Psychology sophomore Amina Ahmad, who had season tickets for football last year, said she would buy them again next season despite a $15 increase in price.
MSU football tickets will cost students $2.50 more a game, or $15 more for a full-season package, for the 2001 season to help finance improvements to some university athletic facilities, Associate Athletics Director John Lewandowski said.
A full-season ticket will cost $99, $16.50 a game, up from the last two seasons, when MSU charged $84 for a full-season package, at $14 per game.
But students can save money by opting for a five-game package for $82.50, at $16.50 per game. That package excludes the final home game against Penn State on Nov. 24, Thanksgiving weekend.
But MSU should think before it tries to push the price above $99, Ahmad said.
“I don’t think it makes that big of a difference when the price is in the $80s and $90s,” Ahmad said. “But one hundred bucks is the most I’d ever pay.”
She also said it’s important the extra money will go toward athletic and student needs.
“If it’s to benefit the team or us, and they’re going to make improvements, it’s OK,” Ahmad said.
The increase will help MSU pay for ongoing renovations to the 75-year-old Spartan Stadium, which will cost $15.5 million; the new natural grass surface that will replace the stadium’s Astroturf by 2002; and renovations to locker rooms and office areas in Jenison Field House, which will cost $7 to $8 million, Lewandowski said.
“If we all have the same aspirations for the program and department as a whole, to compete in the Big Ten and strive for other championships, then these steps need to be taken,” Lewandowski said.
The switch to a five- and six-game package option gives students the opportunity to pass on the final home game if they have other plans for Thanksgiving weekend, Lewandowski said.
“That way they’re not locked into that game if they’re going to be out of town for the weekend,” he said.
Student tickets had the smallest increase in price. Season ticket prices for the general public rose $6 per game, from $168 to $204, while faculty/staff packages rose $5.67 a game, from $134 to $168.
Family Plan tickets, a group of at least four seats, went from $108 to $144, another $6 increase.
The increase keeps MSU in line with other Big Ten universities and although some Spartan fans may be wary of the increase, most seem to understand the reasoning behind it, Lewandowski said.
“Many schools are getting away from Astroturf, and other schools were using that against us in recruiting,” he said. “I think most people will understand the reasons behind the increase.”
Other MSU students agree the increase was acceptable.
“I guess it’s reasonable that they did raise them,” electrical engineering junior Benjamin Yu said. “It’s like $15 bucks, it’s not that much. That’s probably the cost of a hot dog.”
The addition of natural grass in Spartan Stadium is one improvement elementary junior Greg Steele said he’d gladly help pay for.
“This is an agricultural university,” he said. “If we can grow it for the Silverdome, we should be able to grow it for ourselves.”
Krista Latham can be reached at lathamkr@msu.edu.
