Gators football tickets a harder sell as UF focuses on enhancing fan experience

Florida receiver Justin Shorter transferred from Penn State after having played in packed houses at home in Happy Valley and on the road at Ohio State’s famous Horseshoe and Iowa’s historic Kinnick Stadium.

A season after COVID-19 cut capacity by 80%, Shorter cannot wait to see the iconic Swamp bursting at the seams with fans cheering their Gators, beginning with Saturday night’s season opener against FAU.

“From what I hear, they say the Swamp is just a whole different experience,” said Shorter, now in his second season at UF. “I have yet to be at a full-out capacity game, so hopefully, we can make this first one a great one.”

UF’s University Athletic Association would like nothing more, either, following a $54.5 million shortfall during 2020-21 due to the pandemic. But even before the virus struck, filling massive stadiums and selling season tickets had become a challenge, even at college football’s top programs.

Conferences coast to coast have contended for some time with high-definition, big-screen TVs, spotty internet connectivity at stadiums and an unpredictable economy — further exacerbated by COVID-19. Those factors, plus the inconveniences of travel, traffic, parking and long lines, have kept some fans at home.

“You can’t just open the gates and give people a 12-inch piece of wood to sit on anymore,” UF athletic director Scott Stricklin recently told the Orlando Sentinel.

UF and the SEC overall have bucked the trend better than most.

The Gators were 12th nationally, and seventh in the SEC, in average attendance during the 2019 season, with a reported 84,864 fans per game at 88,548-seat Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

Sellouts at the Swamp used to be a given and tickets tough to come by.

But the 2018 LSU game and a 2019 visit from Auburn generated the only packed houses at the Swamp during coach Dan Mullen’s first two seasons. Season ticket sales in 2021 stand at 61,150, up more than 2,000 since 2019 yet down more than 6,000 since 2017 despite Mullen’s 16-3 record at home.

Stricklin, now in his fifth year as AD, said the responsibility is on the Gators not only to field a winning team but also create an atmosphere worthy of a fan’s investment.

“It’s critical,” Stricklin said. “People can sit at home and watch a game. We need to make the fans feel really special when they come to campus.”

Everything from the tailgating experience to WiFi connectivity and from concession-stand selection to restroom cleanliness must be on point. Parking needs to be easy to find and the stadium easily accessible. Once fans are in their seats, the video boards and sound system must be cutting-edge.

To attract fans, UF has built a food patio featuring Chick-fil-A and Hurricane BTW, among others, on the stadium’s west side and a Swamp Head beer garden on the north lawn. Additional concession areas this year in the north end of the stadium aim to alleviate concourse congestion.

Fans must also feel safe, especially as the delta variant continues to infect many Floridians. But based on an uptick in ticket sales, Gator Nation seems to be hungry for a football season much closer to normal.

According to UF, the season-ticket renewal rate is more than 90% higher than in 2019 and above the six-year average of 86%. The school sold more than 5,400 new season tickets and sold out of its allotment of 16,642 student tickets.

Fielding a compelling product will help maintain the momentum.

“Just going out there making plays and winning games,” Shorter said. “I feel like that’s going to get people more excited than anything.”

Scheduling must-see games will generate excitement, too.

The Auburn win in 2019 was played amid one of the loudest environments at the Swamp in years. The Gators’ much-anticipated Sept. 18 visit from Alabama is expected to rival the atmosphere.

Similar game-day environments have been too far and few between, leading to fewer sales at the gate. When season tickets dipped to 60,114 in 2018 and 59,131 in 2019, the Gators played two FCS opponents each season. UF had played no more than one during a season since 1988.

Stricklin since has been at the forefront of the push for Power 5 schools to schedule more top-end opponents. UF now has future home matchups with Utah (2022), Miami (2024), Cal (2026), Colorado (2028) and Notre Dame and NC State in 2032. Return dates are scheduled at each team’s home stadium.

But the addition of Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC in 2025 throws scheduling into question, including Texas’ 2030 visit to the Swamp and UF’s 2031 game in Austin.

Stricklin will push to preserve his efforts.

“My hope would be we wouldn’t have to cancel any of those contacts, that we could move games around and maybe we’ll have to spread them out a little bit,” Stricklin said. “The goal would be to try to retain as many of those as possible.”

For now, the Gators’ focus is returning to the Swamp with a familiar feel and full stands for the first time since Florida State’s November 2019 visit.

“We’re just glad to be back at it; give the fans what they’ve been waiting on,” tailback Nay’Quan Wright said. “They’ve been waiting a long time.”

Too long, Mullen said.

“There’s always that extra excitement to go back out there and feel that rush of adrenaline of the crowd and excitement coming out again,” Mullen said. “Now you’re doing it for the first time in almost two years, really. When you look at that and you’re saying, ‘Holy cow.’

“Can’t wait to get out there and just feel the energy again. I think it’s going to be really exciting.”

This article first appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email Edgar Thompson at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com or follow him on Twitter at @osgators.