The Athletic Department is much maligned. High ticket prices, too much corporate sponsorship, too much Alumni attention — the list of perceived sins goes on and on. On the other hand, the Athletic Department also gives us great games, fantastic student athletes and fun sayings such as “Mowe Town” and “You’ve got to ERN it!”
But sometimes the criticism is well-deserved. And what was reported in the April 14 issue of the Emerald is a good example. The Athletic Department has proposed changing the order in which sections of Autzen Stadium are offered to the general public in preseason games. The idea is that Section 5 through Section 9 are student sections, but they are currently put on sale to general public fans if not all student tickets are claimed. In preseason, which is before school starts, many of those tickets go unclaimed because few students are on campus. Right now, the sections are offered up to the general public in the order of Section 5 to Section 9. The proposal would be to reverse this order.
Sounds simple. But what it means when one looks at the diagram of Autzen is that the best seats (Section 9) will go first rather than last. Students will get their best sections put up for grabs.
The actuality of giving away our tickets isn’t that big a deal. If so few students attend preseason games, then why not give away their seats? The problem is which tickets are being given away. General public ticket holders often complain that sitting in the corner section (five) isn’t as good because students sitting in the next section over block their view when they stand up. So the Athletic Department is trying to placate them while making some more cash. “If [tickets] are free, it seems to me we should have some say in it. We can sell more tickets. We need all the money that we can raise,” said Sandy Walton, senior associate athletic director of intercollegiate athletics.
Well, this reasoning isn’t good enough. Students are the heart of University sports. We are the athletes, and we are the fans. To even think of taking our best seats and giving them first to the general public is disappointing. If we allow the seats to be given away, the possibility is opened that one day the Athletic Department will think that all full-price-paying ticket holders should get the choice seats.
The problem is that the Athletic Department is discounting the heart, passion and energy students bring that the general public often does not. It is the student section that most often makes it onto TV highlights and amuses the crowd with its green-painted faces, outrageous costumes and sheer vocal power. We are the ones who get the “De-Fense” chants going. We are the ones out there playing. Students are the heart of the University, and although the actual faces in those stands change from year to year, the energy doesn’t tend to change as well. The Athletic Department needs us. It thinks it needs more revenue from corporate partners or from more well-paying seats. But what it really needs is the fans, the students.
Starting in Section 9.