The NCAA men's basketball tournament is coming back to Omaha in 2012. So how do you get a ticket?
My suggestion would be to join the legion of Creighton basketball season-ticket holders (13,500 strong), even if your favorite color is red, green or purple.
You may recall the big ticket flap in 2008. CU, as the host of the NCAA first rounds at Qwest Center Omaha, offered its season-ticket base first dibs to the 11,000 tickets it was allowed to sell after the NCAA and Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority got theirs.
After Jays fans bought their tickets, there were 1,000 left. Rather than open those 1,000 to a general-public lottery, CU officials gave Jays season-ticket holders a second shot at tickets. Creightonians snatched them up.
The rationale was this: CU officials figured that they would have gotten at least 10,000, if not 20,000 requests for those 1,000 NCAA tickets. Each request carries an $8 service charge that is not refunded by the NCAA if you don't get tickets. So, if you requested eight tickets (which was done with a credit card number) and didn't get any, you were still out $64. CU officials chose to avoid dealing with 10,000 to 15,000 angry customers.
As for 2012, Creighton Assistant Athletic Director Kevin Sarver said the NCAA would not allow the hosts to comment or speculate on the 2012 ticket process until the NCAA approves that process, which will happen next spring.
But it's a safe bet that the school will take the same approach in 2012. Tickets for that event figure to go on sale in 2010. So, if you want a shot at NCAA tickets, your best bet might be to buy Jays season tickets in 2010. There are plenty still available, Husker fans.
• Count me in for wanting no college football polls until Oct. 1, or after the nonconference season, or “exhibition season,'' as Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer calls it. It's crazy to prop up some teams without playing a game. Fortunately, the first four weeks have weeded out several pretenders and teams that earned big wins moved up. There are still a couple of head-scratchers. How about the coaches ranking Penn State over Iowa and Oklahoma State over Houston? Say what you want about us gravy-stained wretches up in the booth, but we got those right.
• I love seeing Boise State in the top five. I would also love to see Boise State in the BCS title game against Florida, Texas or Alabama. Not only would it be great theater, the Broncos would have to put up or shut up. As it is, Boise State has a cupcake schedule the rest of the way. But now, as the Broncos are sure to move up each week with the BCS teams knocking each other off, they're going to have to play with pressure each week.
• Everywhere I went on Sunday, I saw an Iowa sweatshirt. What a strange phenomenon. How about them Hawkeyes? They're not pretty. They've done it with a heavy dose of defense and special teams, and they matched up well with Penn State. But they're 4-0, and they look as good as any team in the Big Ten right now. Funny thing, you don't hear about coach Kirk Ferentz being overpaid as much these days.
• Nebraska volleyball's woes may not be predictable, but they can't be all that surprising, either. The Huskers have been able to lean on the shoulders of arguably their top two players all-time, Sarah Pavan and Jordan Larson, the past five years. Those two bailed out NU time and again. This team is learning how to play without that special dominant presence. They'll be back, but you start to wonder if there will be any red in the Qwest Center come December.
• A crowd of 9,972 showed up to see the L.A. Kings and New York Islanders last week at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., where they would love to woo a National Hockey League franchise. I would think that Omaha would draw more for an NHL exhibition at the Qwest Center.
• Will the Lancers get that many in their debut at the Civic Auditorium on Saturday night? When the Lancers were playing at Ak-Sar-Ben, I heard a lot of people say they belonged at the Civic. It will be interesting to see how they draw. It seems like a natural.
Contact the writer:
444-1025, tom.shatel@owh.com
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