The End of Season Ticket Wait Lists?
According to Warde Manual, there is not a football season ticket waiting list at Michigan. Can you tell me why? Waning interest from recent grads perhaps? Perhaps not waning interest in Michigan Football, just less interest in making a season ticket commitment.
My Michigan Football crazed sons would rather watch games at each other’s houses with beer, chips, chicks, a huge HDTV and a bathroom 10 feet away.
What about you youngsters? Are we looking at winning seasons with lower attendance?
***(I drag my old self to just about every game; now get off my lawn)*** 
August 23rd, 2016 at 4:35 PM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
August 23rd, 2016 at 4:39 PM ^
I enjoy watching the games on my large TV with some beer, but that's mostly because I live in Oklahoma. I still try to make it back for a game or two. If I lived in Michigan, I'd go to every game I could unless the weather is bad.
August 23rd, 2016 at 4:56 PM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
August 23rd, 2016 at 4:59 PM ^
I've been attempting to indoctrinate my 16 year old son into wolverine football for over a decade now...I've pretty much given up. A frickin video game (FIFA) got him hooked on European soccer. My only hope is that big time success under Harbaugh will draw him in.
Also, have noticed on the west side of the state how the casual fan jumped onto Sparties bandwagon over the past 5-7 years. You can say what you want, but casual fans make up a certain percentage of butts in the seats at any game. I sense after this season Michigan's bandwagon fills back up.
Must also agree with the personal space issue at the Big House. Only for a big game do I deal with the approximately 12 square inches I'm given to squeeze into. i thought the stadium renovation was supposed to gain us all an extra 2" of seat? Did that ever happen?
August 23rd, 2016 at 5:16 PM ^
MSU still can't sell out non-Michigan games to save its life. Even when they're on championship runs. It's actually kind of sad.
August 23rd, 2016 at 5:04 PM ^
There are not many things that keep me from Ann Arbor on a Saturday. I have missed many a staff members'wedding to see us play Akron or Ball State. I have missed golf weekends with buddies to see us play App State (2).
August 23rd, 2016 at 5:09 PM ^
I like the replays, play by play, ability to pause and rewind that the T.V. gives you. The comfort of home, cheaper food and alcohol certainly plays a part as well. The biggest thing for me is that I live in Florida. That's a long trip to make 8 times a year and with so many grads not living in Ann Arbor, or even Michigan, I am sure I am not the only one.
August 23rd, 2016 at 5:17 PM ^
And call me a heretic but our stadium sucks with its small ass seats...
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
August 23rd, 2016 at 5:24 PM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
August 23rd, 2016 at 5:30 PM ^
I will never buy season tickets.
- Live out of town.
- Don't have the money. Or rather, don't want to spend the money.
- Don't have the schedule that would allow me to go.
- Don't mind watching some games live, but not all.
- Am already going to all my son's high school games.
Once you total up ticket costs, food costs, gasoline costs, possibly hotel costs, ancillary costs, it isn't cheap. One game on the cheap could be several hundred bucks. A marquee game? Fuggetaboutit.
I don't prefer watching at home. However, at home you have:
- HD TV.
- Comfortable couch.
- If it is a non-marquee game, the ability to start the game an hour or two in, skip all the commercials, and have the game end live.
- Replays and closeups. If you miss a play, you can back up and watch it again. If there was a great play, you can watch it again. If there was a contested fumble or interception, or hit to the head, you can watch it again.
- The ability for my dear wife to watch part of the game, but not have to pay attention to all of it. She isn't enough of a fan to want to go to AA, but she is enough of a fan to want to kind of watch the game, especially if it is a good game.
- Food costs. Better food, way cheaper, no lines.
- Beverage costs. Better drinks, way cheaper, no lines.
- Washroom right there. Clean and private and no lines.
- Travel time. None, vs. the drive from Chicago there, and the drive back.
August 23rd, 2016 at 5:57 PM ^
There's a lot of headwinds for people that travel. I watch games on tv by default--Ann Arbor is 12 hours of solid driving for me, and I have important things to do on Sundays. For you, it is manageable, but it's a headache. For someone who lifes at Seventh and Pauline, it's a short walk and $15 for a spare single that someone is selling at the gate. Completely different situations.
I suspect, but do not know, that for many who decide season tickets are too expensive, one or two games a year are still a reality. That was the case for me as a kid, and I believe I went to at least one game every season from the mid-eighties onward. Some years it would be two. Usually minor games, but there's still the crowd and the band and banner and the mass of winged helmets.
That would be my guess. If I lived four hours away that would probably be my strategy.
August 23rd, 2016 at 10:20 PM ^
I live in Denver and have had Broncos season tickets for 12yrs (family seats since the 60's and now I control 4x Company Tix in addition to my pair) and make it to 2-3 UM games/year. Last year went to Utah and did the Bama game in Dallas ...a few Rose Bowls and other Bowls over the years as well.
That said, we have free place to stay in A2 with friends with more than enough room and I travel a lot which accumulates 'points' that I have used often to fly wife/son back too.
I don't understand the whole "HDTV & my Potty" is better than the games and sorry ...don't care if you have the sweetest flatscreen on earth, there was NOTHING like being in Michigan Stadium to see Roy Roundtree catch that pass against ND, Manningham that pass against Penn State or the KRs by Desmond and Woodson, respectively.
I go to 8 Broncos games (of the 10, incl pre-season) and on the off chance I'm not at Mile Hi, I do not sit and watch random NFL games all day instead. In fact, if it's a home game, I rarely bother watching the early games aside from down at the stadium on TVs that some of the bigger tailgates have.
August 24th, 2016 at 8:07 AM ^
Yes it is expensive and yes it takes your entire day to go to the games - but we only have 12 days of Michigan football every 365 days. I would go to every single game (minus @ ohio) if I could. I drive 2 hours each way, tailgate before and after the game and have satellite TV at the tailgate. I follow the band marching to the stadium, I sit in the south end zone with people I am "friends" with that I don't even know their name. I cheer and scream and get "into" the game in a way that is impossible to do watching on TV. And yes, I've been there for incredible Michigan memories. I have seen Bump, Bo, Mo, and Carr. I suffered through RR and watched Hoke be outcoached, and now we have Harbaugh and the energy in the stadium is truly unmatched and is "electric". The atmosphere absorbs you ...
And the funny thing is after I get home - I re-watch the game on my DVR.
Michigan football is not just a 3 hour "game" for people like me, it is a day filled with emotional highs (and lows, at times) family, friends and adventure every single time. And I fucking love it.
Go Blue!
August 23rd, 2016 at 5:39 PM ^
I am a younger grad (under 30) and I want season tickets when I eventually move back to Michigan. It has been a dream of mine since I was a kid to get season tickets.
August 23rd, 2016 at 6:07 PM ^
They blare ear-splitting music for every minute of warmups, and strangely enough, not everyone enjoys sitting through that. It's impossible to enjoy the pregame the way you used to. Everything is much more expensive. And not everyone can stand for half the game in order to see. If all you're able to do is watch on the Jumbotron, you might as well stay home, with all of the advantages.
August 23rd, 2016 at 6:32 PM ^
1. If the music is too loud, you're too old
2. How can you not love the aura and mystique of being in the Big House watching your favorite team live! Thesights, the smells, everything about watching a game at the Big House is amazing!
Sadly, I've only been twice cuz I live so far away
August 23rd, 2016 at 7:56 PM ^
1. Quite possibly; but...
2. They are likely to be someone who has done this for 10, 15, 20 years before the blaring music, the halo, and a host of other changes that have been made over the years. Perhaps their concept of "the aura and mystique of being in the Big House watching your favorite team live" includes memories of watching Bo march up and down the field. Perhaps they remember watching games that took place on astroturf and real grass. Perhaps they remember a day when the marching band was all the pre-game entertainment that was needed. Perhaps they remember being on the field when Michigan clinched Big10 championships over OSU. Perhaps they could tell you where the best tailgate was before the game, where the shortest line for the head was during, and where the best pub was to grab a drink after the game. Perhaps they knew the ins and outs of getting to and from the stadium, and shared their experiences with others.
I get that you were excited about your visits -- stay that way. But perhaps, before you get all sanctimonious about others being too old and not enjoying the mystique of an experience that rivals a frathouse rave, remember that, as great as your two experiences were, they are little more than dipping your toe into the shallow end of a very, very deep pool.
My suggestion would be to keep going back. Maybe someday you'll be lucky enough to find the music too loud.
August 23rd, 2016 at 10:48 PM ^
What an outstanding reply. Thank you.
August 24th, 2016 at 12:08 PM ^
I get it, I do. But if nothing ever changed we would still have leather helmets (without the iconic wings), a small stadium, no forward pass, etc.
People enjoy what they are used to, but I don't get people who couldn't love the Michigan gameday experience DESPITE the changes.
Watching your favorite football team play live, no matter the pre-game music, type of field, etc is a treasure in and of itself
August 23rd, 2016 at 6:07 PM ^
August 24th, 2016 at 9:01 AM ^
While a noble goal, I hope for you that something comes along that's more important than attending a single football game.
August 23rd, 2016 at 6:26 PM ^
I would have kept my season tickets I had from '85 through '89 but when I moved to OK for a better job opportunity, I gave them up. Now working most of my weekends I can only make one game per year at home or on the road. I only have 12 more years until I retire, then I can get season tickets. I won't be one of those old guys who sits on their hands at games!
August 23rd, 2016 at 6:32 PM ^
A) make them aware of it?
B) just ignore it?
C) use it as a chance to improve my seat location for next year?
My wife says A.
August 24th, 2016 at 11:41 AM ^
How would you be able to do C? Donate to the PSD rather than the interest list, hoping that your current points are sufficient to get offered?
August 23rd, 2016 at 6:41 PM ^
Graduated in 2012 and this is my second year buying season tickets. I thought I was getting in on the season tickets before the waitlist started back up, but I guess not.
August 23rd, 2016 at 6:42 PM ^
24 year old alumni season ticket holder here, nothing beats tailgating and being at the actual stadium for me.
Most friends I graduated with would rather just buy single game tickets because it turns out to be cheaper that way. If you can't get a ticket easily you watch on someone's giant HDTV.
August 23rd, 2016 at 6:55 PM ^
How many alums are still living within day-trip distance to AA these days (compared to the past)? I'm guessing we have more recent grads moving out of state, and more grads that came from out of state in the first place.
If you live far enough away that a game requires an overnight stay (at insanely inflated prices) at an AA hotel, it's just not worth it for season tickets. Or rather, the benefit compared to just buying single game seats for the games you actually can / want to make isn't there.
As others have mentioned, it used to be that season tickets were the only way to reliably get a family into games, and you got a substantial discount relative to street price (at a minimum, you could fully recoup the cost by selling the tickets for any games you couldn't make).
Now, all but the truly marquee games are widely available at or below face on StubHub, and the "get season tickets" plan doesn't start to look favorable until you're pretty sure you can make all (or all but a couple) of the home games.
August 23rd, 2016 at 7:28 PM ^
My guess is this will not continue.
August 23rd, 2016 at 8:48 PM ^
August 23rd, 2016 at 9:22 PM ^
August 23rd, 2016 at 9:25 PM ^
August 23rd, 2016 at 11:34 PM ^
I came to Michigan for grad school in 1986 (Harbaugh's last year at QB!) and graduated in 1988. For the next 10 years, I would split season tickets with 2 different friends who already had them (one was a doctoral student, the other a staff person at UM). After that time, my UM staff "connection" packed up and moved away and gave up his tickets.
So the time came to put my name on the infamous waiting list. It did not cost anything. You just had to sign up....in writing, as I recall, as the internet was a very new thing at the time. There was a priority list (which was communicated to me by a letter in the mail confirming my registration). There were about 12-15 priority categories. At the bottom of the list, as you might expect, was the general public. I think the top was Victors Club members. As an alum, I was automatically about halfway up that list.
If you did the math from my graduation date, I joined the list in 1998...just after Michigan won the NC. No doubt this would lengthen my stay on the list. What happened after that was rather interesting. The following year...nothing. Then, for the next several years I was offered smaller packages...3 games...4 games....etc. with no ability to renew, but I was required to purchase them in order to keep my place on the waiting list.
Finally, about 2004 (I think?), the happiest day ever arrived, when I received a letter in the mail, along with a bonafide season ticket application. Woooohoooo!!!! I made it off the list!!!!! .....just in time to start paying the PSD. I was certain they had strung me along with all those 3- and 4-game carrots, just to rope me into the PSD situation. Whether or not that's the case will forever remain a mystery to me, I suppose. It also worked.
I went through a lot and waited on that damned list a long time. The ONLY thing that will EVER cause me to give up my season tickets is if I am physically unable to attend, or dead.
August 24th, 2016 at 1:24 AM ^
August 24th, 2016 at 10:56 AM ^
That whole thing is dumb.
August 24th, 2016 at 9:35 AM ^
is always a great experience and the atmosphere can't be beat. However, as I got older I got to the point where I would just rather watch the game on a large HDTV in a very comfortable seat with food, beverages and a bathroom right near by. Going to the game also basically takes up the entire day, where at home I can turn it off and then get into doing other things as soon as it's done.
August 24th, 2016 at 10:51 AM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
August 24th, 2016 at 10:55 AM ^
I've read that hypothesis a couple times when "experts" try to explain attendance numbers and I think there's something to it.
I haven't been to an NFL game in YEARS (and don't miss it much at all) but still try to make the drive from Pittsburgh to Ann Arbor once a year. As we all know, the NFL can't come close to the atmosphere at a big time college football campus. But as TVs have improved, I've found football to be more of a TV sport. I used to go to probably half of the Steelers home games, but now with better TV, I don't miss it at all.
As for Michigan, what I give up in seat comfort, food options, bathroom lines, a-holes around me, 4 hour drive each way, etc. is bested by atmosphere, tailgating, and the experience of being there, but I think my infrequent visits allow it to still be "special." I'm at the point where I only come up for the big games and am willing to pay the extra $$ for a seat between the 30 yard lines so I can still see the game.
But as my TVs get bigger and with better picture, I don't seem to miss being there as much.
August 24th, 2016 at 11:11 AM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
August 24th, 2016 at 11:44 PM ^