mid-American have the cheapest tickets.

Most schools, but not all, discount their prices for students, and some do not charge students to see a game. To be fair, many schools, particularly those that offer either steep discounts or free admission, actually charge students via an activity fee.

Some schools vary prices depending on the game. Nebraska, for example, charges $35 for a game against Troy State but $55 for Colorado.

Northwestern varies its ticket prices depending on whether the game is against a conference ($35) or nonconference ($30) foe.

Top-dollar: general public tickets

A fan looking to see any Texas Tech game could do so for as little as $10 a game and $99 for the entire season. Paying for the best seat in the house, at midfield, will cost you $87, though. That seat for the entire season costs $470. And the Red Raiders are not unique; many schools offer payment options where, if you want to spend a lot on football, you certainly can.

Single game

Season ticket

Note: The above represents how much nonstudents could pay for a ticket to a single home game for a school's team or season ticket to a school's games. For those schools that offer a range of ticket prices, the most expensive single-game or season ticket is used here.

Most expensive: student tickets

Big Ten students, more than kids at almost every other school, need to make at least one additional stop on their way to a game: an ATM. Big Ten schools top the list this year when it comes to the cost for their students to watch a single game, or a season of games.

Single game

Note: The above represents the least amount of money it would cost a school's students to see a single home game. For those schools that offer a range of ticket prices, the cost of the cheapest single-game ticket available is used here. It does not include the 11 schools that don't offer discounted tickets to students. Those schools, if included, would rank above the listed schools that have discounted tickets for student in all but one case ? Miami (Fla.), $20.

Season ticket

Note: The above represents the least amount of money it would cost a school's students to purchase season tickets. For those schools that offer a range of ticket prices, the cost of the cheapest season ticket available is used here. It does not include the two schools that don't offer discounted tickets to students ? Nebraska, $350, and Miami (Fla.), $120.

Free tickets for students

ACC

? Clemson ? Duke
? Florida State ? Georgia Tech
? Maryland ? North Carolina
? North Carolina State ? Virginia
? Wake Forest

BIG 12

? Baylor ? Texas Tech

BIG EAST

? Rutgers ? Temple
? Virginia Tech ? West Virginia

CONFERENCE USA

? Alabama-Birmingham ? Army
? Cincinnati ? East Carolina
? Houston ? Memphis
? Southern Mississippi ? TCU
? Tulane

MAC

? Akron ? Ball State
? Bowling Green State ? Buffalo
? Central Michigan ? Eastern Michigan
? Kent State ? Marshall
? Miami (Ohio) ? Northern Illinois
? Ohio ? Toledo
? Western Michigan

MOUNTAIN WEST

? Air Force ? Colorado State
? New Mexico ? UNLV
? Utah ? Wyoming

PAC-10

? Oregon ? Oregon State

SEC

? South Carolina ? Tennessee
? Vanderbilt

SUN BELT

? Arkansas State ? Idaho
? Louisiana-Lafayette ? Louisiana-Monroe
? Middle Tennessee State ? New Mexico State
? North Texas

WAC

? Boise State ? Louisiana Tech
? Nevada ? Rice
? San Jose State ? SMU
? Tulsa ? UTEP

INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS

? Central Florida ? Navy
? South Florida ? Troy State
? Utah State

Sources: SBJ research,the schools

Fans in the stands

Each school has a different procedure for making seats available to fans. Designations for students, opposing teams' fans, the general public, faculty, staff, alumni and others vary further by game. Using information provided by the schools, and averages compiled on a conference-by-conference basis, a picture develops of how teams stack up for allocating

Welcome, visitors!

The following schools provide the largest percentage of their available stadium capacity for visiting teams' fans.

Rank	School (conference)	Allotment
1	Ohio (MAC)	16.70%
2	Georgia Tech (ACC)	16.30%
3	Connecticut (Independent)	14.80%
4	Vanderbilt (SEC)	14.60%
5	Rice (WAC)	14.30%

Student run

The following schools provide the largest percentage of their available stadium capacity for students.

Rank	School (conference)	Allotment
1	Ohio (MAC)	41.70%
2	Marshall (MAC)	37.50%
3	North Texas (Sun Belt)	35.30%
4	Colorado State (Mountain West)	33.30%
5	Northern Illinois (MAC)	33.10%

Local control

The following schools provide the largest percentage of their available stadium capacity for the general public.

Rank	School (conference)	Allotment
1	Alabama-Birmingham	94.00%	(Conference USA)
2	Michigan State (Big Ten)	91.70%
3	Fresno State (WAC)	91.50%
4	New Mexico (Mountain West)	88.10%
5	Nevada (WAC)	87.30%

Sources: SBJ research, the schools