Limited tickets available for FSU game

Requests for student tickets for the USF vs. FSU game on Saturday, Sept. 29 opened Monday at 9 a.m., and students are already talking.


Though 12,501 tickets have been allotted to students for this game, students will not be able to request guest tickets along with their own free ticket.


“The demand for student tickets will be such that we can’t provide companion tickets,” Ayodele Taylor-Dixon, associate director of athletics for marketing and revenue, said. “We’re anticipating 12,501 students to attend.”


Tickets to football games are free for students and typically guest tickets are available for students to purchase at the time of their request at a cost between $10 to $16.


But when students started logging into student ticket accounts on www.gousfbulls.com on Monday, some of them noticed guest tickets would not be available.


“It negates the benefits of being a USF student,” Nicole Meola, a senior majoring in economics, said. “One of my favorite memories is being able to bring my dad to the USF vs. Miami game in 2009.”


Ticket requests will also be determined on of a student’s loyalty points, putting upperclassmen and those who attend frequent sporting events at an advantage over other students.


“We’ve had a volleyball tournament and soccer games … there have been plenty of opportunities for students to gain points,” Taylor-Dixon said.


Students earn loyalty points by having their USF student ID scanned at home games. Every football game is worth 10 points.


“There’s a reason we have been racking up loyalty points for these big games,” Meola said. “I remember at orientation they said you may not always get a ticket.”


A lack of loyalty points has not been a big concern for most students though in the past.


“If you didn’t get the opportunity to sit in the student  section as a freshman, that would suck,” Ryan Hall, a junior majoring in math education, said. “I’ve never had a problem getting a ticket, though.”


Some freshmen have attended other sporting events in the hopes of increasing the chances they will get a ticket.


“I’ve been to two soccer games so far,” Ben Sayer, a freshman majoring in chemical engineering, said.


Sayer said he doesn’t think it is a problem that student guest tickets won’t be available.


“I rather another student go than my friend,” Sayer said. “It’s great that we even get free tickets.”


Meola said she planned to attend the FSU game with her grandparents, who were going to drive down from their home in Ocala. Now she is unsure of whether they will be able to attend the game.


“The only concern I have is a regular ticket is extremely expensive,” Meola said. “We wouldn’t buy them unless it is a happy medium between student guest ticket prices and regular seats.”


At this time, regular tickets are not available for purchase by the general public for the game.


“We haven’t put the game on individual sale yet,” Taylor-Dixon said. “We allow season ticket holders to purchase additional tickets first. … The student timeline is different than the general public timeline. We’ll have a handle on that later in the week.”


Season tickets range from $189 to $219 based on location of seats. Individual ticket prices vary based on location of the seats in the stadium.


USF Athletics determines these prices but has not determined how much an individual ticket will cost if they do become available, Taylor-Dixon said.  

By the time of print, the USF Athletics Box Office did not return calls about the number of tickets sold so far.