by David Chapman
Staff Writer
The saying goes that nothing in life is free.
Unless, of course, you’re one of the fans who will be sitting in the stands of Veterans Memorial Arena tomorrow to watch the Jacksonville University Dolphins take on the East Tennessee State Buccaneers in men’s basketball.
Admission is free to the public, yet behind the scenes, it takes money and cooperation to host an event of such magnitude. For JU, enter Jacksonville-based MPS Group, one of the school’s corporate sponsors.
“It was a mutual agreement,” said Joel Lamp, JU’s assistant athletic director for media relations. “MPS Group wanted to make a big splash.”
According to Lamp, each of the school’s corporate sponsors receives a home game for advertising purposes. MPS Group, though, took it to another level.
“They bought out the night,” he said. “It’s a win-win-win for everyone involved.”
For JU officials, they hope to have a capacity crowd to see the game. MPS Group pays an agreed-upon attendance fee and receives marketing benefits. Fans who attend the game benefit by free admission and parking, with hot dogs and sodas $1 each.
“We’ve been involved with sports in Jacksonville for quite a while,” said Mark Stevens, vice president of marketing at MPS Group. “This is a great opportunity and anytime we have a chance to get our message out to people in such a large number, it’s a good thing.”
It’s the large numbers that Lamp hopes to see, too. He said he expects anywhere from 5,000 to 6,000 people, but he noted it’s difficult to forecast those numbers without knowing how free admission will affect casual fans who wouldn’t have otherwise gone to the game.
“The game is an opportunity to get people back involved with JU basketball that might not have been involved in a while,” said Lamp.
The game picked by MPS Group wasn’t random – the game is being televised regionally on Comcast Sports-Southeast, and East Tennessee State was the preseason pick by Atlantic Sun Conference coaches to win the conference.
However, JU is on a roll so far this season and is the lone undefeated team in Atlantic Sun play.
“A while back we didn’t think it would be that big of a game,” said Lamp. “Now it’s a huge game.”
The combination of team records, exposure and scheduling made the game an especially intriguing opportunity, said Stevens.
“We looked at a few games, but this is the one that just made the most sense for us,” he said.
Future promotions might be in the picture, said both Lamp and Stevens. But too much of a good thing could actually hurt the product by cheapening the value of season tickets, said Lamp.
“We can’t do it all the time, but we’d like to get this off the ground,” he said. “This is a chance for JU to reconnect with the fan base for a big game and it should be a benefit for everyone involved.”
Tomorrow’s game starts at 7:30 p.m. at Veteran’s Memorial Arena.