Patrick Reusse: Gophers hoops crowd gets annual rip-off notice

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XMan said:
How many of you feel ripped off after wasting time reading Reusse's column? Just sayin'.
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No cost for reading the column(especially if it is linked here), and has no bearing on whether the team wins or loses. Hard to feel ripped off.
 

golfing18now said:
I don't know that this is true. We certainly have precedent over the last how many years that the schedule will look something like this. You might swap a game or two, but would substituting a mid-level (Oklahoma State, Oklahoma-type) for Coastal Carolina fundamentally change your attitude about buying Gopher tickets? I will grant you that it would for that night, but overall?
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Yes. We are realists who aren't asking for much. A couple of decent home non con games a year would please a lot of season ticket holders. In the eighties Marquette used to come in every year and it was taken for granted. Now it would be worthy of a parade. If nobody else was scheduling a couple of games a year that weren't scrimmages, I would understand, but that's not the case.

As I said in an earlier post, I was prepared to cancel this year and buy tix on the street for the half dozen "must see" Big Ten games. I'm curious because of Pitino, so I renewed.
 

MadtownGopher said:
If you consider it a ripoff, don't buy the tickets. It's simple as that. You know what you are buying, home games in the best conference in the country with some poor nonconference home games. It's like any other sport, NFL season ticket holders have to pay full value for preseason games which are MUCH worse than nonconference college basketball games.
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That's easy. In the NFL 8 of the 10 games are "must see.". For the gophers it's currently 5 or 6 out of about 20.
 

jamiche said:
That's easy. In the NFL 8 of the 10 games are "must see.". For the gophers it's currently 5 or 6 out of about 20.
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And scheduling the bottom team in the Pac12 changes that?
 

Bigger rip

An additional aspect to the rip off is that come October, the Athletic Dept itself will start offering drastic price reductions & groupon offers for single game tix.

I bought N'western tix for $15 on the U's website. Additionaly, I was in on a 3pack that included American, Wisconsin & Indiana for $100. For Tennessee St & So Dakota St I paid a total of $25 on the street. For $140 I saw 6 games including 2 vs big time opponents.

Not much incentive for one to go full boat.

My biggest reason for not getting Season Tix has more to do to with the time investment than the cost, especially with the increased crazy start times. There are far more 6pm game, which are really a challenge to get to through rush hour. 8pm games are no treat either on worknights, as it means I won't get home until 11pm. There are maybe 4 or 5 game a year where the Barn is really "the place to be". The other 15, HD does just fine.
 



Ope3 said:
An additional aspect to the rip off is that come October, the Athletic Dept itself will start offering drastic price reductions & groupon offers for single game tix.

I bought N'western tix for $15 on the U's website. Additionaly, I was in on a 3pack that included American, Wisconsin & Indiana for $100. For Tennessee St & So Dakota St I paid a total of $25 on the street. For $140 I saw 6 games including 2 vs big time opponents.

Not much incentive for one to go full boat.

My biggest reason for not getting Season Tix has more to do to with the time investment than the cost, especially with the increased crazy start times. There are far more 6pm game, which are really a challenge to get to through rush hour. 8pm games are no treat either on worknights, as it means I won't get home until 11pm. There are maybe 4 or 5 game a year where the Barn is really "the place to be". The other 15, HD does just fine.
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Yup. Without the Pitino hire, they would have seen massive defections this year. If he doesn't recruit well for 2014, the premium seating plan will be a very tough sell.
 

jamiche said:
Yup. Without the Pitino hire, they would have seen massive defections this year. If he doesn't recruit well for 2014, the premium seating plan will be a very tough sell.
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I agree. If Tubby had returned, ticket sales would have dropped **sharply**, just like they did when the Monson writing was on the wall. Also agree that if (big IFs), but if we miss the tourney this year and recruiting of 2014s is bottom half of Big Ten, defections will occur (but not as many as had Tubby been retained).

We too had strongly considered the "pay a premium for the handful of interesting games and sit exactly where we want" strategy. Cost savings would be significant. We look at season tickets as a donation to athletics at the U.
 

jamiche said:
Yup. Without the Pitino hire, they would have seen massive defections this year. If he doesn't recruit well for 2014, the premium seating plan will be a very tough sell.
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It's possible, I suppose. But I don't see it. The Gophers have a pretty loyal season ticket base with thousands of people with 20/25/40/50 years worth of investment. (not talking about the student section here) It might not be the ticket it was during the Clem years, but overall it has survived the Monson years and two or three years of pretty bad Tubby ball, not to mention all the premium seating add-ons during the last couple years. Last year had 3 or 4 really elite games. Obviously, the year didn't end well, but they still did win a game in the tournament. The Pitino hire clearly created some new buzz, but we wouldn't have been talking Florida Marlins baseball had Tubby stayed.
 



golfing18now said:
It's possible, I suppose. But I don't see it. The Gophers have a pretty loyal season ticket base with thousands of people with 20/25/40/50 years worth of investment. (not talking about the student section here) It might not be the ticket it was during the Clem years, but overall it has survived the Monson years and two or three years of pretty bad Tubby ball, not to mention all the premium seating add-ons during the last couple years. Last year had 3 or 4 really elite games. Obviously, the year didn't end well, but they still did win a game in the tournament. The Pitino hire clearly created some new buzz, but we wouldn't have been talking Florida Marlins baseball had Tubby stayed.
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Couldn't disagree more. Are you a season ticket holder? Were you here for the Monson years? I have been since 1996. The last couple Monson years, the base was down by about 5000 from the peak. It was easy to feel that that was about to happen again, particularly with the premium seating upcharge added on top and another disappointing February and March under Tubby. Teague and Co. realized this and made the correct move and made a great hire on the surface, which created buzz and excitement, so that guys like Jammer gave it one more year at least.

The schedule sucks and I expect Pitino will not be tone-deaf on this.
 

GopherJake said:
Couldn't disagree more. Are you a season ticket holder? Were you here for the Monson years? I have been since 1996. The last couple Monson years, the base was down by about 5000 from the peak. It was easy to feel that that was about to happen again, particularly with the premium seating upcharge added on top and another disappointing February and March under Tubby. Teague and Co. realized this and made the correct move and made a great hire on the surface, which created buzz and excitement, so that guys like Jammer gave it one more year at least.

The schedule sucks and I expect Pitino will not be tone-deaf on this.
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Family has had season tickets since 1970. Before all the ticket surcharges, seating moves were largely based on how long you had been a season ticket holder. We would move forward about two rows every five or ten years. I think we managed to move seats 3 or 4 times in the 40 plus years that we have had season tickets. That is true through the Dutcher years, Haskins years, Monson years, and early Tubby years prior to the ticket surcharges (too young to remember the Musselman years). So yes I feel like I can speak to a number of different coaching regimes here. You will always have some churn year after year -- that is to be expected. I agree that the Monson years were probably the worst, but I never viewed it as "massive defections". If there were going to be massive defections in the Tubby era, it would have occurred the two prior years to last year when the Gophers were far worse, had a new "donation program" and the schedule was basically the same. Last year felt different because frankly they overachieved in the first half of the year. No -- I don't consider USC a huge upgrade to the schedule two/three years ago.

This is still the best ticket in town. If you don't think so, there are plenty of seats available at Target Center.
 

I too have had tickets since the 1972-73. I was hooked by the excitement of the Musselman era. I suppose time has jaded my memory but I still think that was when the Barn was unmatchable as a venue.

That said I can tell you why I have kept my seats all this time. I really fear that someday the Barn will be back like it was under Musselman, Dutcher and Haskins and I will be outside looking in.

I know what it can be like inside and I don't want to risk missing it.
 

golfing18now said:
Family has had season tickets since 1970.
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Uh huh. Have you ever paid for them? How old are you?

golfing18now said:
Before all the ticket surcharges, seating moves were largely based on how long you had been a season ticket holder. We would move forward about two rows every five or ten years. I think we managed to move seats 3 or 4 times in the 40 plus years that we have had season tickets. That is true through the Dutcher years, Haskins years, Monson years, and early Tubby years prior to the ticket surcharges
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Obviously movement in the lower-level center sections, which I have no doubt you were located, was at a minimum. Of course you wouldn't understand how it worked for those outside these sections. In 1996, we started in the upper deck, top row, 2 seats from the corner and - outside of the obstructed seats, the worst seats in the house. By the end of the Monson regime, we were in the 2nd deck, 2nd row, center of the home "end zone." We had multiple options to move to the lower-level, but we would have been back a lot farther and preferred the up-top view. Suffice it to say, during the Monson regime, our yearly movement was brisk.

Season ticket sales plummeted during the Monson years, there's absolutely no question about it.

golfing18now said:
This is still the best ticket in town. If you don't think so, there are plenty of seats available at Target Center.
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Just the kind of attitude we need! Did you work for the ticket office prior to the points system being put in place?
 



GopherJake said:
Uh huh. Have you ever paid for them? How old are you?



Obviously movement in the lower-level center sections, which I have no doubt you were located, was at a minimum. Of course you wouldn't understand how it worked for those outside these sections. In 1996, we started in the upper deck, top row, 2 seats from the corner and - outside of the obstructed seats, the worst seats in the house. By the end of the Monson regime, we were in the 2nd deck, 2nd row, center of the home "end zone." We had multiple options to move to the lower-level, but we would have been back a lot farther and preferred the up-top view. Suffice it to say, during the Monson regime, our yearly movement was brisk.

Season ticket sales plummeted during the Monson years, there's absolutely no question about it.



Just the kind of attitude we need! Did you work for the ticket office prior to the points system being put in place?
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Who cares if he paid for them jaker? Jag.
 

Season ticket holders usually don't go to games based on who the opponent is. They come to games to see the Gophers, not the opponents. His argument might have more merit if he were arguing that walk-up tickets would be less of a draw without the marquee opponents.
 

joshvanklomp said:
Season ticket holders usually don't go to games based on who the opponent is. They come to games to see the Gophers, not the opponents. His argument might have more merit if he were arguing that walk-up tickets would be less of a draw without the marquee opponents.
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I sure as hell do. If we are playing Michigan State, it would take a tornado to keep me away. If we are playing RPI #322, it's sprinkling and an interesting shade of paint is drying, that's one I'd skip.
 


GopherJake said:
Uh huh. Have you ever paid for them? How old are you?


Obviously movement in the lower-level center sections, which I have no doubt you were located, was at a minimum. Of course you wouldn't understand how it worked for those outside these sections. In 1996, we started in the upper deck, top row, 2 seats from the corner and - outside of the obstructed seats, the worst seats in the house. By the end of the Monson regime, we were in the 2nd deck, 2nd row, center of the home "end zone." We had multiple options to move to the lower-level, but we would have been back a lot farther and preferred the up-top view. Suffice it to say, during the Monson regime, our yearly movement was brisk.





Season ticket sales plummeted during the Monson years, there's absolutely no question about it.



Just the kind of attitude we need! Did you work for the ticket office prior to the points system being put in place?
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Not that it should matter for the argument that you are making, but I'm 40 years old. Parents purchased the tickets two or three years before I was born. That may have been the '69/70 season or the '70/71 season. I apologize if my comment earlier was off by a year. I'll do the research next time. I don't believe that I used any of my allowance on Gopher tickets when I was a kid. Now my brother and I share the cost with them as we like the seats and don't want to go to the end of the ticket line, apparently shrinking line.

Hardly. Our seats are now in row one of the second deck. We have chosen not to pay the exorbitant premiums that others pay, not an issue the first 40 years. I'm fairly certain that Gopher season tickets have been in the 8000-9000 range during the Tubby era out of a 14000+ seat arena. The last two years have clearly seen a decrease but I would argue that is mostly due to the additional fees that we need to pay. If the entire arena was sold out by season ticket holders during the Clem era as your description would suggest, I will concede the Monson point. I have a hard time believing that but you might be right. But that "massive defection" would have been eating away at a different group of people than you are talking about now. My original point, which I started by saying "It's possible, I suppose" was that I didn't think we would have seen a "massive defection" this year. Had little to do with the Monson years. How did you "feel" like it was going to happen again?

What would you like Jake? You have benefited from an apparent lackadaisical fan base the last 15 years to move to much better seats. Every year you are given the choice to renew your tickets. For some unknown reason, you have continued to do so. I just don't understand the mentality of complaining about the product as you write the check. I'd like to see an upgrade in the schedule at times too, but I'm not entirely surprised and I don't think it is that atypical.
 

golfing18now said:

Not that it should matter for the argument that you are making, but I'm 40 years old. Parents purchased the tickets two or three years before I was born. That may have been the '69/70 season or the '70/71 season. I apologize if my comment earlier was off by a year. I'll do the research next time. I don't believe that I used any of my allowance on Gopher tickets when I was a kid. Now my brother and I share the cost with them as we like the seats and don't want to go to the end of the ticket line, apparently shrinking line.

Hardly. Our seats are now in row one of the second deck. We have chosen not to pay the exorbitant premiums that others pay, not an issue the first 40 years. I'm fairly certain that Gopher season tickets have been in the 8000-9000 range during the Tubby era out of a 14000+ seat arena. The last two years have clearly seen a decrease but I would argue that is mostly due to the additional fees that we need to pay. If the entire arena was sold out by season ticket holders during the Clem era as your description would suggest, I will concede the Monson point. I have a hard time believing that but you might be right. But that "massive defection" would have been eating away at a different group of people than you are talking about now. My original point, which I started by saying "It's possible, I suppose" was that I didn't think we would have seen a "massive defection" this year. Had little to do with the Monson years. How did you "feel" like it was going to happen again?

What would you like Jake? You have benefited from an apparent lackadaisical fan base the last 15 years to move to much better seats. Every year you are given the choice to renew your tickets. For some unknown reason, you have continued to do so. I just don't understand the mentality of complaining about the product as you write the check. I'd like to see an upgrade in the schedule at times too, but I'm not entirely surprised and I don't think it is that atypical.
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Well said
 

golfing18now said:
Not that it should matter for the argument that you are making, but I'm 40 years old. Parents purchased the tickets two or three years before I was born. That may have been the '69/70 season or the '70/71 season. I apologize if my comment earlier was off by a year. I'll do the research next time. I don't believe that I used any of my allowance on Gopher tickets when I was a kid. Now my brother and I share the cost with them as we like the seats and don't want to go to the end of the ticket line, apparently shrinking line.

Hardly. Our seats are now in row one of the second deck. We have chosen not to pay the exorbitant premiums that others pay, not an issue the first 40 years. I'm fairly certain that Gopher season tickets have been in the 8000-9000 range during the Tubby era out of a 14000+ seat arena. The last two years have clearly seen a decrease but I would argue that is mostly due to the additional fees that we need to pay. If the entire arena was sold out by season ticket holders during the Clem era as your description would suggest, I will concede the Monson point. I have a hard time believing that but you might be right. But that "massive defection" would have been eating away at a different group of people than you are talking about now. My original point, which I started by saying "It's possible, I suppose" was that I didn't think we would have seen a "massive defection" this year. Had little to do with the Monson years. How did you "feel" like it was going to happen again?

What would you like Jake? You have benefited from an apparent lackadaisical fan base the last 15 years to move to much better seats. Every year you are given the choice to renew your tickets. For some unknown reason, you have continued to do so. I just don't understand the mentality of complaining about the product as you write the check. I'd like to see an upgrade in the schedule at times too, but I'm not entirely surprised and I don't think it is that atypical.
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It's not an accident that the payment is due well before the schedule comes out. The schedule would look very different if the staff knew that a certain percentage of the renewals were ticket holders whose decision to renew was based on the quality of the schedule.
 


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