Five Takes: Closer look at why FSU football ticket sales have plummeted
Generating sufficient revenue has been a real challenge for Florida State athletics the past few years, and waning season ticket sales have further frustrated FSU's attempts to keep its head above financial waters. Barring a major surge in the coming weeks, the Seminoles are going to experience an extremely painful dropoff in season ticket sales (see related story) this fall.
Here's a look at five reasons why FSU is feeling this ticket crunch and whether anything can be done about it.
1. The obvious – losing too many games
There hasn’t been much excitement surrounding Florida State Football for a while. But the last two seasons have really taken a toll on even the most rabid fans. After suffering the first losing season in 40 years in 2018, FSU has a 12-13 overall record during the last two seasons. That just not something most Seminole fans have ever experienced.
As bad as the 2017 team was, at least it was somewhat competitive in most games (outside of the debacle at Boston College). That wasn’t the case in 2018. The Seminoles lost by more than 20 points in five of their seven losses, and that includes a 49-point drubbing at home to Clemson. And when the ‘Noles did win, it wasn’t pretty. Victories against Louisville, Samford and Boston College were last-minute nail-bitters that could have easily gone the other way.
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In addition to losing at an unprecedented rate, falling short of expectations has had a cumulative impact on fans’ psyche. For five straight seasons, the Seminoles have finished well short of their preseason ranking. But things have really gotten bad the last two years. In 2017, FSU was ranked No. 3 in preseason polls but finished with a 7-6 record and weren't considered a top-40 team. In 2018, the ‘Noles started out ranked No. 19 in the two major polls but completely went off the cliff. In Athlon’s final regular-season rankings, FSU came in at No. 89 -- just behind Louisiana Tech and Miami of Ohio.
If you are under the age of 60, 2018 was the first time you’ve witnessed a losing season at Florida State in your adult lifetime.
These negative factors would take a toll on any fan base. After getting punched in the gut in back-to-back years, it’s not all that surprising fans are reluctant to dole out thousands of dollars to purchase tickets and come to home games.
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