OSU Football Season Ticket Sales Much Higher Than Expected With Pandemic
STILLWATER – Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy sent out a tweet on Friday that probably surprised quite a bit of people that follow and are concerned about Cowboy football. Season ticket sales for Cowboy football are down just 1% from where they were a year ago and with the on-going coronavirus pandemic, that’s really impressive.
WOW!! Check this out ➡️ Oklahoma State football season ticket sales are only down 1%! This proves #okstate fans are loyal and true. As a former player and grad of OSU, I can't say enough of how proud I am of our fans. Stay the course. Great things are right around the corner! pic.twitter.com/acTTsYbLE9
— Mike Gundy (@CoachGundy) May 8, 2020
Pokes Report publisher Robert Allen spoke with Oklahoma State senior associate athletic director for external affairs Jesse Martin earlier today and the athletic department was just as surprised.
“When we got that news on the sales report, there was a lot of joy, a lot of excitement and a lot of hope that goes into that as well,” Martin said. “We are 1% behind what we were in 2019 and I think that just kind of shows that message that our Oklahoma State fans, they’re committed to coming back when it’s safe and when we get the green light to do that and they’re going to be there to cheer on their Cowboys. Did we think it’d be that high? I don’t think any of us knew what to expect, but we are very happy about that. We can’t say thank you enough to our season ticket holders, to our donors that are committed to coming out and watching some Cowboy football.”
I think the most important thing that Martin said was when it’s safe to return and when the athletic department gets the green light to open things back up. No one is sure what’s going to happen or when the college football season is going to begin.
As of the beginning of May, the University of Alabama is planning on having fans back in the stadium for the upcoming season and will adapt and change as things progress. The Governor of Oregon, Kate Brown, said on Thursday that large gatherings at sports and other events in Oregon should either be canceled or significantly modified through September.
Will the season begin on time at the start of September with a full slate of non-conference and conference games? Or maybe with just a conference slate? Will it be postponed a month, two months, three months or even until the spring, or possibly even cancelled? Will there be full stadiums, or will athletic departments have to adjust and let in only a certain number of fans? No one knows for sure, but Oklahoma State fans, as well as fans for every sport across the country are ready for sports to be back.
Another angle to look at if fans aren’t able to be in the stands, or even if they are in a limited capacity, will there be tailgating. As we all know, Oklahoma State has one of the best tailgating atmospheres in the country.
“I’ve been here at Oklahoma State for 15 years and we all know what tailgating has grown into through those 15 years, what a spectacle it is, what a great tradition it is here at Oklahoma State,” said Martin. “I’ve been at the forefront of it; I’ve been out there trying to help grow it, trying to help it go responsibly. One thing I can tell you: while we don’t know exactly what that will look like, that will all be dictated at a national, federal, state and city level on what we can and can’t do, but one thing I do know, throughout the years with our tailgating, when we thoroughly communicate with our fans and ask them ‘Hey, help us out with this,’ or ‘Can we change the times a little bit, can we do this a little differently?’ Our fans are very responsive, very respectful and whatever we ask them to do, they find a way to do it and be adaptive.
“So, our fans are adaptive and if we continue to let them know what we can and can’t do and that might be spacing,” said Martin. “We’re very fortunate to have a very beautiful campus with a lot of accessible tailgating spots that we can expand a little bit. Once we know exactly what we can do and communicate that thoroughly and directly to our fans, we’ll definitely let everybody know. We do not want to see that cherished tradition of tailgating here at Oklahoma State take a step backwards, but we will be here to help do it in a responsible matter in the same breath.”
Something else to keep an eye on moving forward will be the deadline for bringing back players and entire staffs. May 31 is the next Big 12 deadline, so the next three weeks will be crucial for that.
