An increase in student season tickets for football is not a big deal.
A full-season student football ticket will cost $99, $16.50 a game, for next season, up from the $84, $14 a game, charged for the last two seasons. Students can also opt for a five-game package for $82.50 that excludes the final home game against Penn State on Thanksgiving weekend.
Season ticket prices for the general public also rose $6 a game from $168 to $204. Faculty and staff tickets saw an increase of $5.67 a game to $168 from $134. Family Plan tickets, which include at least four seats, rose to $144 from $108, another $6 a game increase.
The price increase will help finance renovations to Spartan Stadium, a new natural grass surface that will replace AstroTurf by 2002 and renovations to locker-rooms and office areas in Jenison Field House.
The increase is moderate and the reasons for it are understandable. A 75-year-old stadium is bound to need repairs at some point and they have to be paid for somehow. It is only right those who make use of the stadium help pay to improve it.
It is also worth paying a little more per game to fund the replacement of AstroTurf with natural grass. This is beneficial to the university as a whole as it utilizes the turf grass management program. It also gives the stadium a more traditional feel.
The improvements to the stadium and athletic facilities are a worthy cause. Increasing ticket prices is a fair way to fund this, as the renovations are being paid for by the sports fans who make the most use of the facilities. This way, students who aren’t interested in sports aren’t forced to pay for things they will never gain benefit from.
The tickets are still reasonably priced. Paying $16.50 for three or more hours of entertainment is not a bad deal. Going to football games gives students a chance to show their spirit with thousands of fellow Spartans and even when the team loses, the game is still a good time. Between tailgating, the game and postgame celebration, a football game can turn into an all day event.
MSU’s football ticket prices are in the mid-range in the Big Ten. Illinois and Iowa charge $10 a game for student tickets and Ohio State charges students $20 per game. MSU offers an entertaining season at a price still affordable for students.
Even though the team’s performance may be below the level fans would like sometimes, the chance to see games in a conference as strong as the Big Ten is worth it - regardless of the season’s outcome. Spartan fans are lucky to be in a strong conference and even luckier to be charged reasonable prices to see the teams in it.
A price increase for MSU football tickets is a sensible way to fund improvements to Spartan Stadium and other MSU athletic facilities. The increase is not too much to ask and the resulting price is still affordable to students and the general public alike. This method is a good way to have those who will gain the most from the improvements pay for them.
