Chengelis: Michigan Stadium Student Section Expands by 1K Seats
Michigan has expanded the student section at Michigan Stadium by 1,000 seats to accommodate the large number of requests for the upcoming football season. Michigan associate athletic director Dave Ablauf said some fans will have to be relocated to keep the students in the same area of Michigan Stadium.
Who's feeling lucky about their relocation?
after they've already sent out Season Ticket renewals with seat numbers?
those in the affected sections are given the option of selecting where they might want their seats moved to. You are not given the option of renewing your past seat location.
This was answered today, after a post I made below speculating about having to move.
I received the paper version of my renewal app today. There was a letter included explaining details of the move. Note:
1) There are no seat numbers on my application.
2) A form is included where I can state my preference for relocation, priority 1 thru 5.
3) The letter states that the student section will be expanded to all of Section 33 (where I currently...er, um.. used to sit) and part of Section 34.
Also.... for those students and others who like to stand the entire game, this statement from the letter will no doubt interest you:
Part of the college experience is enjoying the game standing along with fellow students in the student section. We experimented with moving the overflow to the south end zone a few years ago but the students blocked the view of our patrons.
So yeah... I'm screwed out of seats that I've had and loved for years. I'll miss the folks that I've sat near... we weren't close enough to have ever exchanged phone numbers or anything, but I'll miss seeing them just the same. Damn it.
Hope I'm in the vicinity of Lloyd Brady.
This is great news. Hopefully the new score boards will help keep some of our noise in too.
For the student tickets I bought off a Chinese Grad student....maybe I will get "relegated" to the club level seating.
I wish there was a way to relocate the people around my seats who sell their tickets for every game to random people including visiting fans
The more students, the better. I'm impressed the students stepped up to the plate given the pretty large price increase. (The outstanding home schedule obviously helped things.)
More students due to humongous student population of recent years.
Any student who realized why we have a great home schedule already was going to buy football season tickets anyways. We can chalk this up to the Common App boost.
When I was in school, I remember people being more motivated to buy football tickets in odd-numbered years, when OSU came to town. The casual fan is drawn to those games. The ND game, at night, is another big draw. The hardcore fan doesn't care if we're playing UMass (or at least, will bitch about it but will still go). But because we're playing OSU, Nebraska and ND at the Big House, the hardcore fan can now get his casual-fan friends to agree to buy tickets, too. I'd bet that the student section shrinks a little in even-numbered years, when we have a much worse home slate.
I don't think this has too much to do with enrollment. We're getting more apps, but I don't think the school wants to admit more students. It's just getting harder to get admitted.
Michigan admitted a record amount of students last year, surpassing 6,000, and currently has a record amount of students enrolled, over 41,000. This surely is factoring into the amount of ticket requests. I've yet to meet a student that will pass up on the oppurtunity to drink and go to the game based on the home schedule we have, but I don't know everyone on campus.
Given that roughly 50% of the student body buys student football tickets, we would have to have about 2,000 more incoming freshmen this year than last for this one-year increase in the student section to be caused by admission changes. Enrollment has been creeping up, but not that fast.
Even with an extra 1,000 students, this will not be the largest student section we've ever had. The size of the student section has changed over time. It actually was once larger than it now is, covering most of the north endzone in addition to the NE corner. At one time it had something 24,000 students. Over the past decade it's quietly shrunk (probably in relation to increased ticket prices) to about 18,000, and the north endzone is now alumni seating. It sounds like they may now give some of those seats back to the students.
And yes, there absolutely are people who buy tickets in years when OSU comes to town and don't the next year. I personally knew people like that. (Some just wanted to scalp their ticket to that game.) If the AD releases the student-ticket figure for this year, take note of it and see what it is for 2012.
What is the overall capacity of the stadium now?
109,901
I was under the impression that that figure was only for 2010, and that it was going to go down starting this year, as seats are slightly widened.
in the number of seats do to renovations per the Mothership. I read that in an archive from a few years ago.
But wasn't that in comparison to the old capacity (107,501)? I thought the plan was to add the two structures (which got us up to 109,901), then widen the seats in the bowl (which would lower it to something like 108,301).
I believe that was the plan. The original said something along the lines of 108,000+ when the entire project was completed. Here's the outline of the original plan: http://www.michiganstadiumproject.com/stadium_project_description.php
April 27th, 2011 at 10:17 PM ^
was the largest the stadium has ever been. That is why they announced at the Big Chill that it was the largest crowd ever in Michigan Stadium, for any event -- now I'm not sure I buy that, but it was said at the game, and the number of seats will now decrease to tth 107,500 range over the next couple years as the renovations are completed.
However, the student athletes being recruited have mentioned repeatedly that they are going to add about 6k and or 115k capacity. So, you gotta think something is in the works after the new boards are up this fall. Maybe a combination of the sweets and the areas to either side of the new boards.. . .
I, for one, blame this renewed interest in the football program on MGoBlog.
Interest would have decreased, with all the doom and gloom.
I stopped buying season tickets in favor of the liveblog.
In the Stadium, we could do both.
From reading the original article, it says that some fans will need to be relocated to accomodate the larger student section. I don't think the stadium is expanding, just the student section.
As another poster pointed out, the school has gotten larger over the last few years.
...confused, but the OP does not state or imply that the stadium capacity is expanding, only that the seats allocated to the student section are expanding.
A number of recruits have alluded to being told of crowd capacities several thousand in excess of what the stadium now holds. Has there been any official statement from DB or anybody else in the AD confirming any expansion at whatever date in the future?
...formal announcement of another expansion, but IIRC, Brandon has alluded to future expansion in one or more venues. I think it's pretty clear it will happen given the similar reports from multiple recruits that they've been told to expect "an additional 6,000" or "that stadium holds 120,000!".
And I think a lot of them may have been single-game tickets anyway. Lots of those people might not mind getting moved out of the end zone.
I am glad the university is doing this. All students that want season tickets should have a seat. I was never more angry in college than when I learned that basketball season tickets were going to be split-season (back in the mid-90s).
I think the student section should be between the 40's, and as many students as want to should be able to buy tickets. I also think they should say "STUDENT" in block letters across the length of the ticket and that you should have to have a student ID to get in with them.
Schools love to say that the games are "all about the student body." Let them literally put their money where there collective mouth is.
I just finished my freshman year here, and last year I distinctly remember freshmen not being allowed to order tickets until June. I checked my facebook messages for my seating group and they back up this thought. How can they say they are adding 1,000 more seats before the freshmen have even had a chance to order tickets?
Because they've probably gotten more upperclassmen to apply than normal? That and an increase in freshment class size (with the fair assumption of increase in ticket buyers) should account for it without knowing the exact numbers.
Well if the numbers of returning students getting tickets increases, it is probably safe to say that the overall number will increase.
Not feeling lucky at all. My seats are on the aisle that runs between Section 33 (my section) and Section 32 (student section closest to the endzone). The ticket application in my online account shows no seat numbers.
I'm about to be moved. Damn it.
Well one reason for the increase is new coach but i think another is the 8 home games and the first night game ever agaisnt ND. I am sophomore right now and i bought the student ticks every year. Dont know if ill buy them next year though with only 6 HG and only good game is against MSU.
All home games are good games. Some home games are great.
Well one reason for the increase is new coach...
Is there polling on that? Data? Were there any questionnaires done, or questions asked? Would "student interest" determine the reassignment of seats in any event? Why would it simply not be attributable to larger class-size, and a simple decision on the part of the Athletic Department, in the wake of the larger Stadium renovation and seat-reassignment? Is this one of those urban myths that get started, simply because they sound sort of good?
Do you really know that "one reason for the increase is [sic] new coach"? Or are you just making it up? If you know, how do you know?
1-Either students are genuinely interested in football again (compared to the last three seasons-not pointing any fingers)
or...
2-Students see a potential cash cow in having the night game against ND, and both the Nebraska and that school in Ohio games at home.
As I recall, students were able to order their tickets around March, way after Hoke took over the program so that may explain the renewed interest in case 1 so I hope that's the case 'cause I hated seeing all the opponents' fans in the student section the past three years.
The seats on the west side of the aisle in section 34 are being reserved for students. Included with my season ticket package is a sheet listing several other options. I'm supposed to list my preferences 1 through 5.
Here is the response to my email inquiry to the ticket office last weekend -"The side of section 34 closest to section 33 is where we must empty seats. It's
possible that seats may be available across the aisle, so please feel free to
list that as an option on your form and we will do our best."
I liked my seats. Row 37 is a really good height to watch the game from and I was two seats from the aisle (the center of the goalpost). I really like the endzone view, seeing the holes open on the line and the defensive lineman's jerseys strech out when being held. Goal line plays in the north endzone were awesome. Sniff sniff. I'm becoming verklempt.. Talk amongst yourselves.
I'll sniff sniff with you. I'm being bumped out of my beloved aisle seats up high in Section 33. :'(
April 27th, 2011 at 11:32 PM ^
I'm not disappointed to move out of my Sec 34 row 46 seats. I was middle of the row and tired of the 20 min wait in line to get to the seats prior to the game. Just hope I get one of my top 5 choices for a new section.
April 27th, 2011 at 11:41 PM ^
= only good things.
I want to see a new cheer out of the student section this year. The "Hoke Point". All of the students will suddenly point forcefully at an M player wiht a number held up by the cheerleaders.
April 28th, 2011 at 12:25 AM ^
What I don't get is why they don't put some of the students in one endzone and some in the other like tsio does. They have a block o north and a block o south.