Entitlement. If there’s any Duck fan who has every right to possess this attitude, it’s the University of Oregon student.
Every Sunday night before the upcoming home Duck game, we wait anxiously for 6 p.m. to arrive. That’s when the student ticket site opens and tens of thousands of students all enter their user name and password as fast as their fingers can type.
With so many students trying to get tickets at the same time, few are able to get through the system.
Many students wish that the UO Athletic Department would return to the previous system of distributing tickets on the Mondays before the game at Autzen and EMU ticket offices. It was a wonderful system that involved camping out with your friends, skipping class, drinking coffee and eating take-out food. It was true dedication and really separated the hardcore fans from the students who don’t even know why a first down is something to cheer about.
Last week when she was unable to get a student ticket for the USC game, Brooke Brown, junior at the UO, drove to Florence to buy a ticket. “True Duck fans are willing to sacrifice for their tickets, like standing in line all night rather than just clicking a button online. It frustrates many hardcore fans that they could lose their ticket to someone who doesn’t even know who Masoli is,” Brown said.
“True Duck fans are willing to sacrifice for their tickets, like standing in line all night rather than just clicking a button online. It frustrates many hardcore fans that they could lose their ticket to someone who doesn’t even know who Masoli is.” – Brook Brown
Krystal Catchpole, a sophomore at the UO agrees, “Due to the inadequacies of the UO system, I actually attended an OSU football game before I attended at UO game.”
Last Thursday, the UO Athletic Department announced that, “Due to the request of many students, the ASUO has decided to stagger the student ticket pick up this week for the ASU game.” It’s not even up to the ASUO, it’s the responsibility of the Athletic Department. Why do they refuse to take responsibility for their irresponsibility?
Today, Paige Landsem, sophomore at the UO tried out “the new and supposedly improved” system. “I logged on a half an hour before the designated time and things seemed to be going smoothly until ten minutes before the ticket distribution began. All of a sudden, I was hitting the same links every time, but getting to a variety of different pages. My roommates and I were all trying. None of us were seeing the same thing. We were unable to help each other. When three people are all trying to get tickets through the same system and are all getting different messages, you can’t call that an efficient system.”
When will the UO Athletic Department wake up and realize how inefficient and nerve-racking this system has become? Landsem expressed her stress saying, “The UO ticket distribution system might cause me to have a heart attack!” Every week it’s a gamble. Will I get my ticket or will I be left in confusion yelling at my computer screen?
Now in my senior year, I am thankful to have received such an outstanding education from a Pac-10 school. Yelling “Oooooh,” at the top of my lungs with more than 50,000 other fans at Autzen Stadium has undoubtedly enhanced my college experience. Now looking back, I can’t imagine my college years without Pac-10 sports. But what’s the point of having such wonderful experiences available to students if they cannot take full advantage of them?
Last week’s domination over USC brought the school and the community together in a night of exhilaration and celebration. Then again, if you weren’t there because you couldn’t get a ticket, I guess you missed out on arguably the greatest night in Duck football history.
We, the students of the UO, have a right to these tickets and a right to attend the games. Tickets should be distributed to the most loyal fans. Not just randomly to anyone who’s willing to sit in the comfort of their home and click a button at 6 p.m.
Kristina Rhodes is a senior at the University of Oregon studying journalism and public relations. She is also the firm director of Allen Hall Public Relations, the student-run PR agency of the School of Journalism and Communication. For more information about Kristina, you can read her blog, Communication Rhodes or follow her on Twitter.
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While I understand the frustrations of students, I view this situation very differently than most.
Working at the UO Athletic Ticket Office, many students complaining about the system simply do not follow directions. For instance, logging into the system early does not necessarily benefit one’s chances of receiving a student ticket. Thus, students (as mentioned in this piece) shouldn’t fret about that.
Secondly, this is not the fault of the UO Athletic Office. This system was implemented because of the ASUO, as professors were upset with students missing class. Although the ASUO insisted upon an online way to allocate student tickets, they did not have the financial support to do so. The UO Athletic Department was gracious enough to spend over $100,000 to implement the online system. Thus, students should be thankful to the athletic department and vent frustrations at the ASUO.
The ASUO also purchased a very limited amount of tickets. For example, the student group purchased significantly less tickets for the California game as in previous years. This is a contract negotiated in the spring term of each school year.
As an employee of the Athletic Ticket Office, the continuous blog posts, media attention, and student phone calls are offensive, because as a student, I believe that all fellow students should have an equal right to attend a football game, especially as ALL students pay for tickets through tuition payments.
Often, these posts, including this, blame the ticket office and the athletic department for an inappropriate reason. The athletic department has done nothing but cater to the needs of the University of Oregon, UO students, and UO faculty.
Camping out for tickets might be enjoyable and a fun way to meet and relate to Duck fans, but students who value their education as the main priority should have an equal opportunity to receive tickets as those deciding to skip class.
Feel free to contact me via my website OR the athletic ticket office (1-800-WEB-FOOT) for additional questions, as full knowledge of the system is important before criticizing it.
Hahaha! Love the post. Also, would this OpEd have been written if the author got a ticket? Most likely not. She would have thought everything was fine.
As a student who works part time, I was never able to get a ticket with the old system because you can’t just skip work for a football ticket:
“Hey boss, yeah, I’m gonna be late this morning … Why? … Football tickets. Don’t worry, all my friends are skipping class, so it’s cool.”
I’ve had no problems with the new system and am tired of hearing students complain. With that said, I’ll probably be locked out for the Civil War tickets. Damn.
Great post, Jeremy.
Hey all, Kristina (author) here. Interesting comments. To answer your question Benson, yes I’ve gotten a ticket to every game.
So, since I haven’t been a loyal football fan, and won’t sacrifice either class time (which I pay for) or work hours, I don’t deserve to take part in the “great” experience of football games? I agree with Jeremy that students who all pay equal tuition deserve equal chances to enjoy part of the college life–football games with friends.
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