Some prices up for UNM football

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - It's a basic law of economics to raise the price of a product that's in demand.

The Lobo football team has just three wins in three years, a growing sea of empty seats and this year's season tickets are definitely not in demand. But, UNM is raising ticket prices.

It's no secret the football program is hurting for money, but could this strategy backfire?

UNM football players saw a lot of empty seats last year. Fans have stayed away more and more over the past three seasons as the Lobos went 3 and 33. To give you an idea, just three years ago the Lobos sold more than 17 thousand season tickets. So far this year, just over 8 thousand; down almost a couple thousand from last year. That’s despite the hiring of Bob Davie, a big name coach.

“We actually did a restructuring of our seating this year so in some areas prices did go up and in some places prices did go down,” Brad Hutchins with the university said.

That’s for some of the seats on the east side of the stadium, but prices went up pretty much everywhere else by a buck to 5 dollars more a game.

Hutchins says there's more to the Lobo football experience than just wins or losses, and said prices are still very fair.

“When you look at our ticket prices as a whole we still have very affordable season tickets especially when you compare that to the Mountain West Conference,” Hutchins said.

News 13 asked why raise prices? We know the football program lost a ton of money last year, and had to buy out Mike Locksley’s contract. UNM would not say why; all they'd say is it was time to re-evaluate the seating chart and prices.

Single ticket game sales go on sale next month; those prices haven’t changed. UNM does have a new family plan that breaks down to five dollars a ticket.

UNM has only sold 8-thousand season tickets so far. The goal is 15-thousand. With first game just six weeks away, there's obviously serious selling left to do.