News

November 18, 2009

Penn State season ticket holders may have seats moved for bigger donors

By Tricia Lafferty The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Penn State will implement a new season-ticket policy, which is scheduled to debut for the 2011 football season.
 To whom Penn State distributes its 80,000 season tickets will not change, but the seating arrangements will.
 Under the new system, a larger donation to the Nittany Lion Club -- which is composed of Penn State alumni and supporters of intercollegiate athletics -- will result in a better seat. Those who make the minimum donation of $100 may or may not be forced to relocate.
 "Right now, someone’s donation level determines the number of season tickets they want to buy and the type of parking spaces they get," said Greg Myford, Penn State’s associate athletic director for business relations and communications. "What the plan will do is introduce a third ingredient, and that’s where you want to sit in the stadium. It’s an additional ingredient in figuring out what your donation will be in any given year."
 Season-ticket holders will receive a memo with all of the details shortly after Saturday’s game at Michigan State.
 As it stands, all season-ticket holders are members of the Nittany Lion Club. Season-ticket holders are required to donate at least $100 annually, renew their season tickets and pay the $55 per ticket each game in order to be guaranteed a seat in Beaver Stadium.
 That will not change.
 No current season-ticket holder will be stripped of the privilege to buy tickets. Those fans, however, may be forced to change seats starting in 2011.
 This could affect a season-ticket holder with seats, say, on the 50-yard line. If the ticket holder continues to make the $100 donation, there is a good chance he will be relocated to seats closer to -- or behind -- the end zone. That fan could keep his seat if he increases his donation.
 Although Myford did not release specific figures regarding donations, it’s evident that bigger donors will be sitting in better seats.
 "How much you give now does not currently play into where you sit," said Myford, who expressed that this is not a seat-license policy. "The new plan introduces an annual donation based on where you sit. The stadium will have four different seating zones each with an established per-seat donation."
 The Harrisburg Patriot-News reported that those season-ticket holders who want to sit between the 40-yard lines would be asked to make a $600 donation. A $400 donation would guarantee a seat between the 40-yard line and the end zone. Those who continue to donate $100 will be seated outside the end zone, near the goal line. Myford did not confirm those dollar numbers, but he did call the asking price reasonable.
 "We want to make clear that the plan that would be put in place does not require an over-and-above donation fee," Myford said.
 Not only will the new system benefit the Nittany Lion Club’s biggest supporters, it will provide a financial boost for Penn State athletics.
 "It allows us to generate revenue," Myford said. "As an athletic department, we are self-supported. We need to generate our own revenue. Secondly, it provides fairness in ticket allocation. We want to properly allocate tickets with how much the donor is willing to support Penn State athletics."
 Penn State football coach Joe Paterno understands why the new system is being implemented.
 "They asked me what I thought (and) I said, ’Look, you guys have the responsibility for 29 sports,’" Paterno said. "So they got to do something or we got to cut back sports, and we don’t want to do that.
 "But that’s not my bout."

Tweet	Follow @TLnews