The Cost of Being a Fan of Big Time Football

[hbryan]

 

And they have student athletes calling coaches because they don't have enough food for groceries. And doing so is an NCAA violation. The entire system needs revamping with parity in mind.

I believe all student athletes are entitled to a meal plan.

 

But sometimes they're too lazy to get to the dining hall, therefore they should have stocked refrigerators via student dues and fees?

[slick1ru2]

 

 

And they have student athletes calling coaches because they don't have enough food for groceries. And doing so is an NCAA violation. The entire system needs revamping with parity in mind.

I believe all student athletes are entitled to a meal plan.

 

But sometimes they're too lazy to get to the dining hall, therefore they should have stocked refrigerators via student dues and fees?

 

 

 

You think like that you miss out on the best recruits. Okl St realized that there are other wants of student athletes and just hooked the star players up with boosters that give them bogus jobs, allow boosters in the locker room and on trips to hand players over money for key performances, ignore positive drug tests, enabled drug use, entice HTR into enrolling by sex with hostesses, have tutors do classwork and tests, assign the easiest classes, etc.. Which school would you rather play football at? Just make sure you don't drop in the depth chart or get hurt because then you are part of the 40% that leave before exhausting eligibility. That's what at least one of these 'big time football programs' offers. I imagine that its more than one and we are going to hear more and more about what goes on.

[bullcocky101]

Plenty of football players had enough money to get tatted up by a friend of mine...they didn't want for anything, trust me. Players get housing (the good dorms), tuition, the best dining hall options, and personal tutors in every subject.

[CousinRicky]

 

I just thought I would share an example of what it costs to be a fan when your school is in the big time.

 

I went to Auburn at LSU this weekend. Stadium seats about 90,000 and construction is under way on a new end zone upper deck that will add another 6,000 seats.

 

My seats were last row of the lower bowl, corner of the endzone. About 70 rows up. (nice view, I liked them).

 

Cost of each ticket, $70 a game (all games are the same price), plus you have to donate $250 per seat, so if you wanted 8, $2000 in donor money each year. The far away remote parking lots were $40 a car, not sure what the close ones cost. No club lounge, no donation carry over to basketball seats.

 

I am not comparing us to LSU, the product isn't the same.... but just sharing what tickets might cost if we ever became the sort of program we all think (or thought) was possible.

 

If we had a stadium on campus I'd gladly up my donations, pay more in parking, and more in ticket prices because USF would be keeping all of that money vs. the Bucs/TSA keeping most of it.

 

 

Just to be clear, your money would be going toward the bond holders and/or banks through USF.  The debt service on building a stadium would prolly require more per year than what the Tampa Sports Authority/Glazers get from us now.  If it were cheaper the OCS would be in build stage right now.

[Paisa el Toro]

 

people have paid good enough money at usf to have a competitive product on the field

 

And just to be clear, by "people," you mean anyone not named Smazza.    

[Triple B]

If we had a stadium on campus I'd gladly up my donations, pay more in parking, and more in ticket prices because USF would be keeping all of that money vs. the Bucs/TSA keeping most of it.

Out of donations, season parking and tickets, do you have any clue at all how much goes to the TSA now?

[CousinRicky]

Believe we pay about $150K per game for rent. 

[Rocky Style]

If we had our own stadium like LSU and in a meaningful conference I could easily see bulls fans paying that amount. Going to bucaneer land to get trounced by FAU doesn't have the same sheen.

[Mike Stuben]

 

If we had a stadium on campus I'd gladly up my donations, pay more in parking, and more in ticket prices because USF would be keeping all of that money vs. the Bucs/TSA keeping most of it.

Out of donations, season parking and tickets, do you have any clue at all how much goes to the TSA now?

 

 

 

Believe we pay about $150K per game for rent. 

 

Rich - you are right, but that isn't profit, that is the salary of ushers and security and cops and a whole bunch of other people who USF would also have to pay if the games were on campus, plus the electric bill and things like that.

 

Yes there is a small bit of profit, but its not much for the TSA.

 

USF loses out the most on concessions, where we get nothing. (money goes to Bucs and their concessionaire)

 

USF gives up 10% on merchandise to the bucs concessionaire who owns those rights.

 

USF also gives up single game parking, and season parking after a certain number (which we might not have reached).

[SattyBull]

At Doak they have signs around the concession stands advertising that 70 cents of every dollar spent on concessions at Doak goes right back into FSU athletics or to Seminole Boosters. While USF obviously wouldn't be selling as much due to the smaller crowd, that money would still be huge for USF.

Edited September 24, 2013 by SattyBull