Ask the AD Transcript - August 10, 2018 - Kansas State University Athletics

K-State Athletics Director Gene Taylor sat down with K-StateHD.TV's Brian Smoller to discuss recent improvements to Bill Snyder Family Stadium and a handful of other game day experience tweaks aimed at providing Wildcat fans the best fan experience in the Big 12 Conference.

BS: Talk about the newly released list of improvements here at Bill Snyder Family Stadium for the upcoming 2018 season. There are a lot of these to get through.
GT: Sometimes people think the projects have to be big, like the West Stadium Center, but our staff does a great job every year of looking at projects to make the stadium and fan experience better. Obviously the East Club is our biggest project this year but we have a lot of exciting things for our fans to understand and know about in the year ahead, which again makes coming to Bill Snyder Family Stadium a better opportunity.

BS: What do you see as the highlights of the People State Bank East Club $1.5 million renovation?
GT: Pretty much everything. I did not get over here a lot last year but they really upgraded everything from the concession areas, the bar areas and the amenities. It looks and feels brand new, which it is. As the fans come in, those that have been in the East Club are going to see a 'wow' factor when they walk in. There are seats available so we will have a chance to highlight it at our Fan Appreciation Day. The fans that are in the East Club will be able to come over and walk around and those that might be interested in East Club will have opportunities to take a look and see what seats are open. It is absolutely beautiful and our fans will really dappreciate the new upgrades.

BS: It really mirrors a motif on the West Side.
GT: That was kind of our effort. People go back and forth and they came over here so it is next. The staff did a great job really building this up.

BS: There is a new addition to the West Side: the new beer garden on the South Terrace. I do not know if people realize that that was a place where beer was sold previously but you had to have a special tickets to get in. Not the case anymore.
GT: We talked last time about alcohol sales and I got some emails from folks that were concerned. This is not our step into general alcohol sales in the stadium but it does give our fans an opportunity to come in and have a beverage in a controlled environment. It was available last year but it was a special ticket. Now we are going to open it up a little bit more. We are just trying to enhance our fans' experience and opportunities when they come in. This will be a great addition.

BS: Two hours prior to kickoff all the way through the end of the third quarter for the beer garden. This was in works long before the Oklahoma State announcement came out so not a reactionary move. The Powercat Perks program sounds like something that will really benefit everybody…
GT: Basically, we have created an app that the fans will be able to download. As they come into games they will be able to secure points. They will be able to take those points that they add up over the course of the football season and go to various vendors in the community and get discounts and opportunities, whether it is restaurants, shopping opportunities, 2-for-1s. Those are opportunities once they build those points up. Just another chance for our fans to enhance their time when they come to Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

BS: Speaking of ticketing, let's talk about Student Mobile Ticketing. No more paper handout tickets for a student?
GT: Like most of us now, students live on their phone. For them to take the time to feel like they have to print out a ticket just limits their chance or interest on whether they want to come. We are trying this with our students. We think it will be a much easier option for them to show their phone, walk in and not have to pick up a ticket or print a ticket out. We need our students to come. They are a great part of the atmosphere and I think this will be another chance to make it easier for them to attend our games.

BS: On this list of improvements there are some other things to help with the efficiency of getting students in, like pedestal scanners. Some of that stuff is pointedly directed at trying to get more students in as quickly as possible. There are some new concession offerings, such Chick-Fil-A on the South endzone and there are some more on the V-level.
GT: We are trying with every chance we get to enhance the concession opportunities across the stadium. Chick-Fil-A is obviously a very popular brand and we are really excited to have them in the stadium. Other upgrades to the concession areas are more food options. I think we will be able to get on our app or website and look at those options. I think our Fan Experience Staff and our general staff in athletics really spent a lot of time to make sure that when our fans come on Saturdays to Bill Snyder Family Stadium, they are going to see changes every year. There may not be physical changes every year but certainly changes that fans can experience no matter where they are in the stadium.

BS: We did not go through all of the changes for the 2018 season right now so you can go online and go through the whole list through kstatesports.com and see which one may peak your interest. We have a long streak of sell-outs going.
GT: One of the things that I enjoyed so much last year was the energy in our stadium. The energy in a sold-out stadium is phenomenal for the atmosphere but more importantly for our football team. We have seen opposing team players talk about how difficult this stadium is to play in when it is sold-out. Right now we have tickets available. We certainly want to continue the opportunities to sell-out every game. We have a great line-up of games this year and plenty of opportunities and chances to buy tickets. Keep buying tickets because we want to have you here.

Kansas State University Athletics

Ask the AD Transcript - August 10, 2018

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