Preseason Hype, Lofty Expectations Boost Ticket Sales
July 24, 2002 | Football
July 24, 2002
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The time to buy is now for those who wish to have a first-hand experience of what promises to be a special season for the University of Louisville football team as less than 2,500 season tickets remain for the season-opener against in-state rival Kentucky on September 1.
A preseason top 20 national ranking and a Heisman Trophy candidate in quarterback Dave Ragone have made the two-time defending Conference USA Champion Cardinals the hottest ticket in town. Through Tuesday, the U of L Athletics Department has already surpassed last season's total and expects to sell the remaining lot of season tickets well in advance of the season-opener.
"This level of season ticket sales are unprecedented for this time of year and it certainly reflects the increased interest in our program on a local and national level," Brad Barber, assistant athletic director for operations and tickets, said. "We usually see a big push for season tickets right before the start of the season, but we're obviously way ahead of that pace right now."
Two of the bigger games on the Cards' home slate figure to be the season-opener against Kentucky and the highly-anticipated matchup with nationally-ranked Florida State on Thursday, September 26. Tickets for both the UK and FSU contests will only be available through season ticket packages as individual game tickets will not be sold for those games.
The U of L Athletics Department offers nine season ticket packages to accommodate many different needs. Tickets can be purchased between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. at the box offices on the third floor of the Student Activities Center and at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium or by calling (502) 852-5151.
In addition to the hot ticket sales, the Cards added a sixth nationally-televised game to the schedule, moving the Cincinnati game originally scheduled for Nov. 9 at 2:00 p.m., to Thursday night, Nov. 7 at 7:30 p.m. to accommodate an ESPN telecast. The move is a favorable one as the Cards have an open date the weekend prior to the game and play on Thursday night the following week at Southern Mississippi.
