As of last Wednesday, public season ticket sales for University of Minnesota men’s basketball were approaching last year’s total of 5,666. An information request to the U by Sports Headliners generated various ticket sales numbers including that the sale for 2022-2023 public season tickets was at 5,517.
The number of public season tickets accounts for 2021-2022 was 1,908, compared to last week’s total of 1,857 for the coming season. There is no change from last year in pricing of public season tickets.
As of last week, University student season tickets totaled 2,138 and had surpassed last year’s 2,096.
There is positivity among fans about second-year head coach Ben Johnson and optimism regarding his recruiting and transfers. The Gophers’ 2023 recruiting class has two hyped players who have verbally committed, center Dennis Evans from Riverside, California and guard Cameron Christie of Rolling Hills, Illinois. Recruiting authority 247Sports rates Evans the fourth best center prospect in the 2023 national recruiting class and Christie the 23rd best shooting guard. This season’s team features North Carolina transfer forward Dawson Garcia who was a McDonald’s All-American playing at Prior Lake High School.
Minnesota has an exhibition game at Williams Arena Wednesday night against St. Olaf (tickets $6 to $16) and then opens its regular season schedule with a nonconference game against Western Michigan November 7. Asked about possible sellouts this season at 14,625 seat Williams Arena, the U ticket report document speculated the February 12 Iowa game and March 5 Wisconsin game might do so.
The Gophers’ overall record last season was 13-17. In Big Ten games Minnesota finished with a 4-16 record and tied for last place with Nebraska in the 14-team conference.
The outlook for the upcoming season is the Gophers will be an improved team but forecasters still have them finishing among the bottom group in the Big Ten. Minnesota’s Big Ten and NCAA Tournament records the last several years has impacted fan support. Dating back to the season 2017-2018 season the Gophers’ conference record is 31-67. Minnesota qualified for one NCAA Tournament during that time, splitting two games in 2019.
Home attendance has been declining for years. About 15 years ago public season tickets totaled over 9,000.
The pandemic prevented fans from attending games for the 2020-2021 season, but the three prior years the public season ticket totals were as follows: 5,944 (2019-2020), 6,155 (2018-2019) and 6,524 (2017-2018).
The average attendance of 10,267 last season was the second lowest since 1970-1971 (8,395). The 2019-2020 average was 10,232.
Gophers Notes
The Gophers play in the SoCal Challenge November 21 and 23 in San Juan Capistrano. Creative Charters is offering five-and-seven-day packages to enjoy not only the games but to experience the weather and attractions on the California Coast. The Stillwater-based company of Steve and Dorothy Erban has been offering Gopher and other fan travel since 1993.
Through a request for information to the University of Minnesota, Sports Headliners has learned the Gophers will pay legendary football power Alabama $300,000 to play at Huntington Bank Stadium September 18, 2032. Alabama will guarantee the same amount to Minnesota for the September 17, 2033 game in Tuscaloosa.
Minnesota and Alabama athletic departments will both generate large revenues, with the assumption here each will keep all home game revenues including ticket receipts. Guarantees for nonconference games are often much larger than $300,000, further creating big paydays for both schools.
Minnesota is 1-0 all-time against Alabama. The Gophers beat the Crimson Tide 20-16 in the 2004 Music City Bowl in Nashville. Minnesota is 9-8-1 against current teams in the SEC.
With balmy weather and an attractive 1:30 p.m. start, the Gophers announced a surprisingly large attendance of 49,368 for their game against Rutgers last Saturday. The Gophers haven’t sold out a game this season in their 50,805-seat stadium but could November 19 against Iowa. Big Ten teams keep all home revenues.
Despite ups and downs over the decades, interest in Gopher football in the state is considerable. That interest can translate into ticket sales and TV eyeballs. The Minnesota at Penn State game October 22 was televised on ABC nationwide and in the Minneapolis-St. Paul marketplace had 250,000 viewers, per Darren Wolfson on a recent SKOR North podcast.