USC approves seat-licensing plan

Thanks to our reader known as 'tums" and The State paper for reporting that the seat-licensing plan is now a reality at USC. Here is the text from today's article in The State -

The USC Board of Trustees today approved the plan that would require some season ticket-holders at Williams-Brice Stadium to pay up to $395 for the right to purchase their seats. Seat fees will range from $25 to $395. However, trustees were told that the average seat fee would be $157. The plan would affect 48,500 seats at the 80,250-seat stadium. Student seats would not be subject to the fee. Only 360 seats would carry the top-tier price tag. The largest bloc of seats affected is a group of 13,480 spread throughout the stadium, and those would carry a fee of $145. The implementation of the personal seat licenses, beginning for the 2009 season, is expected to generate $7.6 million in annual revenues. Officials studied similar plans about two dozen schools, including 10 in the SEC and other non-conference schools such as Clemson, Georgia Tech and North Carolina.