A conversation with Mike Holder
Published: 9/9/2009 1:22 AM
Last Modified: 9/9/2009 1:22 AM
As of Sept. 16, Mike Holder will have been Oklahoma State's athletic director for four years. When introduced as the new Cowboy AD, he said, "How big are your dreams? What's possible? I want to find out how good we can be at Oklahoma State University."
Labor Day Monday, two days after the Cowboy football conquered Georgia in the most hotly anticipated nonconference game in school history, was no holiday for Holder. He spent most of the day in his office at Gallagher-Iba Arena. During a 38-minute interview, he addressed a variety of subjects.
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Holder, 61, on the four-year anniversary of his appointment to the athletic director's position: "I feel pretty good. (Texas A&M athletic director) Bill Byrne told me that the average tenure for an AD in Division I is 3½ years. I'm already beating the odds."
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Last year, OSU officials considered the possibility of playing the 2009 opener – the Georgia game – at the new Dallas Cowboys stadium in Arlington, Texas, instead of Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater. By playing it in Stillwater, the OSU athletic department would make about $2.5 million. By playing it in the sensational new Dallas Cowboy stadium, OSU would have pocketed about $8.5 million.
Holder on OSU's decision to keep the Georgia game in Stillwater: "As I was walking out of the stadium, I looked back at the opportunity that we had to play that game in (Arlington). It was tempting. We wouldn't have had to share the gate. We would have paid Georgia only (a) $300,000 guarantee. But I try to make decisions around here based on what gives us the best chance to win. I think long-term, that's how you maximize revenue – you win. When Mike (Gundy) agreed to play Georgia in Athens (in 2007), it was with the agreement that we would play Georgia in Stillwater. To all of a sudden say, 'No, we're going to Dallas for a payday,' that doesn't make the right statement to our players and recruits about what Oklahoma State football stands for. We're not saying that the payday is the most important thing around here."
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Only three years after OSU sold only 32,903 football season tickets, OSU's current school-record total stands at about 45,500.
Holder: "Back in July, (OSU ticket manager) Tom Johnson predicted that we would do 42,500. He's a pretty conservative guy and I was happy with that prediction because of the bad economy. But I've got to hand it to Adam Barnes. He works in our ticket office, and on the 24th of August, he stepped out and wrote 45,000 up on the board. Well, here we are. Adam Barnes is kind of a hero around here. I owe him a steak dinner."
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The current season-ticket sales total represents an increase of nearly 6,000 over last year's total.
Asked whether he was surprised by that level of increase, Holder replied, "In this economy? Yeah. Most (universities) are experiencing a downturn. A lot of people are down 10 percent or more. For us to be up almost 14 percent, that's a testimony to the change in attitude brought about by that new football facility and then the success of the team and the hope for a good season."
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For two years, OSU has had a unique season-ticket policy – to have a designated "premium game" each season, with admittance limited only to those who purchase season tickets. This year's "premium game" was the Georgia showdown. Last year, it was Bedlam. The sales figures suggest that the policy has been a success. Will OSU continue to have it for years to come?
Holder: "We'll keep doing it until we don't need it anymore. And we'll know when we won't need it anymore, because we'll be sold out. . . . People said, 'Let everybody come to the (Georgia game). That's an attractive game, and people might come to the game and like it and want to buy a (season ticket).' I don't think that would happen. It hasn't worked (in the past). We've had plenty of marquee opponents and (only) a few sellouts. Usually when Oklahoma or Nebraska comes to town. But it's never gotten us to where we're even close to selling out on season tickets. So let's try something different. What have we got to lose?"
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When it was announced that the Boone Pickens Stadium renovation would result in an expansion to 60,000 seats, critics considered it foolish because until last year, OSU had never averaged even 47,000 for a season.
Holder: "It was viewed as a field of dreams – a pipe dream. People should buy season tickets now, while there is availability and good seats to be had in the stadium. Stake your claim. There will be a day when you can't get a ticket. There will be a waiting list."
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Holder looks ahead at the 2010 football schedule, which includes home games with Washington State, Tulsa, Troy, Nebraska, Texas A&M, Baylor and Oklahoma: "It's very attractive. In some ways, it's better than (the 2009 schedule). Tulsa is a great draw for us. There's a lot of interest in that game. We'll sell a lot of tickets for that game."
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Holder has been criticized for including the new song "Cowboys Forever" in the pregame presentation. Now that OSU has game under its belt, how does he feel about the song?
Holder: "I'll say this about the song. Love it or hate it, we keep stats on when students (arrive) at the game. Believe it or not, for Bedlam last year, a significant number of students showed up 10 or 15 minutes after kickoff. When I looked up there on Saturday, before the team came out, the student section was full. I think a lot of them came in because they had an opinion about (the song and video). What do they say? That no publicity is bad?"
-- Bill Haisten
Written by
Bill Haisten
Sports Writer
