by David Chapman
Staff Writer
The Jacksonville Jaguars will hit the field Friday for the first home preseason game.
Full-season tickets will be sold until 7:59 p.m. Friday. After that, they will be sold prorated for the remaining games.
As of this morning, 13,997 tickets remained to be sold to avoid TV blackouts for the 2011 season.
While he doesn’t expect that number to hit zero by game time, Macky Weaver, team senior vice president of sales and marketing, said a more reasonable goal is to bring that number down to around 8,000 tickets.
Then, single-game tickets, half-season packs and group sales could fill the gaps to avoid the blackouts that last plagued the 2009 season.
That season, with a 7-9 record and seven of eight home games blacked out, generated headlines that the team wasn’t in a viable market and a move to Los Angeles would be inevitable.
“We were the poster child for those conversations,” Weaver told the Southside Business Men’s Club Wednesday. “We can’t go back to that.”
Last year, a marketing campaign led by the Team Teal ticket-selling effort and by local businesses generated enough energy and sales to avoid blackouts.
This year, a lengthy NFL lockout spurred by labor disputes among owners and players has sapped momentum, Weaver said.
Weaver praised local businesses for stepping up in recent years to offer assistance by subsidizing ticket sales for their employees. He said he’s been told that led to improved employer-employee relationships and overall goodwill.
Last year, 45 local companies participated in the effort. This year, close to 80 companies have stepped up, said Robert Tilka, team senior manager of ticket sales.
Weaver said other NFL franchises were calling the Jaguars to find out how Jacksonville was able to avoid blackouts and build corporate participation in the 2010 season.
The new collective bargaining agreement has revenue sharing among all 32 teams and Weaver said the Jaguars franchise has to contribute its part. To do so, it must “fill the stadium out.”
Weaver told the group that fans can be proud of the team built by General Manager Gene Smith, relying on both character and talent.
He said the team leads the NFL in player involvement within the community, participating last year in more than 1,000 appearances, including visits to schools and hospitals.
“Every ticket matters,” said Weaver. “People get fixated on the big number, but it really is a matter of ‘every ticket matters.’”
On the field, a successful team will translate to success at the ticket office.
“My job gets much easier if we win,” said Weaver.
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