It is not surprising that many students have expressed outrage at the new online ticketing system for football games. Now that it’s incredibly easy to claim a ticket, demand has skyrocketed and tickets have been swept up in as few as two minutes. But the real problem is not the efficiency or fairness of the online ticketing procedure which, while frustrating at times, is an honorable effort at addressing valid concerns with the old system. It is the fact students cannot give their tickets away, coupled with the sloppy security at Autzen Stadium, where guards and University employees obviously lack a clear understanding of the ticket policy and the repercussions of violating the policy.
Last spring, the University implored the ASUO to develop a new online athletic ticket distribution system for two reasons: Teachers were complaining about students standing in line instead of attending class, and eliminating paper tickets would be cheaper and more sustainable.
The penalty system in place for students who obtain a ticket and then miss the game stipulates that if a ticket holder misses two games, he or she must miss the next home game. If a ticket holder misses three games, he or she is banned for the remainder of the season.
Penalizing students who repeatedly claim tickets but don’t attend games is appropriate. But students who know at any point in advance that they cannot attend, for whatever reason, should be permitted to give their ticket away. The current policy allows students to return tickets for redistribution, but only up until noon the Wednesday before the game. That leaves plenty of time for an unexpected conflict to arise, and should that happen, there’s certainly no benefit in letting the ticket go to waste.
It is with that mindset that many University students have attempted to pass their tickets onto friends. Granted, the student ticket policy does forbid the transferring of tickets, but many students do not realize that. An e-mail sent in August to all students explaining the online ticketing system did not note the rule; instead, it included a link to the policy, which is located at www.goducks.com, and asked students to “please read” the information.
At the Sept. 20 Boise State football game, one Emerald editorial board member witnessed ridiculously sloppy security and regulation. While one University of Oregon student who borrowed an ID from a friend had the card confiscated and was sent home, two other male students, both of whom attend Oregon State University and borrowed ID cards from their female friends at this University, were also turned away at the gate, but given back the cards. What’s more, the University of Oregon student was harassed at the gate; the security guard cursed at the student and was extremely loud and abrasive, despite the student’s attempt to rationally explain that his friend was unable to attend and gave away his ticket, not wanting it to be wasted. The student’s companion, who had already passed through security, asked the guard where the student’s friend could retrieve his ID. The security guard said the student would have to buy a new one (and, ever so eloquently, that it was “too bad” but not his problem), but a University employee to whom the student’s companion was referred said the ID could be picked up the following week at the Office of Student Conduct.
As it happened, the ID card mysteriously never resurfaced, and the student was forced to purchase a new one.
The student ticket policy warns that repercussions for transferring tickets “may result in the loss of student ticket privileges,” and, as was the case with the aforementioned student, ID cards may be confiscated. But the policy also states that students may retrieve their card from the University’s Office of Public Safety. The owner of the card that was confiscated at the Boise State game contacted Student Conduct the following Monday, only to be informed his card didn’t show up at Public Safety.
The University and the Athletic Department are, of course, entitled to implement the appropriate repercussions for students who break rules. But they should ensure those repercussions are uniform throughout. Crowd Management Services, as well as University representatives at the gate, must have a clear understanding of the online ticket policy in order to fairly and accurately enforce the policy.
Conversely, an alternate solution would be to simply eliminate the absurd prohibition on transferring tickets. Students’ fees pay for these tickets – by no means are they free of cost – and students should be able to use them as they see fit.
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