Virginia Tech athletics launched its Virtual Sellout campaign on Wednesday, Sept. 23, an initiative in partnership with Coca-Cola designed to offer Hokie fans the opportunity to purchase a virtual seat, row, or section in Lane Stadium for this fall while providing exclusive items and access to commemorate the 2020 football season.
All proceeds from the season-long Virtual Sellout campaign will go to support Virginia Tech student-athletes and help mitigate the forecasted budget deficit as a result of COVID-19.
Fans who purchase a virtual ticket option will receive a scratch-off ticket in the mail with a variety of prizes available. The grand prize will be a VIP experience in Lane Stadium for a home game in 2021.
A single virtual seat in Lane Stadium is available for just $10 and includes one scratch-off ticket, while a $25 single premium virtual seat will come with a commemorative sheet of season tickets displaying the Hokies' original 2020 schedule and three scratch-off tickets.
A virtual row of 20 seats is available for $200 and includes the commemorative sheet of season tickets, an exclusive Virginia Tech 20 oz. Tervis tumbler, 10 scratch-off tickets, and the opportunity to be featured on Zoom in real-time on the videoboard during a home football game.
A virtual section of 100 seats can be purchased for $1,000 and comes with the same incentives as a virtual row with the addition of a fleece blanket, 20 scratch off tickets, an 11x14 canvas print of Lane Stadium, and an invite to a VIP virtual conversation with notable Hokie football alumni (date TBD).
If a diehard Hokie fan is feeling particularly generous, all 65,632 virtual seats inside Lane Stadium can be secured for $500,000. A purchase of the entire stadium will include all of the above items, plus the use of a Lane Stadium suite for a game in 2020 (if allowed) or 2021.
Comments
i'm a little short on the 500k, can someone spot me a few bucks?
Also, I need to do a painting of Lane. I didn't realize I wanted one until I saw it offered in the prizes
I got 34 cents and some pocket lint.
I'll see your pocket lint and raise you a fuzzy Chicklet
I'll see the pocket lint and the fuzzy Chicklet (or some kind of gum, I think), and raise you a button.
I'll see your button and raise you a kinda shiny rock and a CVS receipt.
How the hell do you fit a CVS receipt in your pocket?! Did you strap a bag of holding to your leg?
Cargo pants, I bet.
On the positive side, he won't need toilet paper for a while.
Am dad. Can confirm.
We should skip on that and buy all the seats individually. I mean how do you pass up 65k individual scratch-offs
With that many you're pretty much guaranteed to win.
Virtually!
Do they allow some virtual money? I have plenty of that and can cover ya.
Don't get me wrong, I think this is an interesting way to try and make a quick buck, and allow the fans to have something to remember this shitshow of a year on a global scale, but don't try and sell me on a huge grand prize of something that I have a difficult time believing will happen (fans in stadiums in 2021).
I didn't downvote you but I don't see how this isn't a possibility. You already have schools allowing 20-25% in. The article never said 100% fans/capacity in 2021.
A lot of time from now and 2021 season, a lot of things can change... for better or worse. If we get a vaccine approved before, you probably have schools allow a lot more than 20-25% next year.
I mean, if things aren't back to relative normal by Fall 2021...many of us, including myself may be out of work!
...or found dead in a pile of empty bourbon bottles.
Most likely this.
I appreciate that the Athletic Department is trying to be innovative and creative here.
I'm still amazed how well Tech is handling the money side of this. Considering schools like Texas, anOSU, Minnesota etc are laying off people.
I imagine that (1) tech was running leaner than those schools to begin with, and (2) those schools might be laying off poor performers. Regardless, seems like everyone in our athletic department is a valued employee. Good to hear that no one has been laid off yet.
I've heard stories of employers who just needed an excuse to get rid of people using covid for that.
Yeah I think like mentioned this is definitely a good time to have a department that was not running at a deficit like so many other athletic departments
When you historically have less peeps than the others, you have less to lay off.
Idk what a suite for an entire season goes for, but if half a million is just "a game," I reckon I can just about kiss that dream goodbye.
I thought they should have just made the suite a sweepstakes grand prize for anyone who buys a virtual ticket. Seems like a pipe dream to hope someone forks out $500k for that when someone with those means could have done that at any time before this.
For the group seating suites it's about $2500 per seat per season if they are still available when it's your turn to pick seats. Suites for a season I don't believe are near the $500k price but it's probably up there for what you need to have given cumulatively.
I know for Clemson, the private suites are actually advertised in their premium seats category, it's a waiting list, and it's round about 100k/yr if memory serves me right. And they are not large lol I've never even seen Lane's private suites advertised...may be one of those "if you have to ask" kinda deals lol
EDIT: turns out, if you google "Lane Stadium private suites," a link to that very damn thing comes up and sends you to the HokieClub website which shows the bastards in all their glory.
Tldr; I'm an idiot.
It's a pretty suite gig.
I was able to watch a few games from a south end zone suite that a family member had back before the west suites existed. I know it wasn't anywhere near that cost for the season back then, though things probably changed quite a bit with the reseating and all. I think hokiebuzz is probably on the right track with his post.
The ones in the west have fireplaces in the pictures on HokieClub's website. Looks like a really fancy living room lol
The $2500 number is straight from the Hokie Club website for the large club seating, both interior and exterior. The private suites I know are not $500k per season but the people that do own them that I know have given million dollar gifts to the university. Private suites are likely in line with the same $2500 per seat cost for the season except you have to pay for all seats in the suite. Assuming 15-20 person capacity, I would guess the suites are about $50k per season which doesn't include the food or drink that you also supply.
You are correct but I wanted to point out that the total donation amount necessary to have priority for a private suite likely substantially changed when reseating occurred. Under the previous system, it was possible to gain the highest priority by being a long time booster or meeting a relatively low lifetime donation ceiling, which ultimately allowed for substantially less in continuing donations to the Hokie Club once a certain priority level was achieved.
I like it. A sheet of 2020 tickets will be something cool to have framed down the line as The Season that Never Was.
I have a few 1994 World Series Baseballs.
Psshhht if you wanna virtual sell out you can get this virtual donation
I got the email and immediately thought I would be able to watch those damn ACC Network games virtually while supporting the university.
I would 800% be committed to doing this for every game if it guaranteed I could watch every game without having to resort to scrambling to find what channel/network/website and then reverting to online streams every single weekend anyways.
Same here I was so excited. I can't bring myself to paying $50-70 a month this year for what's probably going to be an incomplete schedule.
Guess I'll just have to find a sports bar that has ACCN /s
Appreciate the hustle but that is gonna be a no for me dawg. Best of luck in your virtual shenanigans
Actual on this Whiskey Wednesday I have changed my mind, I will take the $500k package. Virtual Money on the way
You jest about virtual money but for the bargain price of 50 bitcoins, you can virtually buy out Lane Stadium.
Hell, why not. Got me a couple premium ones. Thanks for posting.
C'mon.
Some badass out there must have $500K to buy out the whole stadium. That would be an awesome move, and you would rule Lane.
While I think the small denomination packages are great and they should make some money off those....the 500k package is a bit, odd. If someone is throwing that kind of money around and doesn't already have a suite at lane and/or they weren't already donating/part of techs AD as our bagman (kidding) than we are doing something wrong. I doubt someone is going to throw that type of money around for a tumbler, painting, a chance to win a VIP prize and 1 game in a suite when we already complain about donations as is. Hell renting a suite in Jerry's world is 300k a year that gets you access to the stadium for ALL events - concerts, football, etc.
Some one corporate, or a group of people? Or someone who just simply cannot make it to Lane for games? Someone who wants to donate, but hasn't yet for the Hokie Club for whatever reason, and now they are getting something for it? It's fundraising. While it might not seem like the perfect fit, and maybe it won't ever be "bought" at least they are trying and not just expecting to send out 60,000+ scratchoffs. This isn't about the suite. This is about keeping the VT Athletic Dept afloat during down times.
You're right they are trying, but it's been hard times at VT for a while. I know it's been awhile but I think we were rocking a new thread a week on how the fundraising/AD has been awful and how we can fix it. This is crap they should of been doing to gain donations to begin with, but it took them until they were about to drown to be like - we really need to do something. Now their asking all those groups of people you alluded to during the same time most of them are trying to keep their company, family, etc afloat with all the uncertainty. That was my main point - these people, company etc. that' have 500k should have already been in Techs back pocket and if they have the money donate to help keep something they like/love afloat. It all goes back to tech is 22 steps behind and will never be out in front.
To me, that seems harsh.
I mean, I donate every year. It's not like VT graduates (or fans) don't know VT athletics needs money to operate, just like every other school with an athletics program and scholarships that are funded through donations.
If you want a successful program, donate. Don't look for excuses why it's not a good year for that.
(Not aimed at you, aimed at folks who think it's not the best time to donate.)
I tried to purchase a ticket but the website will not let me decline the insurance on a virtual ticket. Hah
I could have missed it but I didn't see any pictures of the gifts (tumbler, blanket, print). Did anyone else happen to see them?
They did not but I think they tervis tumbler will look like this...
Y'all can downvote this, but I'm about to speak the truth
Tervis tumblers are ugly, and I have no idea why anyone likes them.
Sipping out of one right now and my water is cold so I am happy with its performance
agreed... rather just pay more for the yeti tumblers
They like them because they keep your drinks cold.
I agree with the others, though about Yeti's or Yeti knockoffs. Those are the best.
The looks of my beverage containers rarely ever come into play when I want a drink.
SMH - so shallow - true beauty is measured by the inside.
Just ordered the premium virtual ticket. Been looking to fill a wall in the home office with VT related stuff. Hoping the commemorative season ticket will be a good addition.
20 years from now tell everyone you made it to every game in 2020 /s
20 years from now, nobody will believe that we actually used to have physical tickets
They may marvel that we were entertained by a dangerous sport like football.
The sport will adapt and live on. Probably won't be as violent, but it will live on.
I bet someone said that about gladiators...
It needs to come back!
considering gladiator competitions continued for nearly 1,000 years, I think we have a little while to go before football runs its course.
The kids I see these days are packed in bubble wrap and egg cartons to go to the bus stop.
If football lasts 1,000 years, it's not going to look like the sport we watch.
Bus stop? That sounds like something from the olden days...like way back in 2019 or something.
Believe it or not, kids still take the bus to school.
Have you not seen Rollerball? The future is more dangerous.
Rollarball was kept right by the checkout of the video rental place growing up, so you see the spiked glove and I always wanted to watch it. So finally my dad lets me watch it. 20 years later my mom finds out and yells at my dad for letting me watch it. His defense was that I was to young to understand it.
I don't know why my mom was mad, I turned out normal .... err well ...hmm its not like I'm out there killing people for political gain.
The only movie i have EVER walked out on.
This is the Rollerball you should be watching.
Not that it's great, but not worthy of being walked out on.
That's the one.
Shit. Boxing still exists.
I really like physical tickets, I will be sad to see them go.
Ordered that for myself as well. Seems like it'd be a cool thing to display for sure.
Two observations:
1. You can purchase the $500,000 option online. OK - I'll just put that on my Discover card
2. When you click through the $500,000 item, there is a quantity box. Sweet - I'll get two!
When you put that in your cart some alarm went off in blacksburg. People were popping champagne bottles until you hit the back button then they all just looked at each other sheepishly and went back to work
You didn't hop on the 5.25% cash back card?
If I have a spare $500,000 I'm not worried about cash back...
Anybody else surprised they don't take AMEX? Could be some filthy rich Hokie out there with an Amex Black/Centurion out and ready to drop a half mill. They get to checkout and its a no go.