Four years of waking up early, four years of waiting in line, and after four years I finally want to scream, “WHY?” The University of Oregon has a horrendous system to distribute a small amount of student tickets only to those students that are willing to camp out for the first tickets.
My first college football game was right before my senior year of high school. A huge crowd of students were wearing the same shirt…107,501 Big House, 40,000+ students… one voice: “GO BLUE!” My best friend had received her season tickets a month before the first game. Michigan students are asked to purchase season tickets, which come to $17.50 per game, and depending on the season and the amount of home games the total season ticket price tag for 2007 was $140.00. If the University of Oregon used this method, they could potentially eliminate three problems.
The First Problem: The Oregon system of distribution depends on the date, opponent, and any other random factor that the ASUO deems important to increase or decrease the amount of tickets available.
The Second Problem: Money. Student tickets come from the large number of incidental fees that are added on to tuition every term. Although there is no direct monetary exchange, the tickets come from the pockets of every university student. Although a majority of students pay the incidental fee without participating in football, basketball, Designating Driving service, etc., there are those students that want to use these services but are denied access to the game because there simply were not enough tickets allotted. This system is taking students’ money and not returning the goods promised. These arguments are in regard to the administrative shortcomings.
The Third Problem: In regard to ticket release day, waiting in line is a true Oregon experience; students skip classes, trash the campus, and block walkways throughout the dorm and EMU area. The system at the University of Michigan eliminates all these problems.
The issue of a fluctuating student section is nearly eliminated when students buy their own tickets and there is a definite amount of students desiring to attend games.
The students who want tickets should pay for them. Students that do not attend games would not have that incidental fee as part of their tuition. Attendance becomes a personal issue if they chose not to attend a game. That student is using his or her own money, not ASUO’s money.
The third problem is also addressed. Everyone who wants to attend games will buy their season tickets and thus a university service is guaranteed to them. With students receiving all their tickets at once in the mail, there are no lines, and students aren’t missing classes or messing up the campus. Another option I would love as a senior would be if the student tickets were given out with regard to credit and class. Seniors are in front, freshmen are in the back. It is a right of passage to move closer.
There are serious flaws in the system that Oregon has, and although the ASUO has tried to change or fix the flaws, there needs to be a complete overhaul of the system. I believe that the method that Michigan uses for student ticket sales is the way to go.
Mia Siegrist
University alumna