LSU ticket plan angered some fans, but many are supportive

BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA - While LSU football fans aren&#39;t celebrating the steep increases in ticket prices proposed for the 2004 season, many seem resigned to the idea that LSU&#39;s sports programs need more money, and that those who want the best seats should pay more. <br> <br> ``I don&#39;t mind paying it,&#39;&#39; said Kenny Mayeaux, who will have to pay a $400 annual surcharge on each of his sideline season tickets if he wants to keep them after this season. <br> <br> But Mayeaux, a mortgage broker who said he can afford the difference, said he did not expect all season ticket holders to be as forgiving as he was. <br> <br> ``For a lot of other people, it might be a stretch. I think these new surcharges will affect a lot of people,&#39;&#39; Mayeaux said. ``As long as it&#39;s well spent, I don&#39;t mind paying it.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Under the plan announced this week, each lower-bowl sideline ticket between the 25-yard lines would carry the $400 annual surcharge, while other sideline seats would carry a $350 fee. End zone seats would require an $85 fee and some upper deck seats also would carry annual fees between $85 and $150. And that&#39;s just for the right to buy tickets that will jump from $32 to $36 per game. <br> <br> Athletic director Skip Bertman said the money will go toward renovations and new construction on a variety of athletic facilities serving more than just football. And some money will go toward academics. <br> <br> Season ticket holder Claudia Mayence of Shreveport didn&#39;t like the plan. <br> <br> ``It smacks me in the face,&#39;&#39; said Mayence, who will have to pay and additional $85 each for her and her husband&#39;s tickets. ``Skip Bertman is ruining Baton Rouge, and I&#39;m not the only one who is thinking that either. A bunch of people in Shreveport think that. I don&#39;t know what Skip is doing to the athletic program down there, but he&#39;s very money hungry. <br> <br> ``Skip is ruining this for the average Joe,&#39;&#39; she said. ``You can always pick up tickets right before the game from folks, good seats sometimes, for $10, $15. If Skip keeps this stupid stuff up, these surcharges on everything every time you turn around, then he&#39;s pricing all of us out of the market.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Alabama requires a $1,200 surcharge for its best seats, while South Carolina has a $750 fee for similar seating, according to SEC records. <br> <br> ``A lot of the other schools are still charging a lot more than LSU is,&#39;&#39; said Thomas Pinckard of Denham Springs. Pinckard has four season tickets in the end zone, which falls in the $85 surcharge area. <br> <br> ``We&#39;ll pay for it,&#39;&#39; Pinckard said. ``It&#39;s worth it. We like the football.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> John McCawley of Baton Rouge will also pay the additional money, but he wants a return on his investment. <br> <br> If LSU coach Nick Saban ``could promise the Sugar Bowl, it would be OK,&#39;&#39; he said. ``I&#39;d pay anything if we keep winning. It&#39;s a mandatory bribe. But if we start losing, I&#39;d boycott the whole thing.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Patsy Seguin said it was ``interesting&#39;&#39; that LSU is terming the added money as a donation. <br> <br> ``I think the donation is not quite a voluntary donation,&#39;&#39; she said while visiting Mike the Tiger&#39;s cage at LSU with her husband Butch and grandchildren. ``You either donate or lose your seat.&#39;&#39;