Stadium Expansion News For East Side?

[MSU01]

I'm just glad there's enough student demand for tickets now that this has become an issue. Back when I was a student Bobcat Stadium was often a great place to get some quiet studying done on a Saturday afternoon in the Fall.

[nanacat]

Maybe this has been mentioned before, but for those of us who aren't able to buy season tickets, but would still enjoy going to a game or two, and not be stuck with only SRO tickets, the stadium expansion is exciting. By the time tickets for normal people become available, after season ticket holders get to buy extras, games are either sold out, or there may be one seat here, one seat there. Fortunately I have friends who hold season tickets who sometimes have an extra couple on any given game, but more seating is very, very necessary.
It's a good problem to have, selling out games, but it sure shows that expanding is the next step.

[St George]

Maybe this has been mentioned before, but for those of us who aren't able to buy season tickets, but would still enjoy going to a game or two, and not be stuck with only SRO tickets, the stadium expansion is exciting. By the time tickets for normal people become available, after season ticket holders get to buy extras, games are either sold out, or there may be one seat here, one seat there. Fortunately I have friends who hold season tickets who sometimes have an extra couple on any given game, but more seating is very, very necessary.
It's a good problem to have, selling out games, but it sure shows that expanding is the next step.

I am all for the expansion, the last two years I have had troubles getting just two tickets together for a game. In the past I have bought up to 12. I currently live in Idaho and to come to Bozeman for a game is getting next to impossible. I used to invite a bunch of my friends to share in the Bozeman Football experience. I hope to do this for a few more years. One year our motel expenses were over $3000 and that was before the prices skyrocketed.

[Cataholic]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

[tetoncat]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

What is you number then? Do you think they should be giving 2500, 5000, 10000 tickets to students and other fans and boosters lose those spots. There are posters on here who can't get tickets already so adding student tickets hurts those people as well. If they increase seating to 30000 students will get some more, but again it is all about revenue

[AFCAT]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

That, and the current students become graduates and alumni that donate back to the athletic programs and university.

[coloradocat]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

That, and the current students become graduates and alumni that donate back to the athletic programs and university.

Not if they can't get into the games!

It's hard to financially justify giving students more tickets in the current stadium as whatever their fee is it's going to be less than the market value for football tickets, especially when you consider that the fee covers all sports.

[Cataholic]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

That, and the current students become graduates and alumni that donate back to the athletic programs and university.

Exactly!! With 3,000+ graduating every year, making them lifelong Cat fans is a sure way to build your fan base!

[Cataholic]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

What is you number then? Do you think they should be giving 2500, 5000, 10000 tickets to students and other fans and boosters lose those spots. There are posters on here who can't get tickets already so adding student tickets hurts those people as well. If they increase seating to 30000 students will get some more, but again it is all about revenue

If you expand to 30,000, there is absolutely no reason to not allocate more tickets to students. Nobody is asking to do that with current ticket demand.

Quite frankly, if a game is not a sellout by Friday evening, all remaking tickets for that game should be released to students seeking them. It is a guaranteed sell out every game. And the incremental revenue from concessions etc will also be of benefit to MSU.

[ZebraCat]

2500 tickets were probably good when enrollment was 12k-13k and the stadium was/is seating 17k. When capacity increases, something like 4k is probably a good sweet spot, especially since students seem to show up less later in the season/when the weather gets worse.

Does the student section move again once capacity has increased? The EZ seats are popular with non-students because they are cheaper. Do the students keep the lower bowl on the NEZ, but shift the rest of the section to the NE part of the EZ (116,117 & 118), and the far east section or two of the East side once it's done?

[coloradocat]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

What is you number then? Do you think they should be giving 2500, 5000, 10000 tickets to students and other fans and boosters lose those spots. There are posters on here who can't get tickets already so adding student tickets hurts those people as well. If they increase seating to 30000 students will get some more, but again it is all about revenue

If you expand to 30,000, there is absolutely no reason to not allocate more tickets to students. Nobody is asking to do that with current ticket demand.

Quite frankly, if a game is not a sellout by Friday evening, all remaking tickets for that game should be released to students seeking them. It is a guaranteed sell out every game. And the incremental revenue from concessions etc will also be of benefit to MSU.

This should be the rule no matter how many seats are in the stadium.

[tetoncat]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

That, and the current students become graduates and alumni that donate back to the athletic programs and university.

I'll ask you same question as I did Cataholic. What # of students is OK. All students probably have a chance at some point. Few seem to attend volleyball and basketball games.

[AFCAT]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

That, and the current students become graduates and alumni that donate back to the athletic programs and university.

I'll ask you same question as I did Cataholic. What # of students is OK. All students probably have a chance at some point. Few seem to attend volleyball and basketball games.

Fewer fans in general attend basketball and volleyball as well. You could answer your own question for us. What number of students is okay to attend a university football games at the university those students attend? Students become graduates that become alumni that become donors of the future. Those same alumni are funding buildings and stadium improvements on campus and I'd submit they are extremely important to the success of MSU in the future. The more MSU students that can get tickets to games now and in the future, the better off MSU will be.

[coloradocat]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

That, and the current students become graduates and alumni that donate back to the athletic programs and university.

I'll ask you same question as I did Cataholic. What # of students is OK. All students probably have a chance at some point. Few seem to attend volleyball and basketball games.

Are you implying that once you get a ticket you go back to the back of the line the next week? I would be suprised if MSU's student ticketing mechanism is that advanced. I don't know how they do it but I assume it's a simple first come first served each week, like concert tickets with a 1 ticket max.

[damnyoutuesday]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

That, and the current students become graduates and alumni that donate back to the athletic programs and university.

I'll ask you same question as I did Cataholic. What # of students is OK. All students probably have a chance at some point. Few seem to attend volleyball and basketball games.

Are you implying that once you get a ticket you go back to the back of the line the next week? I would be suprised if MSU's student ticketing mechanism is that advanced. I don't know how they do it but I assume it's a simple first come first served each week, like concert tickets with a 1 ticket max.

It is first come, first serve every week, with a 1 ticket max (unless there's some still available Wednesday, which can then be purchased by students to be used as buddy passes for $15). Nobody gets sent to the back of the line just because you got a ticket the previous week.

[Cataholic]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

That, and the current students become graduates and alumni that donate back to the athletic programs and university.

I'll ask you same question as I did Cataholic. What # of students is OK. All students probably have a chance at some point. Few seem to attend volleyball and basketball games.

Are you implying that once you get a ticket you go back to the back of the line the next week? I would be suprised if MSU's student ticketing mechanism is that advanced. I don't know how they do it but I assume it's a simple first come first served each week, like concert tickets with a 1 ticket max.

It is first come, first serve every week, with a 1 ticket max (unless there's some still available Wednesday, which can then be purchased by students to be used as buddy passes for $15). Nobody gets sent to the back of the line just because you got a ticket the previous week.

I have heard the system is “locking up” for students this year due to the number seeking tickets. Might be time to go to a lottery system.

[Bocephus]

I would be curious to see the actual number of students seeking tickets and the percentage of those getting tickets. I heard it is less than 25% which is embarrassing as an institution. I understand that the system is locking up when student tickets come online for sale because of the heavy demand.

Why is it embarrassing? 17000 students, 20000 stadium. Your not giving students more than 2500 or so because you lose revenue that funds the program.

Really? I recall going to football games as a major experience for me as a student. It also cemented my love for the Cats. I would think accommodating students demand should be a high priority for the university. And I am pretty sure EVERY student pays some type of fee in tuition that is meant to compensate the athletic programs for tickets.

That, and the current students become graduates and alumni that donate back to the athletic programs and university.

I'll ask you same question as I did Cataholic. What # of students is OK. All students probably have a chance at some point. Few seem to attend volleyball and basketball games.

Are you implying that once you get a ticket you go back to the back of the line the next week? I would be suprised if MSU's student ticketing mechanism is that advanced. I don't know how they do it but I assume it's a simple first come first served each week, like concert tickets with a 1 ticket max.

It is first come, first serve every week, with a 1 ticket max (unless there's some still available Wednesday, which can then be purchased by students to be used as buddy passes for $15). Nobody gets sent to the back of the line just because you got a ticket the previous week.

I have heard the system is “locking up” for students this year due to the number seeking tickets. Might be time to go to a lottery system.

To think that 20 years ago when I was a student, no ticket was needed. They would scan your cat card at the gate and we sat in the 50 yard line! And watch Travis Lulay!

[RockyBearCat]

Fewer fans in general attend basketball and volleyball as well. You could answer your own question for us. What number of students is okay to attend a university football games at the university those students attend? Students become graduates that become alumni that become donors of the future. Those same alumni are funding buildings and stadium improvements on campus and I'd submit they are extremely important to the success of MSU in the future. The more MSU students that can get tickets to games now and in the future, the better off MSU will be.

So all 17000+ should go to students? What is the demarcation line?

[Cataholic]

Fewer fans in general attend basketball and volleyball as well. You could answer your own question for us. What number of students is okay to attend a university football games at the university those students attend? Students become graduates that become alumni that become donors of the future. Those same alumni are funding buildings and stadium improvements on campus and I'd submit they are extremely important to the success of MSU in the future. The more MSU students that can get tickets to games now and in the future, the better off MSU will be.

So all 17000+ should go to students? What is the demarcation line?

Come on man. Nobody is saying that.

[grizzh8r]

Fewer fans in general attend basketball and volleyball as well. You could answer your own question for us. What number of students is okay to attend a university football games at the university those students attend? Students become graduates that become alumni that become donors of the future. Those same alumni are funding buildings and stadium improvements on campus and I'd submit they are extremely important to the success of MSU in the future. The more MSU students that can get tickets to games now and in the future, the better off MSU will be.

So all 17000+ should go to students? What is the demarcation line?

Straw man argument; stop being a drama queen. First of all, there are thousands of students who don't give a flying fornication about Bobcat Athletics.

Second, the current ratio of available student tickets to total student population seems disproportionate.

What would be interesting is to see what the ratio of student ticket allocation to total tickets available is for schools with huge student populations (and huge stadiums) like Michigan, Texas A&M, Ohio State, and Tennessee. Those venues are always sold out, and tons of students attend.