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Archive for Saturday, September 20, 2008

‘It’s a really unique view that no one else has’

This is the view at Kansas University's Memorial Stadium for people who pay for one of the 83 crimson and blue recliners, shown below, and 24 leather barstools with back supports just outside the south end zone. The recliners in the "Touchdown Club" run $2,500 apiece per season. The stools costs $1,500. The seats come with catered meals, and the section has its own bathroom.

By Christine Metz

September 20, 2008

Call it stadium seating with concierge service, the equivalent of watching live football in the comfort of your living room or the best place in the house to snag the ball after a field goal.

But on a rain-drenched Saturday afternoon two weeks ago at the Kansas University football game against Louisiana Tech University, Fern Badzin was simply calling it fabulous.

An ardent KU supporter, Fern and her husband, Jim Badzin, were among 100 or so fans watching the game from Memorial Stadium's exclusive "Touchdown Club" seating.

"Life is good," Fern Badzin said sitting in a leather recliner in front a flat-screen television and protected from the rain with a blue awning.

A new addition to KU sports in particular and college athletics in general, the seats combine luxury with an up-close and personal view of the end zone.

The 83 crimson and blue recliners and 24 leather barstools with back supports sit just outside Memorial Stadium's south end zone. The recliners run $2,500 apiece per season with the option of buying them at the end of the season. The stools costs $1,500.

The seats come with catered meals (on this Saturday it was chicken, rice and mashed potatoes from Longhorn Steakhouse) and all-you-can-drink beverages (Miller Lite and Heineken were on tap and bottles of Woodbridge and Yellow Tail wine were uncorked).

And the section has its own bathroom. The women's side included a vanity-sized bathroom mirror, hand lotion and potpourri. Not your typical stadium rest room.

KU staff were standing guard at the top of the stands, making sure guests were taken care of and wiping off wet seats as fans arrived.

Jim Marchiony, KU associate athletics director, said the university wanted to offer Jayhawk faithful something different.

"It's a really unique view that no one else has; it's comfortable and it's kind of out of the elements," he said.

This summer, the seats went on sale to Williams Fund members. They sold out in three weeks.

After being talked in to it, Jim Badzin bought two seats on a whim. At first he was a bit skeptical of the view he'd get from the end zone, but well into the first half of the game, he declared he was "pleasantly surprised."

The proximity of the seats to the blaring video board does make carrying on a conversation a bit difficult at times. And, when the game is on the north end of the field, the best view of the action often is on the flat-screen televisions.

But when the action is on the south end of the field, it's as close to a Jayhawk touchdown as many fans will ever get.

Take for instance in the second quarter, when George Grieb - a 20-year season ticket holder and owner of Lynn Electric - watched as Todd Reesing threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Daymond Patterson right in front of him. A minute or two later, young men crowded toward the back of the stands in hopes of catching the football as it sailed overhead on an extra point.

"It's phenomenal," Grieb said. "There isn't anyone else in the stands with this view."

Discussion

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20 September 2008
at 9:46 a.m.

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trvlronda (Anonymous) says…

One question: why does being rich equal being labeled “jayhawk faithful”?Some of us have been to many years of games that came with loosing records, enduring the visiting team fans outnumbering the home team fans, and bad weather. However, we still show up and we still love our jayhawks. Is that not the definition of a “jayhawk faithful”?
20 September 2008
at 12:29 p.m.

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aew20 (Anonymous) says…

My question is how do they get to alcoholic beverages? Do they have a liquor license for just the Touchdown Club?
20 September 2008
at 1:03 p.m.

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KU_cynic (Anonymous) says…

Another example of KU hypocrisy regarding alcohol consumption. KU's official policy is absolutely zero tolerance. For example, as a faculty member I had to sign off on an alcohol policy that effectively makes it a firing offense for my wife to meet me with a picnic lunch on campus with a couple bottles of beer or a half-carafe of wine to share. Until a couple years ago tailgating with alcohol was absolutely prohibited, and KU still won't allow beer sales at the Jay Bowl.But, for well-heeled donors in the “scholarship suites” or the touchdown zone I guess it's a okay. If it's for “fundraising” the taps can flow, even if the “fundraising” is virtually non-existant — like at tailgating.
20 September 2008
at 2:44 p.m.

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nobody1793 (Anonymous) says…

'It's a really unique view that no one else has'…except the people sitting behind the *other* end zone…
20 September 2008
at 3:24 p.m.

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StirrrThePot (Anonymous) says…

“nobody1793 (Anonymous) says: 'It's a really unique view that no one else has':except the people sitting behind the *other* end zone”Those were my thoughts exactly!Although I'd love to have a couple of those chairs in my basement sports watching area, those seats and the cost of them are ridiculous IMO, especially given the lousy view. If you are going to expand seating in the stadium (which they will need to do if the football team continues its trend), expand the seating, don't do something gimmicky like this.
20 September 2008
at 4:35 p.m.

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humblecommentator (Anonymous) says…

they miss no opportunity for a buck but it does sound cozy and i think i'll sign up
20 September 2008
at 4:37 p.m.

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blakus (Anonymous) says…

No beer and no comfy endzone seating makes blakus go something, something, something….