In the absence of other changes, BuzzCard scanning at football games remains another attempt at solving the same student ticketing issues that seem to come up every year.
Swiping BuzzCards is not a perfect solution, but it does address the problem of tickets being sold or given away to people who are not Tech students and thus have not paid the athletic fee. Not only does this practice hurt school spirit, but it also affects Tech students who have paid the athletic fee and are unable to obtain tickets.
At the Gardner Webb game, five percent of student tickets did not have eligible BuzzCards—a small but significant number. While only about 2,000 student fans came out that day, both the proportion and number of student tickets being used by people who do not attend Tech could vastly increase at sold out games against rivals like Georgia. This precludes fee-paying Tech students from attending games and showing their school spirit. Students wishing to invite a friend along can purchase a discounted date ticket.
However, ticket scanning brings new problems while leaving others unresolved. There are not enough resources to scale the program at games with higher attendance where it would most be needed. While new solutions are being considered, no specific plan is in sight. In addition, many of the complaints about football ticketing stem from block ticketing, under which any group can arrange to sit with hundreds of their closest friends, often leaving small groups with no chance of securing tickets to the most popular games.
The block ticketing system, in effect, is often abused. The cap for the number of seats that can obtained in a given block should be lowered to no more than 100; anything more is unnecessary. At the same time, the minimum—currently set at 20—should be done away with. Football games are inherently social events, and every student should be able to conveniently arrange to sit with his or her group of friends.
The 1st and 10 program for students and young alumni allows groups to sign up in advance at the beginning of the semester and secure blocks in which GTID numbers are matched to each set of vouchers turned in, minimizing abuse and maximizing the benefit to large, dedicated groups.
A complicated scanning procedure may not be the answer to all of the complaints that exist against the football ticketing process, but the bottom line is that the rules should be enforced. The few who take advantage of the system should not be allowed to infringe on the rights of the larger student body who paid the athletic fee and expects to have an equal right to show its school spirit at any football game.
Consensus editorials reflect the majority opinion of the Editorial Board of the Technique, but not necessarily the opinions of individual editors.