It would be an understatement to say Penn State football is a big deal. Consequently, getting the tickets required to make the most of the Saturday experience has become quite the event. While the process of obtaining ticket packages hasn’t always gone smoothly, a sellout is inevitable in this day and age.

More than 21,000 Penn State students purchased season football tickets last week, ensuring that the loyal, enthusiastic and vibrant section again will be filled to capacity in Beaver Stadium. The sale for each class took place on its own designated day, with 90 percent of the tickets for each class sold within the first 15 minutes of each sale.

90 percent in the first 15 minutes is certainly impressive, but for some reason, others are fretting over the decrease in pre-registration:

[Penn State Associate Athletic Director Greg] Myford could not provide exact numbers but said “just under 40,000” students registered this year, while “more than 40,000” students registered last year. There are only 22,000 tickets available for students every year.

To the uninformed, this seems to indicate a decrease in interest. However, the drop in pre-registration has been widely attributed to the replacement of email notifications by Student Central, and more importantly, the implementation of the ID-based ticketing system.

In essence, this is good news. Not only did the 22,000 student seats sell out quickly, but by most accounts it wasn’t the battle royale that the sale has been for the past two years. The decision to place student packages on IDs prevented scalpers from flipping the ticket package for a profit merely minutes after the sale, and therefore lowered the demand for the package itself. While some students were upset that they didn’t get an email reminder for pre-registration, and likely even more were longing for the days that a $200 profit could be had for simply remember to log in at 7 am on a Tuesday, those of us who deserve the tickets can’t help but like the new system.

Student tickets for football games will continue to be a coveted commodity until the team ceases to exist or they expand the student section to fit the entire population. Thankfully, it looks like the Athletic department has taken a step in the right direction when it comes to refining its sale procedures.

[Sources: Penn State Live and The Daily Collegian]
[Poster Courtesy PSU Athletics]