It only took two and a half hours for all the spots on a bus to Central Michigan University to be filled for Wednesday's Ball State University football game.
The Student Government Association sold all 55 spots on the bus it is sponsoring to Central Michigan by 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. SGA President Frank Hood said he thought the bus trip would be a success, but he did not anticipate how big of a success it would be.
"We figured we had a good chance of it selling out," he said. "We were a little bit concerned because of the distance and the time on the bus."
When the doors opened at 8 a.m. to begin selling tickets, Hood said, there were 20 people already waiting in line. The fans received spots on the bus on a first come, first serve basis.
Each spot cost $10 and included a ticket, a spot on the bus and food on the bus.
While each student only paid $10, Hood said, the trip cost SGA much more than that.
"The $10 really doesn't cover anything, it only covers the ticket," he said. "The cost of the bus and the food SGA is covering."
Hood said SGA is spending more than $2,500 out of its discretionary fund to finance the trip. The bus alone cost almost $2,300, he said.
For its one-year in office, Hood's SGA administration received $80,000. That money pays for all the expenses SGA incurs throughout the year, including office costs, receptions, advertisements, cosponsorships and fireworks for Homecoming.
The discretionary fund comprises $10,000 of SGA's $80,000 budget. That means the association spent more than a quarter of its discretionary funds on the Central Michigan trip, making it one of the group's most expensive events of the year, Hood said.
Because of SGA's limited budget, Hood said a second bus to Wednesday's game will not be offered. Instead, the group is looking into sponsoring a viewing party somewhere on campus, he said.
The limited budget also prevented the group from sending buses to more games throughout the season. SGA also sponsored a bus to the Indiana University football game earlier this season.
The distance to Central Michigan was part of the reason SGA chose to have a bus for this game, Hood said. While Miami University - which Ball State played this week - is located about 90 minutes from Muncie, Central Michigan is about a four-and-half-hour drive, making it more difficult for fans to make the trip themselves, Hood said.
SGA also chose the Central Michigan game because it is expected to be one of the most important of the season for the Ball State football team, he said. The Chippewas, who are the two-time defending Mid-American Conference champions, are 8-2 overall and 6-0 in the MAC.
Also, the match up with the Chippewas features two of the conference's best quarterbacks, Hood said. Central Michigan is led by last year's MAC Offensive Player of the Year, Dan LeFevour.
Hood said SGA spent about a month planning the trip to Central Michigan. It was able to get ticket prices discounted to $10 through Central Michigan's ticket office because it got a group rate. According to the Central Michigan athletics Web site, individual tickets cost $15-$22 for Wednesday's game.
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