No Poke Sell-Out this year

[sooner518]

http://www.tulsaworld.com/SportsStory.asp?ID=061121_Sp_B1_Highe28742

I didn't see this posted anywhere else yet.

They cant even sell out their biggest game of the year, yet they are building more seats..... :pop: :pop:


STILLWATER -- Oklahoma State University graduate Bill Bearden has been a regular at ****** football games since the mid-1970's, but will not attend Saturday's OU-OSU clash at Boone Pickens Stadium.

While describing himself as an "avid fan" of Cowboy football, basketball and wrestling, Bearden says economic issues have sidelined him and his family during the 2006 football season.

After having held four season tickets during most of the last 25 seasons, Bearden says he did not purchase 2006 tickets because of OSU's price increase.

"I decided it was time for me to stop going to the football and basketball games," said the 52-year-old Bearden, owner of a convenience store in Morris. "The pricing is definitely too much for a lot of people.

"I'm glad Boone Pickens is supporting the university, and I understand what the university is doing with facilities, but I don't think the average OSU alumni are cut out for that level. It has become a corporate deal, sort of like the NFL."

Saturday's 1:30 p.m. contest matches 13th-ranked Oklahoma (9-2) with a 6-5 Cowboy squad that ranks seventh nationally in rushing offense

and scoring.

It's an attractive matchup, replete with ****** rivalry emotions, but the game is not expected to draw a sellout crowd.
The Cowboys have not had a sellout crowd for any of their five previous home dates. The season-ticket sales total crested at 33,000, down from last year's figure of 37,500. The current attendance average is 40,581, down from last year's figure of 44,860.

"We've all noticed the (empty) seats this year," Cowboy offensive tackle Corey Hilliard said. "It's kind of disheartening, but at the same time, all you can do is just go out there and play. I wish there were a way for our fans to be there without the high prices."

Said OSU linebacker Jeremy Nethon: "It's not about the fans that aren't there. It's about the fans that are there. We're playing for them and for our team."

With a seating capacity of 43,500, Boone Pickens Stadium is the Big 12's smallest football venue. As of 5 p.m. Monday, remaining tickets were priced at $250, $350 and $600. There were 43 of the $250 seats (located between the 25- and 35-yard lines on the south side) and 114 of the $300 tickets (at midfield on the south side).

Each of the 1,426 remaining club seats goes for $600. A donation is built into the price of those tickets. As the countdown to ****** kickoff has begun, OSU officials acknowledge that there probably will not be a huge rush for the $600 tickets.

Before this season, the most expensive single-game ticket in OSU football history went for $75 (for the 2004 ****** game). This season, the Texas A&M single-game ticket was priced at $75 and Nebraska at $85. OU-OSU single-game tickets, priced at $100, have been sold out since September.

OSU's basic season tickets increased from the 2005 price of $231 to $295 this year. Club-level tickets rose from $231 to $395. Attached to the purchase of a club seat is a required donation of $1,500 to the Posse Club.

Ticket revenue is poured into the athletic department's operating budget. Pickens' $165 million donation, along with the money generated from the investment of that donation, is committed to the stadium renovation and development of the Athletic Village.

"If anything, I underpriced the tickets," OSU athletic director Mike Holder said. "We're still seventh in the league in pricing, relative to our competitors. And we're in a stadium that in some cases seats half as many people.

"I wouldn't be satisfied with finishing in seventh place in the league. If we want to play with the elite football programs in the Big 12 Conference, then we need to price our product accordingly."

OU sold 71,000 season tickets this season. Its most expensive single-game ticket was $85 for the Texas contest in Dallas. OU's other single-game ticket prices were $57 (for the UAB and Middle Tennessee games) and $67 (for the Washington, Iowa State, Colorado and Texas Tech games).

During his press conference on Monday, Cowboy coach Mike Gundy said he was not aware that OSU was offering ****** tickets priced at $250, $300 and $600.

"There are a lot of things that I have to worry about, and that's not one of them," he said. "That's somebody else's job. What we do is try to put a team on the field so that the six times we play (at Boone Pickens Stadium), people leave here and felt like they enjoyed the game and it's been worth coming to."

[Taxman71]

I would gladly go back to stoolwater just to see the Sooners play in person one more time this season. However, I will be damned if I am going to fill the puke athletic dept coffers with those ridiculous ticket prices. At their lowest ($100) they are more than OU-Texas and at their highest (as printed on the ticket) they are several hundred. They only do this knowing Sooner fans have the money and willingness to go.

Words of advice: Don't go unless you get free tickets. The town and the stadium are total dumps. The fans, atmosphere, PA announcer, jumbotron and everything else is bush-league at best. You will regret spending any $$ there and count the minutes until you are back on I-35. Save it for the bowl game and let silo tech remain a 3rd world school.

[Taxman71]

"If anything, I underpriced the tickets," OSU athletic director Mike Holder said. "We're still seventh in the league in pricing, relative to our competitors. And we're in a stadium that in some cases seats half as many people.
That is the most aggie statement I have heard in a long time.

Note to Holder: ticket value is relative to the quality of the product on the field and in the stadium. Your "fans" are getting gipped on a $10 ticket.

Does anyone honestly think osu is 7th best in the league in football? More around 9 or 10 at best. Thus, their tickets are overpriced, not to mention the excitement of watching SW Missouri's jalopy pullup at the stadium to drop their team off for the game.

[Mixer!]

The town is a total dump.

Sorry, Schmid. How about ED'ing the whole town for good measure? :texan:

[stoopified]

That is the most aggie statement I have heard in a long time.

Note to Holder: ticket value is relative to the quality of the product on the field and in the stadium. Your "fans" are getting gipped on a $10 ticket.Amen.Apparently there ARE more thena a few aggies who bright enough to see that.

I don't get Holder and his train of thought>He would rather overprice tickests and have a half-empty stadium a than have decent prices and a FULL STADIUM,WTF?

[jwlynn64]

The ticket prices are ridiculous. If I hadn't asked an Aggie friend to get me tickets before the season started, I would not have even considered going at $100 a ticket (and those aren't even good seats).

I also don't understand the ADs logic that his tickets are still underpriced. I think that he is multiplying the price of the tickets by the number of tickets available. He seems to think that they should earn as much per game as OU does?

The Okie State alum better start complaining and get a better AD in there. This guy is in denial and is going to ruin their program with decisions like this.

[Mixer!]

Never happen - he's Boone's hunting buddy.

[fadada1]

what most of you don't know, is the $100 also includes a tetanus shot after the game and a can of spray paint for your section.

[orangekaje]

Wow! Are some of you sooners concerned with us aggies getting screwed over by our AD? I figured you'd all be happy about that. I feel kind of fuzzy inside. :O

[SOONER44EVER]

The Sportsanimal is reporting that the only tickets left are $600 each. :eek:

[I_SMELL_FEAR]

Holder is an elitist, pretty obvious. He cranked up the prices at the golf course because he only wants the team and his rich buddies out there playing it. Now he jacks up the football prices.

That golf course is nice, but it is no where near a 250.00 green fee. I could see 125.00 maybe.

[bluedogok]

That is what happens when you have a country club mindset and try to apply that pricing to everything. When you are surrounded by that type you tend to forget not everyone craps money.

[fadada1]

Wow! Are some of you sooners concerned with us aggies getting screwed over by our AD?
"stupid is as stupid does, mrs. blue."

[mdklatt]

Wow! Are some of you sooners concerned with us aggies getting screwed over by our AD?

:les: WE'RE LAUGHING AT YOU.

[blackbeauty02]

why does the forum censor ****** (bed-lam)? and yea i would not pay more than $60 to go that game up there. i saw some tix at $300 for decent seats. oSu is retarded.

[soonerinabilene]

probably the first time tickets on ebay will cheaper than they are at the ticket booth.

[starrca23]

With all the money they are getting from tboo, they aught to give those away just to fill the stands up. Fans will spend the money in the conssesion stand anyway. I know that lowers the profit margin, but at least there is a profit with which to have a margin.

[Readyfor8]

"I'm glad Boone Pickens is supporting the university, and I understand what the university is doing with facilities, but I don't think the average OSU alumni are cut out for that level. It has become a corporate deal, sort of like the NFL."

The average OSU alumni are delivering pizza's and sweeping up in hair salons, they are lucky to have Saturday off. But what really makes me laugh is that they really do think that this new stadium is on par with the NFL.

What a fricken joke that tiny stadium is, if you want to see the priorities while sitting on a bench in Boone Pickens you only have to turn your head west, and take a look at that monstrosity of a basketball stadium.

Rediculous.

[GottaHavePride]

The idiotic part is that they're trying to get people to shell out multiple hundreds of dollars to buy a season ticket to get that seat. any normal (read: non-aggie) person would realize that it's the last game of the season and people aren't going to spend $600 to get a single-game ticket. If they had any ****ing sense they'd re-price every one of those seats at $75 a shot and sell them to anyone that wants them. They'd sell out in a matter of hours.

[GottaHavePride]

The average OSU alumni are delivering pizza's and sweeping up in hair salons, they are lucky to have Saturday off. But what really makes me laugh is that they really do think that this new stadium is on par with the NFL.

What a fricken joke that tiny stadium is, if you want to see the priorities while sitting on a bench in Boone Pickens you only have to turn your head west, and take a look at that monstrosity of a basketball stadium.

Rediculous.

I'm pretty sure Gallagher-Iba is on the East end of the stadium... ;)

[Big Red Ron]

I'm not going and it's the closest road game I've been to this year. Fucc those tards.

[I_SMELL_FEAR]

I'm pretty sure Gallagher-Iba is on the East end of the stadium... ;)

He was talking about the view from the other side of the field....;)

[SoonerBorn68]

I don't get Holder and his train of thought>He would rather overprice tickests and have a half-empty stadium a than have decent prices and a FULL STADIUM,WTF?

It's not the quantity of the fans in the stadium, it's the quality. By raising the ticket prices, you can keep out the riff-raff--like the lowly convenience store owner. :D

[Readyfor8]

I'm pretty sure Gallagher-Iba is on the East end of the stadium... ;)

LOL it was a 50/50 shot. :D

[Flagstaffsooner]

These people cark me up. What a bunch of losers. Thank you Mom and Dad for raising me as a Sooner.

[OklahomaTuba]

There is NO REASON the aggots should be charging more for tickets than Baylor or Tulsa.

[tommieharris91]

I get the feeling Mike Holder failed economics.

[Taxman71]

Any alleged Soonerfan buying these highpriced tickets from osu should have their Soonerfan card revoked. Noone stupid enough to help pay for puke rust removal is smart enough to truly be a Sooner fan.

At least buy your tickets from a Norman-based scalper and keep the money from kicking more 90 year old ladies out of their homestead.

[OSUAggie]

There is NO REASON the aggots should be charging more for tickets than Baylor or Tulsa.

You mean other than the fact that OSU has been to a bowl 3/4 previous years while playing in one of the toughest divisions in college football, and is bowl eligible again, while Baylor hasn't been able to say that since joining the Big XII and Tulsa plays in C-USA and gets beat fairly consistently?


I'm not going and it's the closest road game I've been to this year. Fucc those tards.

How can you go to the game and not go to it at the same time?


The average OSU alumni are delivering pizza's and sweeping up in hair salons, they are lucky to have Saturday off. But what really makes me laugh is that they really do think that this new stadium is on par with the NFL.

What a fricken joke that tiny stadium is, if you want to see the priorities while sitting on a bench in Boone Pickens you only have to turn your head west, and take a look at that monstrosity of a basketball stadium.

Rediculous.

At least OSU alumni can spell ridiculous

[Mixer!]

It's not the quantity of the fans in the stadium, it's the quality. By raising the ticket prices, you can keep out the riff-raff--like the lowly convenience store owner. :D

post of the day! YMSSRA...

[Taxman71]

I get the feeling Mike Holder failed economics.

I heard he got an A. TBoone let him cheat in exchange for putting lessons.

[frankensooner]

My Pops got his doctorate at that University. He made dang sure all of his kids went to OU. ;)

[Paperclip]

At least OSU alumni can spell ridiculous

Well, not all of them.

http://www.sportsposterwarehouse.com/warehouse/manley88sl-1.jpg

[Taxman71]

I would like to see osu's bowl record if they played Baylor's nonconference schedule. Winning 6 games in a 12 game season is easy if you follow the Silo Tech State scheduling route.

[The_Red_Patriot]

$250 tickets are left.

Wtf? $250???????????????


give me a break

[Readyfor8]

You mean other than the fact that OSU has been to a bowl 3/4 previous years while playing in one of the toughest divisions in college football, and is bowl eligible again, while Baylor hasn't been able to say that since joining the Big XII and Tulsa plays in C-USA and gets beat fairly consistently?



How can you go to the game and not go to it at the same time?



At least OSU alumni can spell ridiculous

Oo spelling smack. you got me.

[OSUAggie]

I would like to see osu's bowl record if they played Baylor's nonconference schedule. Winning 6 games in a 12 game season is easy if you follow the Silo Tech State scheduling route.

You mean Army, TCU, Northwestern St. and Washington State???? That's not exactly an upgrade...

[OSUAggie]

Well, not all of them.

http://www.sportsposterwarehouse.com/warehouse/manley88sl-1.jpg

he just couldn't read....

[OKLA21FAN]

he just couldn't read....
but he does have a diploma for Stillwater.

isnt it ironic? dont ya think?

[Readyfor8]

You mean Army, TCU, Northwestern St. and Washington State???? That's not exactly an upgrade...

Lets see combined record of poker state Non Conference, 21-24 (including a DivII team that is 2-9)
Combined record of Baylor's Non Conference, 21-23.

Considering that they actually played a team from a BCS conference, you have no room to talk.

[Paperclip]

he just couldn't read....

Are you implying he could spell, but couldn't read?

[Taxman71]

If you think the pukes would have beat TCU or Wazzu, you are sadly mistaken. Plus, Army effectively had A$M beat and could have beat osu. Only an aggie would argue that is not an upgrade.

[jwlynn64]

You mean Army, TCU, Northwestern St. and Washington State???? That's not exactly an upgrade...

Even through your Orange Colored Glasses you have to recognize that Baylor scheduled better quality NC teams.

Your school scheduled two SunBelt Conference and One Conf-USA teams along with your D1-AA school.

Baylor Scheduled a Mountain West Team (ranked in the top 15 last year), a PAC-10 team (not expected to be good but still a major conference), a D1-A Independant (not expected to be very good) and a D1-AA school.

The fact that they included a Pac-10 team and a team that was in the top 15 last year, gives them the nod. Both of those teams are probably equal to your toughest opponent (Houston).

Please don't build up your NCGs so that you think that they were harder than they really were.

I give your school props for scheduling UofG next year but your schedule this year was a little short of difficult.

[jk the sooner fan]

Are you implying he could spell, but couldn't read?

aggie logic

[OSUAggie]

Are you implying he could spell, but couldn't read?

i was just saying that he couldn't read.... not implying that he could do anything positive with words.

[fadada1]

i was just saying that he couldn't read.... not implying that he could do anything positive with words.
but reading actually is doing something positive with words. and that's good.

[jhmh]

$100 was too high...$250 - $600, disgusting.

I saw this article today about student tickets. http://www.ocolly.com/read_story.php?a_id=31250
"Students traditionally spend weeks camping outside the OSU ticket office on the south side of Gallagher-Iba Arena." The guy first in line got there on October 23 to get seats to this week's game. That is so screwy. And I thought going to the stadium two hours early was a pain.

[Taxman71]

It's not about the game, it's all about the paddling. Where's Flounder?

[OUstud]

Much like the Aggy of the south, the Aggy of the north (or, Shaggie, the term I've heard around here lately) thinks waaaaaaaaaaay too highly of their football program.

Every improvement (Sh)Aggy has put on their stadium is not to increase attendance, as evidenced by the $600 dollar tickets (to put it in perspective, you could attend a Super Bowl for less than you would pay to watch a 6-5 team), but to attempt to move out of big brother OU's shadow. It's kind of like when a younger sibling tries to impress an older sibling. "Look, we're increasing capacity to over 60,000!" "That's nice, we've been over 60,000 for how long?" "Our stadium will be like an NFL facility! It is amazing." "Again, great, it still runs east-west and has 5 inch sidelines. Good effort though."

[bluedogok]

They really should have built something new or at least tore down one side at a time to increase the sideline area, it is not like that stadium has years of tradition dripping off of its rust. That would have been a much better remodel of the stadium, they could have made it work much better than adapting the existing and could have made something really nice. It is ridiculous to have to put padding up on the walls like it is an arena football "stadium".

They could have taken the neighborhood where the village is suppose to go and put a new stadium there and built their village where the stadium was. What they are doing is nice, but it seems like they could have done more with the type of funding that they had.

[Taxman71]

Yeah, because the aggie did alot of thinking when they built their East-West stadium in the first place. Stoolwater is going to look like an empty tourist attraction in a few years.

If you build it, they still won't come.

[tulsaoilerfan]

Well, not all of them.

http://www.sportsposterwarehouse.com/warehouse/manley88sl-1.jpg
ROFL, that right there is funny, and i don't care who you are. :D

[soonersam]

who the F do they think they are??? Its OsU for christ sake... Their hoping the soonerfans will pay those prices because they know sooners have much better jobs and can afford it...

[mrowl]

They really should have built something new or at least tore down one side at a time to increase the sideline area, it is not like that stadium has years of tradition dripping off of its rust. That would have been a much better remodel of the stadium, they could have made it work much better than adapting the existing and could have made something really nice. It is ridiculous to have to put padding up on the walls like it is an arena football "stadium".

They could have taken the neighborhood where the village is suppose to go and put a new stadium there and built their village where the stadium was. What they are doing is nice, but it seems like they could have done more with the type of funding that they had.

decades ago, the sand aggies put their stadium on rail tracks, and made the field area larger, and increased seating. neat idea.

[Ahamay17]

why does the forum censor ****** (bed-lam)?

It is gay term, and us using it gives aggy more credit for their part in this series then they deserve. . . They are not a rival, but rather play the part of a "pecker gnat" annoying the "Big Dog". . .

[SOONER44EVER]

aggie logic
Heh. Another example of aggie logic: Not being able to sell out a 50,000 seat stadium so they're adding 10,000 seats AND raising prices. I guess the supply and demand thingy stops at the stadium gates.:D

[Fraggle145]

...Tulsa plays in C-USA and gets beat fairly consistently?

Dude how many Big XII titles have you won? Tulsa won Conference USA last year...

I cant wait to watch UGA stomp a mudhole in your a$$ next year. You didnt schedule them, they scheduled you to get a patty cake team from a good conference so they wouldnt have to listen to people say that they schedule I-AA nonconference opponents.

Your team still sucks. 76 *** whippins and counting...

[Crimsontothecore]

You mean other than the fact that OSU has been to a bowl 3/4 previous years while playing in one of the toughest divisions in college football, and is bowl eligible again, while Baylor hasn't been able to say that since joining the Big XII and Tulsa plays in C-USA and gets beat fairly consistently?

Only an osu fan would boast of being "bowl eligible":rolleyes:

Missouri St., Arkansas ST., Florida Atlantic ??

Doesn't Baylor only have like 3 conference wins since joining the Big12? Oh yeah, They SPANKED osu last year:eek:

Before you belittle Conference USA you might want to think about how Houston (C-USA member) dominated your little pokeys several weeks back.

osu's problem is that next year they won't be able to count one of those non-D-1 wins towards being "bowl eligible". OH CRAP!! they will actually have to beat somebody decent.

[Big Red Ron]

OSU would be middle of the pac in C-USA but that's better than tied for last in the big XII south with Baylor.

[MamaMia]

Wow! Are some of you sooners concerned with us aggies getting screwed over by our AD? I figured you'd all be happy about that. I feel kind of fuzzy inside. :O
Now you feel all fuzzy, inside and out. :D

[hurricane'bone]

You mean other than the fact that OSU has been to a bowl 3/4 previous years while playing in one of the toughest divisions in college football, and is bowl eligible again, while Baylor hasn't been able to say that since joining the Big XII and Tulsa plays in C-USA and gets beat fairly consistently?




Leave Tulsa out of this. We won our conference last year which is something that OSU hasn't been able to say in my lifetime. If you want to talk about how you've been bowl eligible 3 of the past 4 years as a measure of success, well...TU went to a bowl game in 03-04, last year, and we are bowl eligible again this year. Your argument about Tulsa is dumb and uneducated. Just like OSU fans.

[Crimsontothecore]

Leave Tulsa out of this. We won our conference last year which is something that OSU hasn't been able to say in my lifetime. If you want to talk about how you've been bowl eligible 3 of the past 4 years as a measure of success, well...TU went to a bowl game in 03-04, last year, and we are bowl eligible again this year. Your argument about Tulsa is dumb and uneducated. Just like OSU fans.
Actually, TU's a bowl lock at 7-4. osu is only "eligible" at 6-5.

At least Baylor KNOWS they are bottom dwellers while osu is in loser-denial.