The novelty of the first College Football Playoff championship game "doesn’t seem to be driving up ticket prices on the secondary market," as the average cost to get into Monday's Ohio State-Oregon matchup at AT&T Stadium "seems to be dropping by the day," according to Brandon Formby of the DALLAS MORNING NEWS. By kickoff, the average cost on the secondary market "could be the lowest for a college championship in five years." The lowest price on TiqIQ "was $483 on Tuesday afternoon," while the highest "was more than $5,600." TiqIQ said that the average price for all tickets sold so far "was $1,129," which "is far less than the $5,087 fans paid to watch Oregon take on Auburn" in '11. Still, it is "slightly higher than last year’s average $907 for a ticket to catch Auburn and Florida State." Experts said that a number of factors -- "from geography to stadium size to fan base -- affect ticket costs." One thing that "may be influencing prices is North Texas’ distance from the teams’ campuses." Since Friday, the average price "has dropped consistently." StubHub Communications Specialist Cameron Papp: "We generally see prices drop as we get closer to the event." Through yesterday, 25% of StubHub's online sales "were coming from within Texas," as compared to 15% from Ohio and 10% from Oregon (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 1/7).
PLAYING IN THE BAND: In Dallas, Hunter Hauk lists the concerts and performers that will be in North Texas this weekend in advance of Monday's game. Friday's CMT Ultimate Kickoff Party will be held at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center, which is being "dubbed Playoff Fan Central temporarily." Performers include Lady Antebellum, Toby Keith, Big & Rich and Brett Eldredge. Saturday's AT&T Playoff Playlist Live at American Airlines Center will include performances by Lenny Kravitz and Sting. Monday's Championship Tailgate, which will be held at 12:00pm CT outside AT&T Stadium and is free to ticket holders, includes a performance by the Zac Brown Band (DALLASNEWS.com, 1/4).
