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Barnes's comments about scheduling

I understand that Pitt has struggled in the ACC, but if you exclude those games, how has Pitt faired against the Power 6-10 conferences?

Are you asking how Pitt's home record against mid-majors ranks compared to peer schools? Who cares? Point is, if the team has a pulse, we lose 1 out of 2 at home. Aint nothing scary about The Pete. That's what they call an "excuse."
 
We know what we have and the empty seats tell you better than I can.
Business right? yes it is. And in my business I have to make a profit or I don't eat.

Again, what are you actually suggesting? There are empty seats because the team isn't good. At OOC games in 2009, there were crowds because the team was good. Pitt played a top-15 Purdue at home, and guess what? There were thousands of empty seats for it. The fans have spoken, and they are not interested in attending games against top teams when Pitt is mediocre.

You get to argue what could have been while I argue what is. You will always win that argument because you can switch scenarios at the drop of a hat. IF.....in perpetuity.

What is reality is that Pitt just hosted top-10 Virginia and the athletic department sold several hundred extra student tickets because nobody else wants them.
 
Again, what are you actually suggesting? There are empty seats because the team isn't good. At OOC games in 2009, there were crowds because the team was good. Pitt played a top-15 Purdue at home, and guess what? There were thousands of empty seats for it. The fans have spoken, and they are not interested in attending games against top teams when Pitt is mediocre.



What is reality is that Pitt just hosted top-10 Virginia and the athletic department sold several hundred extra student tickets because nobody else wants them.

Its also a factor of ticket price. Upper deck tickets to Pitt games are crazy expensive. $65 for UVa in the nosebleeds is unreasonable. I bought 2 for 100 on Stubhub (120 after fees) 10 rows up from the Zoo. Duke isn't even sold out.

Barnes is going to have to rethink the ticketing strategy. Those upper deck endzones and corners should be $300/year with donations or maybe create a GA section up there for $100/year for recent Pitt grads, maybe increasing by $50 per year until they are eatablished and can drop a grand for 2 tickets. Pitt has to do something different for sure and they first need to look at price.
 
There's a lot of reasons for the empty seats from not a bb town ,schedule, performance ,aging fan base ,costs ,tv etc ,but maybe they just built a building too big for their product. The Field House held 6000 + and there were a lot of empty seats in the OOC games and weaker BE teams. I had four tickets back in day when you could watch Smith ,Lane Gore ,Shorter ,players we'd die for now and could never give them away during the pre season. The Pirates got it right , smaller venue creates demand there's only one one team in Pgh that can sell all the tickets they want .
 
Its also a factor of ticket price. Upper deck tickets to Pitt games are crazy expensive. $65 for UVa in the nosebleeds is unreasonable. I bought 2 for 100 on Stubhub (120 after fees) 10 rows up from the Zoo. Duke isn't even sold out.

Barnes is going to have to rethink the ticketing strategy.

You wouldn't be paying $65 if you had season tickets, but you're too cheap for that too.

Barnes didn't start working here yesterday. He's had all season to decide how to price tickets, and he's allowing them to be priced at $65, which I agree is unrealistic. Either you think Barnes is just as dumb as Pedersen, or they're somehow making money at that price.

but maybe they just built a building too big for their product.

They absolutely did, and they did it on purpose. It was a big gamble back then that there would ever be that many fans who wanted to watch Pitt basketball. It turned out to be a really wise move and they sold out for a decade. Maybe that bubble has burst and this is all we can ever reasonably expect when Pitt isn't a top-10 team.
 
Its also a factor of ticket price. Upper deck tickets to Pitt games are crazy expensive. $65 for UVa in the nosebleeds is unreasonable. I bought 2 for 100 on Stubhub (120 after fees) 10 rows up from the Zoo. Duke isn't even sold out.

Barnes is going to have to rethink the ticketing strategy. Those upper deck endzones and corners should be $300/year with donations or maybe create a GA section up there for $100/year for recent Pitt grads, maybe increasing by $50 per year until they are eatablished and can drop a grand for 2 tickets. Pitt has to do something different for sure and they first need to look at price.
You have NO right to complain about Pitt's pricing of tickets. NONE. Grow up.
 
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You have NO right to complain about Pitt's pricing of tickets. NONE. Grow up.
Hate to say this ,but fans do have a say in ticket prices. If enough people stay away there's two choices ,either lower your prices to attract more people or play to empty seats. If lowering the price doesn't work then you've got a problem unless your generating enough revenue with the empty seats that you don't care which I don't think is the case.
 
Hate to say this ,but fans do have a say in ticket prices. If enough people stay away there's two choices ,either lower your prices to attract more people or play to empty seats. If lowering the price doesn't work then you've got a problem unless your generating enough revenue with the empty seats that you don't care which I don't think is the case.

He's talking specifically to SMF, who is a notorious cheapskate who recommends people stop buying season tickets.
 
He's talking specifically to SMF, who is a notorious cheapskate who recommends people stop buying season tickets.

I'm not sure I understand the "cheapskate" comment. My lower level tickets, bought on Stubhub, are going to cost me around $300. This doesnt include the Syracuse game, where I paid Pitt $85 to sit in the Zoo or the Duke game,.where I will have to pay $115 to sit in the upper deck. Also, for many of the games, I take family so I am buying 2-4 tickets unless I go with a friend.

I am paying similar prices as other folks. The only difference is I pay Pitt's secondary ticket market official sponsor for my lower level tickets because I'm under 65 and can't get lower level tickets through Pitt. I would be thrilled to buy lower level season tickets through Pitt. But, if you think I'm dumb enough to drop a grand on uppers, which have a combined market value of about $400, you're crazy.

As for Barnes, yes, he may prove to be as dumb as Barnes when it comes to ticketing. I can, promise you, right now, we will have a minimum of 2500 unsold season tickets in the upper deck next year. So, Econ 101......what do you do when demand drops? You lower the price. FWIW, I think prices of lower level tickets should be raised. Pitt cant be charging everybody the same price anymore minus donations. Thats just plain dumb.
 
Hate to say this ,but fans do have a say in ticket prices. If enough people stay away there's two choices ,either lower your prices to attract more people or play to empty seats. If lowering the price doesn't work then you've got a problem unless your generating enough revenue with the empty seats that you don't care which I don't think is the case.
Except that Pitt prints its tix with varying prices according to perceived desirability. The OOC's are usually $19.00, but the Duke tix from my SEASON TICKET BUYER pkg. reads $42.00. The poster is complaining because the ticket office wants $65.00 for a game WITHOUT any donation. Of course, he buys his from Stubhub, where Pitt gets NO revenue if an individual puts them there. This from a guy who complains about the OOC games being on the schedule. My good tickets cost about $600 for 20 games....a freaking bargain.
 
I'm not sure I understand the "cheapskate" comment. My lower level tickets, bought on Stubhub, are going to cost me around $300. This doesnt include the Syracuse game, where I paid Pitt $85 to sit in the Zoo or the Duke game,.where I will have to pay $115 to sit in the upper deck. Also, for many of the games, I take family so I am buying 2-4 tickets unless I go with a friend.

I am paying similar prices as other folks. The only difference is I pay Pitt's secondary ticket market official sponsor for my lower level tickets because I'm under 65 and can't get lower level tickets through Pitt. I would be thrilled to buy lower level season tickets through Pitt. But, if you think I'm dumb enough to drop a grand on uppers, which have a combined market value of about $400, you're crazy.

As for Barnes, yes, he may prove to be as dumb as Barnes when it comes to ticketing. I can, promise you, right now, we will have a minimum of 2500 unsold season tickets in the upper deck next year. So, Econ 101......what do you do when demand drops? You lower the price. FWIW, I think prices of lower level tickets should be raised. Pitt cant be charging everybody the same price anymore minus donations. Thats just plain dumb.
WRONG...you raise the quality. That way, stingy fans will only have cost to moan about.
 
Of course, he buys his from Stubhub, where Pitt gets NO revenue if an individual puts them there. This from a guy who complains about the OOC games being on the schedule. My good tickets cost about $600 for 20 games....a freaking bargain.

Pitt gets a percentage of Stubhub sales. Pay attention. And $600 for lower level seats is not a bad price. I agree. Pay attention. For upper level seats, that price is borderline criminal.
 
As for Barnes, yes, he may prove to be as dumb as Barnes when it comes to ticketing. I can, promise you, right now, we will have a minimum of 2500 unsold season tickets in the upper deck next year. So, Econ 101......what do you do when demand drops? You lower the price. FWIW, I think prices of lower level tickets should be raised. Pitt cant be charging everybody the same price anymore minus donations. Thats just plain dumb.

If anything, the ticket prices should drop and the mandatory donation levels should be increased.
 
If anything, the ticket prices should drop and the mandatory donation levels should be increased.

Pitt is one of the few places in the country where every seat require a donation. That's dumb. The demand just isnt there anybody. They need to price exactly like football. Imagine if every football seat required a donation.

It needs to be tier - priced like football.
 
Except that Pitt prints its tix with varying prices according to perceived desirability. The OOC's are usually $19.00, but the Duke tix from my SEASON TICKET BUYER pkg. reads $42.00. The poster is complaining because the ticket office wants $65.00 for a game WITHOUT any donation. Of course, he buys his from Stubhub, where Pitt gets NO revenue if an individual puts them there. This from a guy who complains about the OOC games being on the schedule. My good tickets cost about $600 for 20 games....a freaking bargain.
Were I differ is if your ass is sitting in a seat at the Pete rooting for the Panthers then your a fan. If you get your tickets at seek geek or any other resaler someone paid Pitt for the ticket. If the seat would be empty I'd rather have someone sitting there. If you can get a better seat for less go for it, who wants to sit in the rafters ,but there's no guarantee .
 
Well this has certainly devolved as most long chains do...

If Pitt puts a better product on the court, they'll sell more seats.
-let's just leave it at that.
 
and ummmm it is tiered.
donation significantly goes up if you want to be on the sidelines behind the zoo, or the benches.
-donation also goes up for the club/lodge.
 
and that isn't "BBall Donation" or "Football Donation" it's "Pitt Athletic Dept Donation"
-so you don't have to re-donate for ability to purchase per sport.

BTW the donation needed is only $125 a year... so if you're willing to spend hours blogging about Pitt...i think it shouldn't be an issue to drop $75 donation per team...if you need to think about it that way.
 
Pitt gets a percentage of Stubhub sales. Pay attention. And $600 for lower level seats is not a bad price. I agree. Pay attention. For upper level seats, that price is borderline criminal.
So pony up more cash & sit with the bargain shoppers. It's a relative bargain upstairs. What do you think our ACC brethren pay??
 
Can't see donation info...since the season is already in full-swing but:
L'Ville vs Cuse.
upper corner, top row (worst seats in the area) which u can buy through the school website:
with fees etc: $50 a piece.
-oh and it's not sold out.
 
And how much worse would our football attendance be if tickets werent insanely cheap, most requiring no donation?

That's precisely why we need to make more profit on basketball than most other schools. If we had 107,000 sheep paying for football season tickets, our basketball program could play OOC games on the moon.
 
Are you asking how Pitt's home record against mid-majors ranks compared to peer schools? Who cares? Point is, if the team has a pulse, we lose 1 out of 2 at home. Aint nothing scary about The Pete. That's what they call an "excuse."
You are the one that stated that Pitt loses about 50% of the time over the last five years to power 10 conferences? I was asking you how you came up with this blanket statement.
 
Come on Joe, it was scheduled FOR us. Stop justifying or defending everything Jamie does.

It's funny that you say that since I've been one of the people laughing at the notion that no one any good will play us at the Pete for a long, long time. Certainly much longer than almost anyone here.

But let me ask you this. At the end of the day what difference does it make why the game is on the schedule? We still have to play it, don't we? If we play at Indiana in the ACC - Big 10 challenge or we play at Indiana because the coach or the AD scheduled a game there, in the end what difference does it make? You either played the game or you didn't. Why does "the why" matter even a wee little bit?
 
Were I differ is if your ass is sitting in a seat at the Pete rooting for the Panthers then your a fan. If you get your tickets at seek geek or any other resaler someone paid Pitt for the ticket. If the seat would be empty I'd rather have someone sitting there. If you can get a better seat for less go for it, who wants to sit in the rafters ,but there's no guarantee .
Not exactly. If you buy it from a season ticket holder, who paid about $30.00, on average...on Stubhub for $50.00...NOT from Pitt on Stubhub....who gets the $50.00?? And it could be a Duke fan buying it.
 
You are the one that stated that Pitt loses about 50% of the time over the last five years to power 10 conferences? I was asking you how you came up with this blanket statement.

Look at our conference home record the last 5 years and throw in the Purdue game.
 
So pony up more cash & sit with the bargain shoppers. It's a relative bargain upstairs. What do you think our ACC brethren pay??

If you think upper deck tickets are a bargain, there's nothing more I can say to that. If they were, don't you think I would buy them? I have done the 1st Grade level math and figured I can buy lowers on stub for the same price as uppers through Pitt. Or I could have bought uppers on Stub for 30% less than uppers through Pitt. But, hey, you say they are a "bargain," I mean what do I know, I've only priced every game for the last 3 years.
 
If you think upper deck tickets are a bargain, there's nothing more I can say to that. If they were, don't you think I would buy them? I have done the 1st Grade level math and figured I can buy lowers on stub for the same price as uppers through Pitt. Or I could have bought uppers on Stub for 30% less than uppers through Pitt. But, hey, you say they are a "bargain," I mean what do I know, I've only priced every game for the last 3 years.
Whiffed. I want you to pony up the cash at a high enough level to move downstairs....with those of us who support the program, not Stubhub. My seats are a bargain. Am I right that seats placed by individuals on Stubhub produce NO revenue for Pitt?? If I am, why cheat the University. No wonder Pitt donations lag our peers.
 
Whiffed. I want you to pony up the cash at a high enough level to move downstairs....with those of us who support the program, not Stubhub. My seats are a bargain. Am I right that seats placed by individuals on Stubhub produce NO revenue for Pitt?? If I am, why cheat the University. No wonder Pitt donations lag our peers.

Stubhub pays Pitt a commission on tickets sold. How much? I dont know but I'm sure its small.

I will be in the lower level when my hair starts going gray. Its a prerequisite.
 
Not exactly. If you buy it from a season ticket holder, who paid about $30.00, on average...on Stubhub for $50.00...NOT from Pitt on Stubhub....who gets the $50.00?? And it could be a Duke fan buying it.
The Pitt season ticket holder gets the moola. It could be a Dukie or SMF
 
Stubhub pays Pitt a commission on tickets sold. How much? I dont know but I'm sure its small.

I will be in the lower level when my hair starts going gray. Its a prerequisite.
Does Stubhub pay Pitt on resales by individuals?? Please answer the question.
 
Does Stubhub pay Pitt on resales by individuals?? Please answer the question.
They charge a fee to the ticket buyer. In a wonderful world where Pitt is a legitimate contender the ticket prices can get pretty steep. ( Duke tickets are still pricey ) I used seat geek to get Pitt / Miami tickets for $12 if I want to see them play Virginia five rows from the court $7.
Ps cheapest Duke tickets $133 section 225 section 110 close to $600 what if they were good
 
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