New Penn State football ticketing system leaves students frustrated

Henry Pleszkoch would go to great lengths to secure Penn State football student tickets.

At the break of dawn on a June morning, Mr. Pleszkoch would wake up and, with help from family members, enter a Ticketmaster queue on multiple devices in case of computer crashes or Ticketmaster hiccups.

At 7 a.m., when tickets could officially be purchased, Mr. Pleszkoch secured them every year. Typically, Penn State’s student season tickets would sell out in under 30 minutes as thousands vied for a guaranteed spot in the student section.

But now, that first-come, first-serve process is coming to an end. The university announced on Tuesday that it will implement a requestand-lottery system for student ticket purchases that will be implemented this upcoming football season.

Under the new system, students will have a week to request season tickets. Penn State will then randomly select students’ requests for its 21,000-seat student section. The timing of a student’s request will not impact their chance of securing a ticket.

School officials said the new system aims to bring “equal opportunity” to all students. Penn State Athletics considered student, parent and family feedback when developing the new system.

But some fans feel the updated process is unfair to die-hard Nittany Lions who now have no control over whether they’ll secure tickets. Hundreds took to social media to express displeasure with the new system.

“I think the goal of Beaver Stadium should be to have the most committed students in the stadium,” said Mr. Pleszkoch, a senior studying finance. “This is a step in the wrong direction.”

Though the previous process “seemed to reward the most dedicated fans,” athletic department spokeswoman Kris Petersen said that wasn’t always the case. She pointed to technical issues and other commitments that prevented some students from securing tickets.

She added the decision to change the sales process “was not taken lightly.”

“As always, the university and athletics department will continue to evaluate all aspects of the fan experience, including the student experience, in Beaver Stadium and gather feedback after each game and throughout the year to guide the decisions made,” Ms. Petersen said in a statement.

But many students still feel the new system takes away any control they had over receiving season tickets. Mr. Pleszkoch said he thought the April 2 announcement was an April Fools’ joke.

Though the former ticketing system was “stressful” and required the “sacrifice” of waking up early, Mr. Pleszkoch foresees more issues with the new process. Namely, he and other students expressed concerns that the new process will exacerbate reseller and attendance issues.

Under the old system, some students only purchased season tickets to attend the big games, like the White Out and homecoming matchups. Others sold most or all of their tickets for hundreds of dollars more than their initial value.

But those students at least had to wake up early to secure tickets. Now, a weeklong request period and lottery system could mean that more tickets end up in the hands of students who are apathetic about Penn State football or want to make an easy profit, the students said.

“I understand the fairness aspect of it … but there’s so many other things they could do to fix [the system] and make it more fair to everyone than just making it a lottery,” said Reese Hays, a junior studying political science and criminology. “... People who are die-hard Penn State fans aren’t going to get tickets, while someone who hasn’t ever watched a football game is going to sell theirs for double or triple price.”

Mr. Hays would like to see Penn State implement a point system that rewards students who attend more sporting events with guaranteed purchasing opportunities. Schools like UNC and the University of Michigan have implemented their own point systems.

Evan Pochas, a freshman studying broadcast journalism, echoed this sentiment.

Mr. Pochas added there were issues with the old system being run through Ticketmaster. The new system will operate under Penn State’s Student Account Manager.

But the new process “alienates” dedicated fans, he said.

“Even the old way — which wasn’t very good — is better than what they’re pitching,” Mr. Pochas said.

Ms. Petersen did not specifically address the prospects of a point-based system. In regard to ticket resales, she said this “has occurred over a number of years in a variety of ways.”

And some students are remaining optimistic about the new process. Among those students is Ethan Connor, who serves as president of Nittanyville, a makeshift town of students who camp outside of Beaver Stadium in the hours or days before home games to secure front row seats.

Mr. Connor, a junior studying risk management, said he hopes the new system allows more students to secure tickets.

“I, along with most students, was surprised and definitely was not expecting it,” Mr. Connor wrote in an email. “I think there is a lot of relief taken off the shoulders of students now that [waking] up and [waiting] in the queue is no longer the norm.”

Season tickets to attend the Nittany Lions’ seven home games will be $246.