Michigan State raises football ticket prices

East Lansing — Michigan State has not adjusted its pricing to attend football games at Spartan Stadium since 2008, but that will change for 2012.

Athletic director Mark Hollis announced Thursday a comprehensive new pricing plan that he believes will allow the Spartans to remain competitive in the Big Ten and nationally.

"We need more resources and we're asking Spartans to stand up and help in that process," Hollis said. "We think we've done it pretty fairly."

Starting this season, all season-ticket holders will be required to make an additional donation to the Spartan Fund along with the price of the tickets. The donation will range anywhere from $25 to $600, depending on where the seat is in Spartan Stadium. It will include all lower-bowl seats, excluding the student section, and the West portion of the upper bowl. The East upper bowl will be for season ticket-holders that don't wish to make a donation.

"As we look at the past we've had four tremendous years," Hollis said. "I think as an AD, anytime you have something that happens positive it comes at a cost. That cost is to continue to provide top-quality facilities, be able to enhance the fan experience through things as big as video boards and as small as restrooms. Everything in between needs to be addressed at Spartan Stadium."

In addition to the donation, all season-ticket packages will cost $308, the same cost most have been since 2008. Some family packages had been lower but this brings everything in line. Also, individual game tickets will increase with five games costing $80 per ticket and two games going for $50. In addition, student ticket prices will increase $4 per game, to $164, up from $136.

Hollis said he expects to gain anywhere from $1.5 million to $3 million with the new plan that he announced to the Board of Trustees on Thursday.

That increased revenue will go toward not only upgrades at Spartan Stadium, but the increases in coaches' salaries and the rising cost of scholarships.

When defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi was being courted by other schools after Michigan State's bowl game, much of it centered on salary. Narduzzi made around $230,000 last year. Narduzzi was given a raise to stay at Michigan State, but that amount hasn't been made public.

Hollis hopes this price increase provides the resources to retain coaches such as Narduzzi.

"We want to be competitive and we want to win championships," Hollis said.

Hollis said 41 percent of season-ticket holders would see a $100 increase in their cost, 25 percent would see a $102 increase, 9 percent would see a $50 increase and 7 percent would see a $25 increase.

Also, people who have had season tickets for 50 years were grandfathered in and will have no increase. Hollis said that was about 200 season-ticket holders, accounting for roughly 400 seats.

If reaction to plan is negative and the revenue expected does not come in, Hollis admitted that some tough choices might have to be made, including the elimination of some of the school's 25 sports programs.

"It's going to take resources, flat out," he said. "We've been operating at a modest level and we've been doing good things with the resources we have, but we've been holding a lot of things together with rubber bands. Many of our sports have been operating at a dramatically lower level of resources than our competitors."

Hollis also mentioned the possibility of cutting back on the 13,400 student tickets that are currently available in Spartan Stadium.

Frequently this season, the student section was not full. Hollis doesn't believe cost is the problem since all the tickets were purchased; he thinks it's cultural. However, he is hesitant to make the decision to cut the seats at this point.

"It's a double-edged sword for an AD to make that decision," he said. "If something rebounds, all of a sudden you're criticized for not having access for students. But you're also sitting there looking at five out of seven games with an empty component of the student section. As of today it's staying the same, but it could change as early as next year."

mcharboneau@detnews.com

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