Major changes are coming to the way that Clemson University students will receive tickets to home football games this season.
Clemson Undergraduate Student Government (CUSG) announced the changes to the student body in an email Thursday morning.
The new plan, outlined below, will provide students with three different options to obtain a ticket to home football games in 2018.
Option One: Purchasing season tickets
Under this option, Clemson students will be able to purchase season tickets for all seven home games. Lower deck tickets will cost $280 for the entire season ($40 per game), and upper deck tickets will cost $210 for the season ($30 per game). Registration for season tickets will open on Aug. 1, and priority will be based on seniority (credit hours completed) and IPTAY Collegiate Club status. Students who will receive season tickets will be notified prior to the registration deadline for the lottery (details on that are below).
Officials say that if any season tickets go unsold, they will then be made available through the single-game process. The total student ticket allocation will not be affected by unsold tickets.
A total of 3,600 tickets (2,600 in the lower deck and 1,000 in the upper deck) will be distributed through this method.
Option Two: Lottery for free single-game tickets
This option will allow Clemson students to enter a lottery to obtain free single-game tickets for either every home game or only specific games, and like with the paid season tickets, priority will be based on seniority (credit hours completed) and IPTAY Collegiate Club status.
In order to obtain these tickets, students will have to enter a lottery in August, and winners will be notified prior to the start of the season. This will be the only lottery that will take place — there will be no weekly lotteries this year.
In order to cutdown on the sale of free tickets and increase student attendance, tickets will be distributed the week of each game, and students will have to pick up their ticket at an on-campus location during the Wednesday to Friday (exact time periods to be announced) prior to the game.
A total of 5,100 tickets — 2,600 in the lower deck, 1,000 in the upper deck and 1,500 on the Hill — will be available through the lottery.
Option Three: Free day-of-game tickets
Under this option, Clemson students will be able to obtain a free ticket the day of a home game. 1,500 tickets for the Hill, plus any unclaimed or returned tickets, will be available to students on a first-come, first-served basis on the morning of each game.
These changes come after the university faced heavy criticism for the student ticket policy during the 2017 season, which resulted in the policy being changed mid-season.
Parker Tilley, CUSG’s Secretary of Public Relations, says that Student Body President Mason Foley and Vice President Logan Young have wanted to address issues with the student ticket policy since they began their terms in March. Over the past few months, Foley and Young, along with CUSG Athletics Chair Banner Brock and other student leaders, have worked with the athletics department and university administration to improve the ticket policy.
“Providing free tickets has been and will always continue to be a priority, but by offering multiple options, we are giving students more control over the process,” Tilley said in an email to The Tiger. “We have to also address the issue of students not attending the games in the past, and this is a solution to that problem.”
One of the issues that drew the most backlash was Hill attendance, as the Hill was noticeably bare at several home games last season. Last month, The Post & Courier reported that the Board of Trustees told Athletics Director Dan Radakovich to “Fill the Hill!”
Many fans commented on social media that the solution to the Hill issue would be to once again make general admission tickets available to the public.
When asked about the Hill issue, Tilley said that “there is a possibility the public would have the opportunity to sit on the Hill if all of the student tickets being distributed on game day aren’t given away.”
In addition to the changes outlined above, students will also be able to transfer tickets to other Clemson students. While purchased season tickets can be resold, free tickets must be transferred for free. Tilley says that CUSG isn’t sure if there’ll be any consequences or penalties for students who try to sell a free ticket. According to the new ticket policy, students will be required to show their CUID to enter the game to ensure only Clemson students are using student tickets.
CUSG is encouraging students to share any questions, comments or concerns they have about the new ticketing policy by emailing [email protected].
Further details about the student ticketing process will be released in August.
Below is a PDF version of the email CUSG and Clemson Athletics sent to students announcing the new student ticket policy. It contains additional information about the policy that was not included in this article.
