Irish are never a cheap date in football
Matt Winkeljohn - Staff
Friday, June 23, 2006
If you want a ticket to one of the biggest games of college football's opening weekend, you can still get one. And you won't have to break the bank to do it.
About 7,000 tickets to Georgia Tech's Sept. 2 prime-time home opener against Notre Dame will be put up for sale to the general public on July 1, Yellow Jackets athletics director Dan Radakovich said Thursday. To purchase one, fans must also buy tickets to two other games of their choice, putting the total cost between $106 and $126.
But fans are getting off a lot cheaper than Tech is. The contract for the Tech-Notre Dame game, signed in 1997 for one game in Atlanta and two in South Bend, Ind., includes a rare clause calling for extra revenue generated by a ticket increase to be split 50-50 by both schools. Typically, the home team gets to keep it all.
The average Tech football ticket goes for $38. The average Tech-Notre Dame ticket is $50.
Radakovich said "it might be another $250,000" paid by Tech to Notre Dame in addition to a $200,000 flat fee called for in the contract.
Why the ticket increase? Same reason the Fighting Irish got away with that clause. Interest in Notre Dame is always high, whether the Irish are playing at home or on the road.
This year, it could be higher than usual, with Heisman Trophy candidate Brady Quinn back at quarterback for a team that was picked No. 1 in the preseason by Sporting News.
"I think Notre Dame understood their value," Radakovich said. "They understood that as they come into an area, because of who they were, there's a great likelihood that ticket sales would spike.
"They decided somewhere along the line that they would put this clause into the contract so that they can share some of that benefit."
Tech also has benefited nicely from the contract. When Notre Dame was in a rush to schedule a historic opening opponent in a renovated stadium in 1997, Tech filled in, drawing an unusually large paycheck of $800,000.
The norm now might be $200,000 to $300,000.
"That $800,000, that was pretty darned good, especially back then," said Radakovich, whose program will receive $200,000 from Notre Dame after a visit to South Bend next season.
Bobby Dodd Stadium holds about 55,000 fans. About 48,500 seats are already taken for the Notre Dame game through season tickets (about 25,500), "flex packs" (7,500), student allocation (7,500), opponent allocation (5,000) and for complimentary use by recruits and other Tech guests (3,000).
SEASON OPENER
> Who: Notre Dame vs. Georgia Tech
> When; where: 8 p.m. Sept. 2; Bobby Dodd Stadium
> TV; radio: ABC; 790 AM, 91.1 FM
GET YOUR TICKETS
Unlike previous years, Georgia Tech will make available to the public three-game "flex packs" in which fans get to choose the football games they'd like to attend. That includes the hot Notre Dame ticket. The packages go on sale to the public on July 1. To order, go to ramblinwreck.com or call (888) TECH-TIX.
Matt Winkeljohn - Staff
Friday, June 23, 2006
If you want a ticket to one of the biggest games of college football's opening weekend, you can still get one. And you won't have to break the bank to do it.
About 7,000 tickets to Georgia Tech's Sept. 2 prime-time home opener against Notre Dame will be put up for sale to the general public on July 1, Yellow Jackets athletics director Dan Radakovich said Thursday. To purchase one, fans must also buy tickets to two other games of their choice, putting the total cost between $106 and $126.
But fans are getting off a lot cheaper than Tech is. The contract for the Tech-Notre Dame game, signed in 1997 for one game in Atlanta and two in South Bend, Ind., includes a rare clause calling for extra revenue generated by a ticket increase to be split 50-50 by both schools. Typically, the home team gets to keep it all.
The average Tech football ticket goes for $38. The average Tech-Notre Dame ticket is $50.
Radakovich said "it might be another $250,000" paid by Tech to Notre Dame in addition to a $200,000 flat fee called for in the contract.
Why the ticket increase? Same reason the Fighting Irish got away with that clause. Interest in Notre Dame is always high, whether the Irish are playing at home or on the road.
This year, it could be higher than usual, with Heisman Trophy candidate Brady Quinn back at quarterback for a team that was picked No. 1 in the preseason by Sporting News.
"I think Notre Dame understood their value," Radakovich said. "They understood that as they come into an area, because of who they were, there's a great likelihood that ticket sales would spike.
"They decided somewhere along the line that they would put this clause into the contract so that they can share some of that benefit."
Tech also has benefited nicely from the contract. When Notre Dame was in a rush to schedule a historic opening opponent in a renovated stadium in 1997, Tech filled in, drawing an unusually large paycheck of $800,000.
The norm now might be $200,000 to $300,000.
"That $800,000, that was pretty darned good, especially back then," said Radakovich, whose program will receive $200,000 from Notre Dame after a visit to South Bend next season.
Bobby Dodd Stadium holds about 55,000 fans. About 48,500 seats are already taken for the Notre Dame game through season tickets (about 25,500), "flex packs" (7,500), student allocation (7,500), opponent allocation (5,000) and for complimentary use by recruits and other Tech guests (3,000).
SEASON OPENER
> Who: Notre Dame vs. Georgia Tech
> When; where: 8 p.m. Sept. 2; Bobby Dodd Stadium
> TV; radio: ABC; 790 AM, 91.1 FM
GET YOUR TICKETS
Unlike previous years, Georgia Tech will make available to the public three-game "flex packs" in which fans get to choose the football games they'd like to attend. That includes the hot Notre Dame ticket. The packages go on sale to the public on July 1. To order, go to ramblinwreck.com or call (888) TECH-TIX.
