Trib: Hiring Holtz hasn't helped USF ticket sales

[gobulls83]

:Duh

The Florida unemployment rate is around 17% over all and in 3 surrounding counties the rate is at 15-16%+... the true number is much higher since what the government reports is false because it does not account for those that no longer receive unemployment.

Thus the economy has more to do with USF ticket sales then Skip could ever...

First of all, your statistics are not correct. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, in April 2010 - the most recent month for which the department has made figures public - the unemployment rate in Florida was <a href="http://www.google.com/publicdata?ds=usunemployment&met=unemployment_rate&idim=state:ST120000&dl=en&hl=en&q=unemployment+rate+in+florida">11.2 percent</a>. At that same link, you can see that the numbers for Pinellas and Hillsborough counties are very close to the overall state number, while Pasco and Hernando counties are higher - but all are below 15 percent.

Second, in order to make the claim you did here, you'd have to compare it to last year. Has it gone up a great deal in the past year? According to that chart, the April 2010 unemployment rate is up about 2 percent from April 2009, but is actually exactly equal to the rate from August 2009. And as of April 2010, the unemployment rate was trending down - meaning by now, it is probably less than it was at this time last year. I don't think the numbers support your argument.

DISCLAIMER: If there has been something in the news recently that would refute that last sentence, then I wouldn't know about it, so it's possible unemployment has gone up since April 2010. All I know is the figures that I found from the Department of Labor.

EDIT: Also, your claim that "the true number is much higher since what the government reports is false because it does not account for those that no longer receive unemployment" is false - at least, according to the government it is. <a href="http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm#unemployed">Click here</a> for more info:

<blockquote><i><b>Who is counted as unemployed?</b>

Persons are classified as unemployed if they do not have a job, have actively looked for work in the prior 4 weeks, and are currently available for work.</i></blockquote>

The number of people collecting unemployment benefits has nothing to do with the unemployment rate. Did you really believe that more than one in every five people in Florida was unemployed?

[ajusf16]

There are many factors that go into this from the economy, the band wagon mentallity of tampa fan base.  One thing Tampa has that Gville and Tally does not compete with is the pro sports,  We have MLB, NHL and NFL directly competing for the funds from season ticket holders. You won't be able to pin point it to one factor

[Matt]

There are many factors that go into this from the economy, the band wagon mentallity of tampa fan base.  One thing Tampa has that Gville and Tally does not compete with is the pro sports,  We have MLB, NHL and NFL directly competing for the funds from season ticket holders. You won't be able to pin point it to one factor

no but you can pin point it to one solution......WIN.

If we win then fans will come no matter what the unemployment rate is (although it is NO WHERE near the 17% mentioned above)

[2000bull]

:Duh

The Florida unemployment rate is around 17% over all and in 3 surrounding counties the rate is at 15-16%+... the true number is much higher since what the government reports is false because it does not account for those that no longer receive unemployment.

Thus the economy has more to do with USF ticket sales then Skip could ever...

First of all, your statistics are not correct. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, in April 2010 - the most recent month for which the department has made figures public - the unemployment rate in Florida was <a href="http://www.google.com/publicdata?ds=usunemployment&met=unemployment_rate&idim=state:ST120000&dl=en&hl=en&q=unemployment+rate+in+florida">11.2 percent</a>. At that same link, you can see that the numbers for Pinellas and Hillsborough counties are very close to the overall state number, while Pasco and Hernando counties are higher - but all are below 15 percent.

Second, in order to make the claim you did here, you'd have to compare it to last year. Has it gone up a great deal in the past year? According to that chart, the April 2010 unemployment rate is up about 2 percent from April 2009, but is actually exactly equal to the rate from August 2009. And as of April 2010, the employment rate was trending down - meaning by now, it is probably less than it was at this time last year. I don't think the numbers support your argument.

I think he showed why he said what he did.

[gobulls83]

:Duh

The Florida unemployment rate is around 17% over all and in 3 surrounding counties the rate is at 15-16%+... the true number is much higher since what the government reports is false because it does not account for those that no longer receive unemployment.

Thus the economy has more to do with USF ticket sales then Skip could ever...

First of all, your statistics are not correct. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, in April 2010 - the most recent month for which the department has made figures public - the unemployment rate in Florida was <a href="http://www.google.com/publicdata?ds=usunemployment&met=unemployment_rate&idim=state:ST120000&dl=en&hl=en&q=unemployment+rate+in+florida">11.2 percent</a>. At that same link, you can see that the numbers for Pinellas and Hillsborough counties are very close to the overall state number, while Pasco and Hernando counties are higher - but all are below 15 percent.

Second, in order to make the claim you did here, you'd have to compare it to last year. Has it gone up a great deal in the past year? According to that chart, the April 2010 unemployment rate is up about 2 percent from April 2009, but is actually exactly equal to the rate from August 2009. And as of April 2010, the employment rate was trending down - meaning by now, it is probably less than it was at this time last year. I don't think the numbers support your argument.

I think he showed why he said what he did.

No, he didn't. For one thing, he said the number was much higher than the 17 percent figure he claimed. Second, I added this as an edit to my previous post, but here it is since you probably didn't see it:

Also, your claim that "the true number is much higher since what the government reports is false because it does not account for those that no longer receive unemployment" is false - at least, according to the government it is. <a href="http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm#unemployed">Click here</a> for more info:

    <blockquote><i><b>Who is counted as unemployed?</b>

    Persons are classified as unemployed if they do not have a job, have actively looked for work in the prior 4 weeks, and are currently available for work.</i></blockquote>

The number of people collecting unemployment benefits has nothing to do with the unemployment rate. Did you really believe that more than one in every five people in Florida was unemployed?

[Southshore26]

But the only way the Govt will know if they are looking for work is if they are filing for unemployment.... those who cannot because their benefits have run out... and there alot of them... won't be counted...

Speakign as someone who's been in that situation... there are alot of us.... his numbers are probably accurate.

[gobulls83]

But the only way the Govt will know if they are looking for work is if they are filing for unemployment.... those who cannot because their benefits have run out... and there alot of them... won't be counted...

The number of people collecting unemployment benefits is a separate statistic maintained by the government. Read the second link I provided if you would like to know how the government calculates the unemployment rate. Unemployment benefits have nothing to do with it. Here, in fact, is a paragraph from that government Web site that says exactly this:

<blockquote><i>Some people think that to get these figures on unemployment, the Government uses the number of persons filing claims for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits under State or Federal Government programs. But some people are still jobless when their benefits run out, and many more are not eligible at all or delay or never apply for benefits. So, quite clearly, UI information cannot be used as a source for complete information on the number of unemployed. </i></blockquote>

Besides, even if this claim WERE true, it would be irrelevant to the discussion of season ticket sales. This is because it would have also been true in 2009 - so unless someone can demonstrate that there are more people being unrepresented in government unemployment measures in 2010 than there were in 2009, it can't be the reason fewer season tickets have been sold this year.

Speakign as someone who's been in that situation... there are alot of us.... his numbers are probably accurate.

Oh, well now that you put it that way, I guess I'll just ignore all those official numbers. After all, a person who at one time collected unemployment benefits said, without citing any sources, that some hard-to-believe numbers are "probably" true. I'm sold.

[Jamie]

The economy isn't hurting ticket sales at UF or FSU.

I doubt that 10-12K worth of USF fans could have gotten tickets to the FSU game last year if they weren't having trouble selling tickets in Tallahassee. Wasn't that one of the reasons that game was even played?

[gobulls83]

The economy isn't hurting ticket sales at UF or FSU.

I doubt that 10-12K worth of USF fans could have gotten tickets to the FSU game last year if they weren't having trouble selling tickets in Tallahassee. Wasn't that one of the reasons that game was even played?

FSU hardly ever sells out Doak. I think the Miami and Florida games are the only games they regularly sell out, and even Miami I'm not sure. The Florida game always sells out because so many Florida fans go - coincidentally, exactly the same thing that happened with USF.

I think the main reason the game was played because FSU found itself needing a home game at the last second and contacted USF, but I might be remembering wrong. But the potential ticket sales might have been why they contacted USF over some other school.

[Triple B]

I agree that if we win they will come but more people will buy individual game tickets. The economy is still recovering and there are many in our state that dont have the luxury to fork over for season tickets.

I also thiink that the administration will have to rethink its thinking for future scheduling, lets face it

a 1AA team, WKU and FAU are NOT an attractive OCS for home games.

The 1AA game is going to stay and I understand the financials of it, but at least one of the others WKU,FAU has to be replaced with alower BCS squad. Lets try to get Vandy, MissState, Iowa State etc

I'm still of the thinkiing that season ticket sales really don't have that much to do with your schedule. Either you want to come watch the Bulls play 6 or 7 games, or you don't .... exception may be if you get a really high profile program (UF, OSU, Texas, etc) in here for an ooc game and people wouldn't want to get shut out. The economy, coupled with the relative youth of the program, doesn't make season tickets an automatic expense for enough fans right now.