Growl seats for students will be assigned this year

October 30, 2012

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — All tickets for the University of Florida’s Gator Growl 2012 on Nov. 9 will have assigned seats.

In previous years, alumni and general public tickets were assigned seating, but student tickets were general admission. Samantha Hockenberry, the producer of Gator Growl 2012, said the general admission seating for students caused problems. Students would get to the stadium early to get the best seats and then later find out that they were sitting in assigned seats for alumni or other guests.

Hockenberry said that Gator Growl staff decided to have assigned seating for all ticket holders for the 2012 show to avoid this kind of confusion.

Students who want to sit next to a friend can purchase tickets together to ensure their seats will be next to each another, but assigned seating for large organizations seems as though it could pose a problem. This is why, Hockenberry said, Gator Growl is giving student organizations the option to be placed in block seating, similar to Gator football games.

Student organizations can fill out order forms to ensure that all of their members can sit together in a section of the stands. The order form just requires that each student fill out his or her name and UF identification number. Tickets purchased in a block do not have the additional $6 Ticketmaster fee, so they are only $15.

“It provides a discount to members of organizations,” Hockenberry said. “It also gives them the opportunity for the tickets to be printed out at once so that everybody can sit together within the block.”

To assist audience members to their seats, Gator Growl staff decided to hire ROTC members as ushers this year.

“We decided to go internal to give back to our campus and give back to ROTC,” Hockenberry said. “Plus, it embodies Growl’s patriotic theme.”

The theme for this year’s Gator Growl is “United We Growl” in honor of United States veterans. It starts at 7 p.m. in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and features guest artists Tracy Morgan and Josh Turner.

Kaycee Smith, a cadet colonel of Air Force ROTC, worked with Hockenberry to coordinate the ROTC involvement with Gator Growl. Smith said that the Air Force ROTC will be participating in the flag unfurling, color guard and drill team performance, as well as ushering the guests to their assigned seats.

Tickets for Gator Growl 2012 are $15 for students, $20 for UF faculty and staff, and $25 for alumni and guests. They can be purchased through Ticketmaster at www.gatorgrowl.org/buy-tickets. To purchase a $25 tax-deductible ticket for a wounded veteran and their family through the Wounded Warrior Project you can also visit www.gatorgrowl.org.