University of North Carolina Athletics
Lucas: Priority Tickets Give Baseball Fans Chance For Big Impact
May 28, 2007 | Baseball
May 28, 2007
By Adam Lucas
The old bricks, creaky bleachers, and aging concrete of Boshamer Stadium may have just a few games left to see.
Mike Fox hopes to send the facility out in style.
The NCAA awarded the Diamond Heels a regional hosting site and number-three national seed during Monday's NCAA Tournament selection announcement. The benefits are simple: as long as the Tar Heels keep winning, they'll play at home until they earn a slot in the College World Series.
"It's a tremendous advantage," Fox said. "Ninety-two percent of teams that have hosted have advanced. That's an incredible number. But in order to have that home field advantage, the fans have to turn out."
Ten of last year's 15 top-seeded regional hosts advanced to the super-regionals; in 2005 14 of the 16 hosts advanced.
Carolina's regional includes Friday's opponent, Jacksonville, plus Western Carolina and East Carolina. Per NCAA rules, each school receives a ticket allotment. In order to help Tar Heel baseball fans turn Boshamer blue, the ticket office has reserved all remaining tickets for Rams Club members and past baseball ticket purchasers.
Fans that fall into those groups will have priority for Tuesday only. They can call the ticket office at 1-800-722-4335 beginning at 8:00 a.m. The priority standing will last only until 5 p.m. on May 29. At 5:30, any unsold tickets will be released for public sale on TarHeelBlue.com.
Fox believes the growing population of the baseball fan base combined with positive memories of last year's postseason run could result in a sellout before tickets are available to the public. Last year's Boshamer regional was a resounding success; the street outside the stadium was shut down to promote a street-fair type atmosphere. The same plans are in place for 2007.
"I heard from a lot of our core base of Carolina baseball fans after last season," Fox said. "But I had even more people come up to me and say, `I hadn't been a big follower of Carolina baseball but I really got into those games.' I thought that was great, and if those folks turn out, we'll have a terrific crowd this weekend."
Out of the 64 teams in the field, an impressive six are from the state of North Carolina. The Tar Heels are the only school out of the half-dozen that earned a hosting opportunity, providing a great chance to showcase a program that has moved among the nation's elite. Carolina enters the NCAA Tournament fresh off an ACC Tournament championship and ranked third in the nation in the Baseball America poll.
Boshamer crowds have increased in proportion to the team's rising status. Seven of the last 10 home crowds have surpassed 2,000. Nearly 3,000 fans crammed into the venerable stadium--which is scheduled for a major renovation as the conclusion of the home season; interested donors can still learn more about the project--to watch last year's squad defeat Winthrop for the regional title.
"Our kids were so excited last year," Fox said. "I could just see the looks on their faces. When you're down underneath and you're in the dugout, you don't realize what kind of crowd it is until you can run out on the field and look back. When you get out there and see all the people packed everywhere, every athlete thrives on that. It's what drives them and motivates them."
The venerable stadium is scheduled for a major renovation at the conclusion of the home season; interested donors still have a chance to learn more about the $17 million project, which is privately funded. But before the wrecking ball hits, Fox is anxious for Carolina fans to make one last statement in the old facility about the future of Tar Heel baseball.
"Our baseball fans have the chance to make a big splash," the head coach said. "If you talk to any recruit, they will tell you they want to play in front of big crowds. It would send a great message for the future with the new stadium on the way--it would say we're going to fill the new place and people are excited about coming to watch. You can't measure the huge impact big crowds have on recruiting and the status of the program."
Adam Lucas's third book on Carolina basketball, The Best Game Ever, chronicles the 1957 national championship season and is available now. His previous books include Going Home Again, focusing on Roy Williams's return to Carolina, and Led By Their Dreams, a collaboration with Steve Kirschner and Matt Bowers on the 2005 championship team.
