COLUMBUS, Ohio –– Change is on the horizon for Ohio State season-ticket holders beginning in 2022, as the Department of Athletics announced its plan to update the ticket and seating model for football games at Ohio Stadium on Thursday.

By the start of the 2022 football season there will be six pricing zones at Ohio Stadium, expanded from two, and in five of the six, a per-seat financial contribution outside of the ticket cost itself will now be required. The per-seat contributions will all go to the Buckeye Club; a program that funds scholarship costs for Ohio State student-athletes.

“There’s no question that this is a revenue opportunity,” Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said on a Zoom call Wednesday. “We need to grow our annual giving program.”

The only seating section for season tickets that will not require a per-seat contribution is Zone 6, which mostly includes seats located in the upper areas of the stadium behind the north and south end zones.

In Zones 1-5, per-seat contribution requirements will range from $100 to $1,500, with Zone 1 being the most expensive due to its mid-field location.

For the 2022 season, which is projected to feature eight home games, Ohio State estimates that the total cost per seat –– including ticket price and contribution –– would come out to $2,787 for Zone 1, $2,151 for Zone 2, $1,522 for Zone 3, $1,135 for Zone 4, $899 for Zone 5 and $710 for Zone 6.

“Honestly, I think it’ll be a mixed bag,” Buckeye Club director Jordan Birkemeier said. “There’s gonna be a lot of people that are gonna be very happy with the changes, and then there’s gonna be people that are potentially upset with the changes. Like Gene mentioned, it's something completely different than we’ve ever done, and it’s a complete culture shift to what we’re used to.”

Season ticket prices for students will not change, and students will not be required to make a per-seat contribution.

Many season-ticket holders will have to pay more money than they did before, and in particular, the nearly 8,000 combined accounts through the President’s Club or long-time purchasers that were not previously required to make a contribution in order to gain access to season tickets.

The same is true for 7,000 faculty and staff accounts, should they choose to select a seating zone with a per-seat contribution, although these accounts will get a 20 percent discount on both the required donation and ticket price itself.

The Ohio State release states that just over 52 percent of seats will only have a required contribution of $250 or less, and that almost a third of current season-ticket holders will actually pay less money for their same seats.

In addition, the total number of season ticket locations that won’t require a per-seat contribution adds up to 1,400.

“It becomes an issue of preference,” Smith said. “If you think the 50-yard-line is the best place to see the game, then you’ll pay for that. If you’re OK with being on the 10-yard-line and C-Deck and you can see the game, then you can pay for that.”

Smith said that the Department of Athletics has been exploring options to modernize the model for years, and that the new changes might even have been implemented for the start of the 2021 football season if not for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Under the previous model, contributions from season-ticket holders could be made to a number of non-athletic departments at Ohio State. Beginning in 2022, all contributions will go to the Buckeye Club, which raises about $14 million per year, Smith said.

The scholarship program for student-athletes requires just under $27 million per year, but Smith said this new model could eventually increase Buckeye Club funds to $25 million.

Money that was previously allotted to student-athlete scholarships could then be used for other purposes within the athletic department, such as facility maintenance and staff salaries.

“Keep in mind we oversee 407 acres of land, 3.8 million gross square feet of building. We can’t fundraise for that maintenance,” Smith said.

The new model will also impact parking options and the seat selection process, and Ohio State has launched a website to detail all aspects of the new model, which you can check out right here.

While the changes may not be popular with all, members of the athletic department will hold Zoom meetings with season-ticket holders next week to discuss questions and concerns about the new model.

“I think long-term, when people understand the program, it will definitely be a positive impact,” Birkemeier said.