For those who say the students show up at games... Link to article about attendance

rgw

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Perhaps, no more ticket packages at all...you show up to the gate and they swipe until they reach the magic number.
 

selmaborntidefan

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Mar 31, 2000
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Can't they just pass the cost back onto students who don't use their tickets to a game? Put it on their bill - only bill them for FACE VALUE. I venture to say that would stop the nonsense.

I don't know anything about whether such a solution is feasible because I don't know how it works. But I didn't get to go to UA even though I was accepted. I would have committed a weekly murder to get to go to Tide football games at my college age (I'm being facetious, but you get the point).
 

KrAzY3

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Well, this absolutely kills all defense of the students lack of participation at games (and the people who jumped on to others when they complained about how fans could do better). Ok, may be it was a mistake to consider students fans in the first place...

I do think there could certainly be a better way to manage both season ticket holders and student tickets. There is an absurdity that there are many enthusiastic fans that would love to go to games, and drive up ticket prices for ones that are available, yet students and even some season ticket holders just can't be bothered to show up to most (any, in the case of some students) games.
 

RTR91

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Nov 23, 2007
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Can't they just pass the cost back onto students who don't use their tickets to a game? Put it on their bill - only bill them for FACE VALUE. I venture to say that would stop the nonsense.

I don't know anything about whether such a solution is feasible because I don't know how it works. But I didn't get to go to UA even though I was accepted. I would have committed a weekly murder to get to go to Tide football games at my college age (I'm being facetious, but you get the point).
When I was a freshman in 2009, the ticket policy involved 4 options:

1. Use your ticket
2. Sell your ticket
3. Donate your ticket back to the school, who would then give it to a student that did not have one.
4. Don't use, sell, nor donate your ticket, which hurts your chances of getting tickets the following year.
 

AlistarWills

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Jul 26, 2006
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I'm hearin crickets from our student members who want to argue that they always fill it up....

Upper deck = Tide Pride. If the students continue to not fill it up to capacity, move the fences in. With the understanding, the students will never get these seats back once they go to Tide Pride. Its simple supply and demand economics. The demand isn't there for the students to meet the supply, while the supply for the Tide Pride list does not meet the demand. Go with the one that will generate a higher price.
 

bamabelle1991

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Jan 1, 2009
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If the average attendance for students is 12,000--let that be the magic number and open up the rest to TP waiting list.

rgw, I totally DISAGREE that the games are about the students in the stands and have nothing to do with alumni/boosters/fans in attendance. The people who pay to own sky boxes and by Tide Pride memberships and tickets have just as much "claim" to a game as those who attend school there. I would venture to say that I and others, as alumni of the University actually have MORE ownership because we already paid complete tuition to go there and if I wasn't on the waiting list, would be paying exponentially MORE for my tickets. Therefore, my financial investment in the University is much greater than that of a student!

The games are about the players and the coaching staff. Put as many people in that stadium as capacity allows who are there to CHEER on this team! If you are there to make it simply a social event--stay on the Quad or the Strip and look cute!! Otherwise, GET out of my way into that stadium! I am ready to cheer and cheer LOUD for my alma mater!
 

92tide

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May 9, 2000
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Some of my best game memories as a student revolve around getting to BDS or Legion Field ~3 hrs early to get a non-reserved seat in the student section. This was especially fun @ the Iron Bowl when the Aub students & us were opposite each in Legion Field. Good times!

I, too, don't have a solution. Oh well...on to ATL to teach the Bulldogs to behave. ;)
yeah, one of my best memories is one of the tennessee games in the late 80's. the stadium was pretty packed (at least student sections) a couple hours before kickoff and the place was rocking the entire time before the game. good times. of course, in those days i had the stamina/tolerance to make it through, now, i would be asleep in the first quarter if i tried to do that ;)
 

rgw

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bamabelle, I'm not arguing that it means nothing to either party. I actually was just pointing out the two sides of the coins. It's concerning when a collegiate game has the student body marginalized in the stadium but it is unfair to those who support the program to be sitting at home when there are unused seats. The idyllic view of collegiate sports is that the game IS about the students in the stands and on the field. That is not the actual reality of it but there should be a balance. That is my only point...I'm not arguing one side or the other here. Simply pointing out the two major ways I think one could look at it.

One of my best friends - known him since kindergarten - was quoted as an alumni viewpoint in that article and I agree with his case. He's giving what he can out of his hard earned money, he was a diligent attendee while a student at Alabama too. It seems like a slight to him that he attended every game he could while a student, paid into the TP program, and hasn't gotten tickets while the student section got larger with the expansion after his departure. I think it is clear that the additional student seating outstripped demand from the students. The ceiling seems to be around 13k max and I think that is more or less what it was when I was an undergrad from 04-08. Some people are going to complain if they limit the student seating but the students have voted with their bodies at this point.
 

BamaMTA06

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Sep 9, 2007
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I know I'll get killed for this, but if my TP seats were in the upper deck I wouldn't use them either. I can see why the students wouldn't want to sit there. I don't think the students should have been broken up.
 

bama70

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Oct 19, 2011
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The students seem to be catching a lot of criticism on this board. While I personally cannot imagine not going to the football games while in school, I do know sports are not everyones cup of tea. I also know that many students have to work or cannot afford to travel during holiday weekends to attend the games. More of the blame for the empty seats need to be placed on the policy makers that decide how to allocate or transfer tickets. I know freshmen can only order tickets to half of the home games. One solution that would seem possible would be to oversell the student section with first come seating. The allocation of seats should also be reduced to better match demand.

For me personally, attending the football and basketball games was a big part of the college experience. This experience helps the University with increased donations from alumni (and friends) for both athletics and academics.
 

KrAzY3

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I know I'll get killed for this, but if my TP seats were in the upper deck I wouldn't use them either. I can see why the students wouldn't want to sit there. I don't think the students should have been broken up.
I'm not going to kill you... but I don't get why people complain about the upper deck. Most of my games (since I'm just some poor fool from Mobile) have been in the upper deck. It's a great view of the action and a lot of the time the people there are cheering more than below (perhaps because they are the ones there really want to be there).

I'd gladly buy season tickets in the upper deck, at $400 which I dare say is a bit more than students would be paying... and furthermore, I'd not only see to it that those tickets get used each and every game, but I'd be cheering for four quarters each game. So, I'm really not hearing it from these so called fans who can't see fit to sit in the upper deck, or actually cheer for an entire game. There are people willing to take their place...
 
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ontopp

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Jan 31, 2004
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I went to the Aubie game and my girlfriend who is a Aubie fan asked me why this section was empty. Im totally embaressed by it, somebody needs to fix it let them reap what they sow. IMO
 

rgw

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The upper deck is actually a pretty good place to watch the action in my opinion. If you can't get the seating to the right of the MDB - which has the best lower bowl perspective of the action - I'd go up there if the climate wasn't a factor. The problem is that when it gets cold and gusty, those upperdeck seats are terrible for making it through these 4-5 hour marathons ESPN and CBS turn the games into these days.

The students get spoiled in that regard because of the non-reserved seating allowing anyone to get into the lower bowl. Tide Pride people would gladly suffer through it if that was their only ticket into the game though. I imagine if we had assigned seating that the students wouldn't stick their nose up in the air over the upper deck.
 

JeffAtlanta

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Aug 21, 2007
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I think it is clear that the additional student seating outstripped demand from the students. The ceiling seems to be around 13k max and I think that is more or less what it was when I was an undergrad from 04-08. Some people are going to complain if they limit the student seating but the students have voted with their bodies at this point.
That's a good point. I wonder if the student demand would be higher if there were just one contiguous student section in the lower bowl. I can see how sitting in the upper deck and seemingly isolated would have a chilling effect on student demand.

Is giving the students 17k seats in the lower bowl a realistic or viable option?
 
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rizolltizide

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Jan 4, 2003
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Crickets, indeed.

And like someone said, there really is an easy solution should the admin wish to fix this. As an alum who lived and breathed getting my football tickets when I was in school, it's embarassing to see those empty seats. I take the student's side on a lot of issues, but there is no defensing this.
 

rgw

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Heck no, their are significant donors around the outer bounds of each side of the student section. The only way to move 17k students into the lower bowl would involve kicking long-time donors to lesser seating. I'd much rather see them just make the student section the old lower bowl seating arrangement and give the upper deck to alumni and other supporters who would be grateful for a seat regardless of the sometimes blistery weather conditions up there.

The lower bowl is about 13k in itself...I believe...
 

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