A day after the Badgers secured the Big Ten Championship, University of Wisconsin students took to the Athletic Department website, where tickets for the Rose Bowl quickly sold out.
Justin Doherty, spokesperson for the Athletic Department, said student tickets for the Jan. 2 game quickly sold out after they went up for sale on the department’s website at 9 p.m. Sunday.
Tickets for the general public also sold out rapidly during a sale Monday morning, Doherty said.
The department received more than 24,000 Rose Bowl tickets to sell this year. The preliminary tickets were sold internally within the organization to players, coaches and staff members in the Athletic Department.
Tickets then became available for non-student season ticket holders and Athletic Department donors who requested tickets from Oct. 31 through Nov. 30.
There is a slim chance for students to still purchase tickets from the Athletic Department, Doherty said, as some tickets may be returned in the next few weeks. This sometimes happens when tickets are set aside for a particular group, for example the Athletic Department staff, and not enough are purchased within that group.
“There is a chance that some more tickets become available,” Doherty said. “I would encourage [students to] periodically check with the ticket office late this week and early next week.”
Last year, the Athletic Department received more than 34,000 tickets. Doherty said the department receives fewer tickets for bowl games when the Badgers’ opponent is in the Pac-12. He said there are no travel packages available through the university but said other groups, such as the Alumni Association, are providing travel to Pasadena.
UW junior Sami Ghani said he bought his Rose Bowl ticket on his iPhone while on a bus coming back from a Mock Trial event in Illinois. He said he plans to carpool to Pasadena with several friends to the game.
Ghani said he would most likely have sought out Rose Bowl tickets through another venue had he not received bowl tickets during regular purchasing times, regardless of the steep price increase that often occurs when tickets are purchased.
“I love football, and I feel like it’s an event that’s best witnessed live,” Ghani said. “I can’t wait to be with all Badger fans, cheer in spirit of UW.”
