Big Game - Tickets Still Available
- Thread starter Piranha
- Start date
Frontrunners. Watch that change, again, as we kick some ass on the court, and the Steelers and Pens collapse into obscurity. Frankly, it still astounds me that the buzz lasted as long as it did, in a town where hoops is an afterthought.
Remember when you said 1,000 times that Pitt fans would gladly pay more for fewer cupcakes and more P5 opponents?
There shouldn't be tickets available and there's really no excuses for it , I'm not making excuses for the Pitt or college basketball fans ,but the 9pm start with the game televised is the killer. Bringing in quality opponents in the OOC portion of the schedule will help with selling season tickets ,but winning and going deep in the tourney will help more.
The disadvantage of having seats on the aisle is when there is a game with a lot of stubhub buyers, for most of the first half people are wandering up and down the aisle trying to find their seats. I guess people who buy tickets at the last minute can't be bothered getting to a game on time, even at 9 PM.
Sorry, that was a little off-topic but I had to vent a little. I hate people with full page tickets constantly walking in front of me while the game is in progress.
Sorry, that was a little off-topic but I had to vent a little. I hate people with full page tickets constantly walking in front of me while the game is in progress.
Yes, thank you for bringing this up which proves my point. As low as values are for this game (which is mostly due to the 9PM start), the broker site values are 2-3 times what the cupcakes are going for.
1 Purdue = 2 or 3 cupcakes. Thanks again.
LOL! The Pens? Maybe. The Steelers? You mean the team that has posted 7 losing seasons in the last 43 years, and none since 2003? If Pitt has to depend on the Steelers fading into obscurity, they are in big trouble.
We'll see. The Pens, of course, are more of a bandwagon thing, and their season (all-year???) overlaps hoops. There was a seismic shift when the Pete opened, as the Pens attendance went down. Lots of businesses & casual fans jumped on the hot ticket bandwagon. Now the Pens are hot, but seem to be struggling. Pgh, like most towns, has a lot of folks more interested in "events" than have loyalty to a BB team.
The Steelers are a cult....not ugly like psu, but a cult. I was at the O.J. Simpson Bowl.....more Philly fans than Steelers. Things DO run in cycles.
I'm sure Pitt is making bank by not selling out and people buying scalped tickets for less than face value. Your economic analysis is spot on as usual.
All it takes to fill that place up is to " win baby win "
Or a superstar people have to see
But how did this become a problem true fans stay through thick and thin and surely there's 12000 Pitt and college bb fans in WPa so why aren't they coming?
1.) performance : no doubt the last several seasons have been disappointing
2.) cost : I've always felt rewarding those financially able to take your seat with a higher donation over a long time loyal season ticket holder was a recipe for disaster. As for the forced donation get rid of it except for premium seating
3.) schedule : when only four or five games are compelling why buy they whole package? Stub hub ,scalpers, tv
4.) convenience : isn't it great on a cold winter night driving to Oakland and trying to find a place to park then walking up Cardiac Hill ( not much you can do about this ) ,but as your fan base ages it's an issue .the steps to the Pete and inside are very steep making it difficult for those with mobility issues.
5.) excitment : I feel the OOC games have dulled the crowds and unless there's a big game it gets pretty quite in there
6.) lack of a superstar
7.) game time : 9 pm on a weekday not for me , it.would have to be a Duke like opponent
If you win big none of these are an issue but having a program in the 30-50 range it all adds up
Or a superstar people have to see
But how did this become a problem true fans stay through thick and thin and surely there's 12000 Pitt and college bb fans in WPa so why aren't they coming?
1.) performance : no doubt the last several seasons have been disappointing
2.) cost : I've always felt rewarding those financially able to take your seat with a higher donation over a long time loyal season ticket holder was a recipe for disaster. As for the forced donation get rid of it except for premium seating
3.) schedule : when only four or five games are compelling why buy they whole package? Stub hub ,scalpers, tv
4.) convenience : isn't it great on a cold winter night driving to Oakland and trying to find a place to park then walking up Cardiac Hill ( not much you can do about this ) ,but as your fan base ages it's an issue .the steps to the Pete and inside are very steep making it difficult for those with mobility issues.
5.) excitment : I feel the OOC games have dulled the crowds and unless there's a big game it gets pretty quite in there
6.) lack of a superstar
7.) game time : 9 pm on a weekday not for me , it.would have to be a Duke like opponent
If you win big none of these are an issue but having a program in the 30-50 range it all adds up
Park in Soldiers & Sailors garage, take the elevator up to the bus, it leaves you off at the top of the sidewalk. Other than getting on the bus, you don't have to climb a single step in the cold.
I'm not going to debate about the OOC schedule, but an ACC schedule is about as exciting as any conference schedule.
Mike and Jamel would be disappointed that you don't think they are good enough to attract fans.
How many individual game tickets did Pitt sell for Cornell?
How many for Purdue?
Was it the same? Surely not......and if this game was at 7, it would be a sellout.
I agree with your point about the steps outside and inside being very steep. My mother is 79 and is going to fewer games because it is not easily accessible for someone who has some leg problems.
I'm not so sure there ARE 12K REAL Pitt BB fans. Also, our tix packages are pretty cheap, and you can get them with all of a $100 donation....maybe none required, now. I use the O'Hara lot.....shuttle takes you up to the door level in front of the Pete. The 9:00 PM start wasn't Pitt's doing....nor is the opponent.
Real fans donate & buy season tix....not Stubhub cheapos.
Bragging about your miserly ways. You should NEVER post anything about Pitt's finances for sports. Just keep poaching web time from your unlucky employer.
My point is that except for the four or five can't miss games you have enough unattractive games that makes it difficult for anyone on the fence to buy the entire package when you can pay up for the good games and save money . Not everyone has unlimited discretionary income.
Mike and Jamel are turning out to be exciting college players but their not good enough to fill an arena. Steven Adams had that potential. Few really do and Pitts not in the conversation to land these kind of recruits.
Tv rules no doubt. The shuttle is great going to the game ,but when leaving they don't depart until the game is over and we know very few fans stick it out to the end!
Have to disagree with you on stubhub ,not everyone has the money or the time to attend all the games. The only requirement to being a fan is to root for your team . Is the person in a wheelchair who can't physically attend games but listens on the radio or watches it on tv not a fan ? Or the guy who works at the pizza place who makes $8 hr? The university makes enough money to pay its coaches millions of dollars if you want to further supplement them with your excess cash that's very nice of you ,but shouldn't be the criteria for fandom. Power five bb and Fb are businesses and pretty successful businesses at that and if you think that they'd shut it down without your donations your mistaken. But I'm sure they appreciate your gesture.
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I have no problem with people who don't want to donate, believe me, but the fact that so many Pitt fans feel this way is one of the reasons that Pitt athletics is in the state that it is in.
There are no excuses. Sorry! I never post on here, ever. But I read and hear on the radio all the time.. If Pitt plays a better OOC schedule or gsme people will come.. So the excuse was its too late.. Then it was they're mediocre and need to win people back, now it's too late of a tip time.. Why doesnt Pitt or ESPN just consult each Pittsburgh resident to get everything needed situated to get you there... Then majority wins with start time, location, etc.. Sheesh... Ridiculous. Sorry had to vent and post for first time in years....and someone would come for duke but not a team ranked 11in the county who quite possibly is better than duke this year... All I hear is excuses for people.. There are two kinds of people in the world: those who make excuses and those who get results. An excuse person will find any excuse for why a job was not done, and a results person will find any reason why it can be done. Be a creator, not a reactor... Either show up especially when you have a big time opponent for don't complain... Sorry again but had to vent lol
If you can't make it to games because of price, that's fine but don't complain and say it's too late, team not good enough, no good teams come etc...then when a good team comes you change up the excuse..
If you can't make it to games because of price, that's fine but don't complain and say it's too late, team not good enough, no good teams come etc...then when a good team comes you change up the excuse..
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I'm not against someone feeling the need to donate their money to anything they feel strongly about. Hell its their money ! Maybe if someone donated ten million dollars to establish a fund that helped in the hiring and paying the salaries of great assistant coaches and great recruiters Pitts bb and Fb teams would improve. I don't think I'm alone in thinking that any amount of money the average fan could donate would make a difference in either bb or Fb performance. Name me something you can think of that either of two sports the majority of fans care about is lacking or is substandard. If you want to expand the conversation to Olympic sports that's different ,but the majority of us really wouldn't care if most of these teams existed. What did the lacrosse team do last year or the field hockey team ? Now I'm sure someone's child ,nephew ,niece neighbor etc plays one of these sports ,but the rest of us don't really follow or care . I know to be in the ACC you must field teams in these sports but my point here is these teams need your donations not the bb or Fb team.
Your post is another example of how you are completely incapable of understanding how college athletics works. Keep continuing being part of the problem.
Then explain how college athletics works. What facilities are missing that hinder the bb program? I've excluded assistant coaches salaries because that's an area that could be addressed .To win at the level we all want they must recruit the elite athlete and they have never really been in picture other than the Chipman and early Evans era and we all know how they got them. The university is not willing to do whatever it takes so how is money the issue ?
Ps or do you think that if Pitts field hockey team won the NCAAs the elites that went elsewhere would have gone to Pitt?
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First of all, Pitt does not have a field hockey team, nor do they have a lacrosse team. They do not have those teams because they do not have money to pay for them. Pitt does not have a bank account labeled "basketball and football" and another account labeled "everyone else that Fsgolfdr doesn't care about". They have one collection of revenue and one collection of costs. Whether you or anyone else agree, the NCAA and ACC require a certain number of sports to be sponsored and a reasonably similar number between men and women. Those are facts that nobody in the entire country can escape. A true Pitt fan, even if he never attends or even watches these Olympic sports, should want them to be as successful as possible. We have to run them, why not win?
The Pitt athletic department is not fully self-sufficient. They take money from the university at large every year, several million of it. Pitt has spent millions over the last few years to remodel aging facilities in the Pete as well as the South Side practice facility. That doesn't even get into things like maintaining the ancient Fieldhouse or Trees, or continuing to improve the Pete Athletic Complex for Olympic sports, because obviously you don't care about those things. You need money to go on recruiting trips. You need more money now than before to pay cost of attendance scholarships. I just got the mailer from Barnes this week that says their cost for this is about 9% higher than before. The limited donor funding is the reason that Pitt has been forced to maintain 9 OOC home games per season in basketball. They need this money to pay their bills, and pay for the bills of all the other sports. Until very recently, basketball was making more profit than football, and paying for the entire athletic department basically. If donor levels increased to even an NCAA average, Pitt could feel free to schedule whatever road series our stupid fanbase demands every fall.
This is the reality of college sports. You don't have to like it, but you don't get to individually opt out of it. There are clearly enough people like you who don't want to participate, and that is why Pitt is quite literally lagging behind all of their rivals. The current sliding interest in basketball poses a giant problem for the athletic department too. Their entire business model for almost 15 years has been built around high demand for basketball tickets and their respective required donations. Once there is enough drop in demand, the Pete will fill up with cheap SMFs who think they can beat the system by shorting Pitt a few dollars.
If you don't have the money to donate or buy season tickets, no problem. But don't make yourself out to be noble or somehow protesting the system. The only result that will give is Pitt watching everyone else pass them by.
I can guarantee you that the majority of sport fans and those on this board really aren't interested in the majority of sport teams the university fields. I'm sure there wonderful experiences for those involved and if those students are on scholarships are a great help to their families, but I'm a hoops fan with a minor interest in Fb. I hope there all successful ,but I don't care to follow or fund them and I'm not alone or wrong in my thinking. I'm allowed to enjoy whatever I like and it's not my responsibility to fund the university. The mission of the university isn't to field a winning soccer team ( they have one of those ) it's to educate and if you haven't noticed college athelitics is a big business. With coaches making 20 times what a Ph.D. earns somethings wrong. If you feel the need to supplement the athletic department that's your prerogative ,but to blame fans or hold them responsible for Pitts current situation is wrong.
Agree... It's not the fan's job to pay Dixon's multi million dollar salary. If he was recruiting better, I think more people would be inclined to " donate" and spend (a decent bit of) money to go to the games (& get season tickets). He's getting paid the big bucks to bring in top notch players and if he's not doing so, less are going to give $ to the school.
Can you not comprehend the FACT that we MUST field teams in "Olympic" sports??? Pitt has ALWAYS been at the bottom of our conferences, BE & ACC in donations for athletics. I recognize that not everyone can attend....we'll miss the Central AR epic this Sunday....should make the rest. But you absolutely are ignoting the REALITY of college sports. On a simple ROI basis, Duzz & Dixon are worth much more than a prof with a PH.D. The only alternative, given the mentality of people like SMF, who wears his cheapness like a badge of honor, would be to shut down ALL sports, ASAP. No such thing as being "slightly pregnant" in this business.
I may be clueless ,but I'm not brainwashed. You still haven't explained how more $$ would attract the elite athlete to Pitt. How many trips to New Zealand did JD take? Was $ an issue ? Money may be the reason Pitts not a top ten program ,but it's because they won't get dirty and pay up for their players. ( and I don't blame them )
I understand their ACC commitments . They pay JD because it's a BUSINESS colleges main mission is to educate not win bb games!
So you think Pitt should get out of big time athletics. Why didn't you just say that in the first place?
Exactly.
I do get football tix, but bball would be too much of a burden. However, if I had the money I would get bball tix every year , and I still manage to go to usually 5-10 games a year.
Actually, he getting paid the big bucks more because he was able to win without bringing in the top notch players by shady means. A lot of people on these boards confuse winning on signing day with winning actual games. If our team doesn't win games, signing highly-rated recruits is totally meaningless.
ALL Pitt fans SHOULD understand that point because the classes immediately before and jncluding Steven Adams were the highest rated classes Pitt acquired since the Martin, Shorter, Miller, Matthews and Porter class. Yet the performance in games, where it really, you know, counts, was among the worst since Ralph Williard was let go.
College sports IS a big business. Pitt probably should not be participating in big time sports because it is really outside of our basic mission. I've discussed that point many times.
But, it takes money to fund ANY sports program. Either the money comes from TV and gate receipts, from donations or from deficit spending by the university. It takes a little digging to determine actual revenues and spending at Pitt because with our quasi-private status, we do not publish full disclosure of athletic budgets as many public universities do.
Nevertheless, it is possible to put a picture together from federally- required reports that consistently puts our sports revenues and expenditures in the bottom 5 schools in P-5. Our donations have consistently been near the bottom of whichever league we have been members of. Mostly, you get what you pay for.
Gallagher and Barnes have continued to subsidize the "Olympic" or non-profit sports at essentially the same level as Nordenberg, $7 to $10 million per year. They have taken the increased TV money from the ACC and rolled it back into the Athletic Department, both in upgrades to the minor sports and raising the ante in football. The question really is how long is that sustainable?
The hope is to make football sufficiently profitable to carry the non-profitable sports. The problem with that is our entire athletic budget is $100 MILLION less than the top spenders budget for football alone. The top 5 programs bring in more in donations than our total operating revenue.
At best, Barnes has acknowledged we are in the bottom third financially in the ACC. Some of USA Today's figures put us much worse, last or next to last.
I used to think that simply buying tickets fulfilled my duties as a Pitt fan. That is not the case today. If anyone wants real success, they have to pay extra for it.
If our fans are unwilling to do that, then we SHOULD drop to D-2 or D-3. Or be happy with 6-6 seasons in football and NIT bids in hoops.
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