Fleecing of the Hawkeye Fans

[jemery]

Iowa State is charging Iowa fans $90 for a ticket to the 2007 game. Iowa charged ISU fans $60 this year, and Iowa is being the bigger of the two schools and won't charge ISU fans the same $90 next year.:eek:

[CHawk]

Yeah, that infuriates me. Looks like they put us behind the 8 ball, because either we're forced to pay them big bucks (and help pay for their renovations!) or else we stay home, which they also wouldn't mind, because they figure the less of our fans there, the better. So it's pretty much a win-win situation for them.

[InKirkWeTrust]

best way to hurt them is for us not to buy any tickets...it won't effect the outcome of the game if we're there in the stands or not...but it sure will hurt their program and the renovations they want hawkeye fans to bankroll.

[jemery]

I have a strong desire to drive up to Ames just to piss on the field of Jack Trice Stadium.

[CHawk]

InKirkWeTrust, that was sort of my thinking as well. I just wasn't sure how it would affect our team if they didn't have many supporters there. Pollar thinks he's this great innovater, when it comes to money, and quite frankly, I'd like to see it backfire on him. I can understand that he wants his fans to shell out more money and buy more season tickets, but he should do that in a way that gets his own fans motivated and not by punishing another teams fans.

[Aaron]

The feeling around here in Ames is actually about the same. Despite a few people who love Pollard, a lot of students are getting fed up with the mass renovations to the program. A lot of students love McCarney, a lot of students loved Morgan, and are disappointed in the way things are going. You can tell how much people don't care for what's going on if you look in the stands at the basketball games - Cyclone Alley is nothing anymore.

[Svoboda]

It's actually a very smart thing to do, though, especially on rivalry games. Iowa could easily turn that into a home game if they come out in numbers.

[CHawk]

Even though I don't think a lot of people would admit it, I have to think that some are a little disappointed in how the bb team has done this year. Even though they say they didn't have real high expectations in McDermott's first year, I have to believe that some expected them to show more improvement as the season went on. Quite frankly, I was one of those people. I was just wondering what these people are thinking now (and Pollard too).

[CHawk]

Svoboda, I understand what you are saying, but isn't Iowa only allowed 4,000 tickets? (which certainly wouldn't make it like a home game). Anything more than the allotted 4,000 would have to be purchased as an ISU season-ticket, right? Am I understanding the system correctly?

[IowaHawkeye]

Svoboda, I understand what you are saying, but isn't Iowa only allowed 4,000 tickets? (which certainly wouldn't make it like a home game). Anything more than the allotted 4,000 would have to be purchased as an ISU season-ticket, right? Am I understanding the system correctly?

Don't quote me or anything... but I'm assuming that allthough 4,000 may be available to Iowa... that means those tickets are available through the Iowa athletic department. I'm pretty sure any average joe, hawkeye fan or not is still able to get tickets simply by going through "other" channels... be it ticketmaster, at the stadium, through ISU? I don't know for sure...I know Iowa packs it into Kinnick North, and I'm pretty sure we get more than 4,000 fans up there :)

[HawkeyeSean]

Don't quote me or anything... but I'm assuming that allthough 4,000 may be available to Iowa... that means those tickets are available through the Iowa athletic department. I'm pretty sure any average joe, hawkeye fan or not is still able to get tickets simply by going through "other" channels... be it ticketmaster, at the stadium, through ISU? I don't know for sure...I know Iowa packs it into Kinnick North, and I'm pretty sure we get more than 4,000 fans up there :)

This is not the case...there are going to be three ways to get tickets to this football game.

A) The allotment of 4000 that Iowa gets under the agreement with ISU. These have been priced at a ridiculous $90/ticket.
B) Buy season tickets from ISU.
C)Scalpers.

Normally, what you said would be right but ISU has instituted a policy of NO single game tickets for the Iowa game. Single game tickets will be available for all other ISU home games because no one gives a crap about those games and Pollard knows it.

I am joining many of my compatriots and simply not going to the game. I refuse to finance the ISU athletic department beyond buying a "reasonably" priced ticket.

-Sean

[CHawk]

That's the way I understood it too. One more thing, the 4,000 tickets allotted - are they offered to just any joe blow, or do they get offered to the biggest paying season ticket holders first? I refuse to pay for an ISU season ticket. Why should I help pay for their renovations?! They certainly didn't help pay for ours. I hope Pollard's plan backfires and he's sitting there with a bunch of empty seats. What a rip off to Hawkeye fans.

[HawkeyeSean]

That's the way I understood it too. One more thing, the 4,000 tickets allotted - are they offered to just any joe blow, or do they get offered to the biggest paying season ticket holders first? I refuse to pay for an ISU season ticket. Why should I help pay for their renovations?! They certainly didn't help pay for ours. I hope Pollard's plan backfires and he's sitting there with a bunch of empty seats. What a rip off to Hawkeye fans.

Season ticket holders, based on priority (number of years, total money given), are given first crack at the allotment. If there are any remaining tickets they are made available to the general public. This will be my 6th year as a, non-student, season ticket holder and I have never received tickets from the allotment, having requested them each time the game was in Ames. So demand, in the past, has definitely outstripped supply. I am sure that the allotment will be bought up again this year, but not by me.

-Sean

[CHawk]

that's what I thought. Thanks for clearing that up!

[HawkeyeSean]

that's what I thought. Thanks for clearing that up!

My pleasure.

Sounds like I might be in Kinnick on that day, even though it is 240 miles from here and I would have to drive past Ames to get there. I just had a wonderful thought...I may never have to go to Ames again...cool!

-Sean

[hawksruleall]

Their season ticket scam is going to BACKFIRE!!!!

If they think there are enough fans that want season tickets to ISU to fill the stadium, they're out of their minds. Trice is going to be half empty! There will be more fans at Kinnick watching the game on the big screen!

[Chicagohwkeye]

How 'bout a big 'ole tailgate party in Ames? No buying tickets but hooking up some giant tv's in the parking lot and making a lot of noise from there? That would really upset my cyclone friends! To have us there, but not paying for their stadium!

[cyclone62]

How 'bout a big 'ole tailgate party in Ames? No buying tickets but hooking up some giant tv's in the parking lot and making a lot of noise from there? That would really upset my cyclone friends! To have us there, but not paying for their stadium!

Actually, I doubt it would upset many Cyclone fans at all. At least you wouldn't be sitting next to us! :D

Also, we've already broken our previous season ticket total record, so it didn't really "back-fire"

[dross]

I would define "backfire" as ANY empty seats in a rivalry game such as this. If there are even 2,000 unsold seats at $30 each, that's $60,000 in lost revenue.
McCarney was fired at a cost of $2.5 million. Pollard has to figure out a way to make that up, plus fund the renovations or he looks like an idiot.
I agree with the boycott idea. Is there any chance U of I would be able to broadcast the game at Kinnick?

[Hawk247]

Could you imagine what Kinnick would look like if ISU was put on the big screen. I could easily see more then 40,000 to 50,000 people in Kinnick watching the games at Ames.

[Chicagohwkeye]

I'm liking the idea!

[cyclone62]

I would define "backfire" as ANY empty seats in a rivalry game such as this. If there are even 2,000 unsold seats at $30 each, that's $60,000 in lost revenue.
McCarney was fired at a cost of $2.5 million. Pollard has to figure out a way to make that up, plus fund the renovations or he looks like an idiot.
I agree with the boycott idea. Is there any chance U of I would be able to broadcast the game at Kinnick?

Well, different definitions I guess. I figured with a dismal season last year, we'd be lucky to even get the same number of season tickets renewed. However, I'm not sure how much money we'd actually lose this year because of empty seats at the Iowa game. Season ticket prices increased, so that makes up for some of that revenue at least.

Also, I thought this was "just another game" ;)

[Aaron]

Actually Dross, the "braodcast in Kinnick" rumor has caught fire amongst a lot of people, and I wouldn't be surprised to see some sort of tradition started with this.

[InKirkWeTrust]

Actually Dross, the "braodcast in Kinnick" rumor has caught fire amongst a lot of people, and I wouldn't be surprised to see some sort of tradition started with this.
Can they do that without breaking some sort of agreement between the two schools?

And if so, then why hasn't it been done before?

[Aaron]

Can they do that without breaking some sort of agreement between the two schools?

And if so, then why hasn't it been done before?

Well, if it's an agreement, then it's an unspoken one. Just like Pollard is breaking an untold amount of unspoken agreements with his little season ticket stunt.

[InKirkWeTrust]

If this happens, I will be driving in from Chicago for sure...it will be awesome!!

[Aaron]

If this happens, I will be driving in from Chicago for sure...it will be awesome!!

Yup, I would actually almost rather go to the showing in Iowa City than use my student tickets in Ames.... that is, ALMOST. I don't want to spend money on student tickets and then not use them ALL.

[InKirkWeTrust]

Yup, I would actually almost rather go to the showing in Iowa City than use my student tickets in Ames.... that is, ALMOST. I don't want to spend money on student tickets and then not use them ALL.
You'll save money be not taking the road trip to l'Ames. :D

[Aaron]

You'll save money be not taking the road trip to l'Ames. :D

Lol, well, considering I live in Lames, and could walk to the stadium, and that I'm probably going to get student tickets for something to do on the weekends (tailgating, BOO YA!), I might as well go see the Hawks play :D It's gonna be a home field advantage for the Hawks since I'll be there ;).

And FYI, this could be good, the only game I have EVER witnessed the Hawks lose, in basketball or football, was against UNI this year in Carver. And, that was.... a certain coach's fault. So, if I'm there, Iowa's chances of winning increase by something like 99%. It's a scientifically proven fact ;)

[InKirkWeTrust]

Lol, well, considering I live in Lames, and could walk to the stadium, and that I'm probably going to get student tickets for something to do on the weekends (tailgating, BOO YA!), I might as well go see the Hawks play :D It's gonna be a home field advantage for the Hawks since I'll be there ;).

And FYI, this could be good, the only game I have EVER witnessed the Hawks lose, in basketball or football, was against UNI this year in Carver. And, that was.... a certain coach's fault. So, if I'm there, Iowa's chances of winning increase by something like 99%. It's a scientifically proven fact ;)

I really have to start paying attention to people's avatars. :o

[Aaron]

I really have to start paying attention to people's avatars. :o

Lol, nah, not a problem, it's not something a Hawk fan commonly advertises on a Hawkeye message board ;)

[cyclone62]

Well, if it's an agreement, then it's an unspoken one. Just like Pollard is breaking an untold amount of unspoken agreements with his little season ticket stunt.

Actually, as I see it, the only unspoken agreement that JP has broken is the raising of the allotment ticket prices. I don't necessarily consider the no-single game tickets for sale as breaking an unspoken rule, and really only for one reason. By doing this, he is telling Cyclone Fans that we need to "put up or shut up" about having better athletic programs. Also, the season ticket prices have risen as well; but IMO, that doesn't mean single-tickets should have. Our schedule this year is one that only comes around once every 4 years (Iowa, Texas, and Oklahoma all at home; plus 7 home games instead of 6). So far, us Cyclones have risen to JP's challenge of us to support our team ALL the time (like all die-hards do, and not just the fair-weather fans; since we haven't had so much fair-weather as Iowa).

I guess that in short, I agree with you Hawk fans about the $90 tag for the 4,000 allotment being steep. However, I think the no other single-game ticket sale is a moot point. We need to raise money from our own fan base, this is a good way to do it since we had a dismal year in 2006. Although some Hawk fans have brought up the argument that JP wants Hawk fans to buy season tickets, I don't see it that way, and I'll tell you why. By telling the Cyclone fans that no single-game tickets will be available for the Iowa game, those fans that would usually go to one game/year (Iowa/Knebraska; I can see JP doing it for Knebraska next year as well), are forced to buy season tickets to support the program as a whole. But at this point in time, as we've broken our previous season ticket record, there have only been 3,500 new tickets sold; a majority of those were also purchased by people that had bought them in the past. For example: I bought 1 season ticket last year, then this year, because of the no single-game ticket for Iowa; I bought 3 in addition to my renewal. (I didn't do this since I'm just a student, but that's what JP has told us is the case).

[dbarnard07]

Actually Dross, the "braodcast in Kinnick" rumor has caught fire amongst a lot of people, and I wouldn't be surprised to see some sort of tradition started with this.

If this catches too much fire the network carrying it (ESPN, ABC, etc.) could force a "black-out" in the area so to see it you have to go...

A little drastic, but they do blackouts for pro-games so....

[Chicagohwkeye]

I think that could be gotten around with part of the ticket proceeds going to the network.

[doolittledog]

So far, us Cyclones have risen to JP's challenge of us to support our team ALL the time (like all die-hards do, and not just the fair-weather fans; since we haven't had so much fair-weather as Iowa).



I'm having a hard time figuring that out. I thought fair weather fans meant only showing up when the team was doing well. My first Iowa game my dad took me to was in 1981. Iowa's last winning season was in 1960 and Kinnick Stadium was standing room only that day. My first ISU game was in 1985 against Missouri and there weren't 20,000 people in the stadium, ISU was 4 seasons removed from their last winning season.

Iowa games are broadcasted on radio stations in Arizona because of all the Hawkeye fans down there that still want to follow them even though they live 1,500 miles away from Iowa, that doesn't sound very fair weather to me.

Going back to 1997 attandance for Iowa football has ranged from 61,123 up to 70,585. During that same time ISU football has ranged from 35,181 up to 46,705. There is a bigger percentage change in attendance for ISU than there is for Iowa.

[cyclone62]

I'm having a hard time figuring that out. I thought fair weather fans meant only showing up when the team was doing well. My first Iowa game my dad took me to was in 1981. Iowa's last winning season was in 1960 and Kinnick Stadium was standing room only that day. My first ISU game was in 1985 against Missouri and there weren't 20,000 people in the stadium, ISU was 4 seasons removed from their last winning season.

Iowa games are broadcasted on radio stations in Arizona because of all the Hawkeye fans down there that still want to follow them even though they live 1,500 miles away from Iowa, that doesn't sound very fair weather to me.

Going back to 1997 attandance for Iowa football has ranged from 61,123 up to 70,585. During that same time ISU football has ranged from 35,181 up to 46,705. There is a bigger percentage change in attendance for ISU than there is for Iowa.

I think I understand what you're getting at. However, historically, Iowa has fared far better than ISU in quite a few athletic categories. Because of this, alum/fans who move out of state are more apt to want to follow Iowa than ISU. If ISU had the history Iowa has had, instead of Iowa, the roles would be reversed. I guess that's what I was getting at. There are quite a few Cyclones outside the state who want to follow the cyclones, but don't have the opportunity as much because we haven't had the success in recent years to warrant national radio/television broadcasts.

As for your first experiences at Cyclone Field and Kinnick Stadium, how were the Cyclones doing at the time the Hawks had standing room only? How were they doing that season up to that point in respect to ISU? Same for the Cyclone experience. Also, who was each team playing? If you're comparing an Iowa rivalry game to the ISU/Mizzou game (I don't think it was considered a "rivalry" at that point, and still isn't much of one really), it seems a tad unfair to compare the two of them.