When most students arrive to Carolina, the biggest question they have is, "How do I get tickets to football games?" The answer is by attending other sporting events at USC.
Not all university students can receive free football tickets, so the USC Athletics Department set up a points-based loyalty program to determine who receives priority. Students who attend athletic events will receive points, increasing their chances to get tickets for popular sporting events, including football, men’s and women’s basketball and baseball.
Students can track their points through the Gamecocks Reward app or by logging on to the Student Account Manager website. Point totals are updated on a weekly basis.
Each student receives an automatic amount of points based on class standing each year. Freshmen receive three points, sophomores receive four points, juniors and graduate students receive six points and seniors receive eight points. Additionally, students receive 10 percent of the points they earned in the previous school year.
So, how many points is each athletic event worth? Non-conference football and basketball games are worth two points, while all SEC football and basketball games are worth one point. All other sports, outside of football and basketball, are worth one point each. There are also points specials throughout the year, including each sport hosting a double rewards game for students.
Here are the step-by-step instructions for getting a football ticket, according to Gamecock Rewards' official website:
1. Request a ticket on the Student Account Manager for the specific game you want to attend.
2. Receive a ticket. You should be notified of this via email.
3. Claim your ticket after requesting one. Upper deck football tickets need to be printed out, while lower deck tickets can be scanned on your Carolina Card.
4. Attend the event. When you enter the game, a staff member will scan your CarolinaCard to make sure the ticket is on there. For football, this step is crucial. If you’ve claimed a ticket and don’t get it scanned, you could lose access to all student tickets for the rest of the season.
For more information, follow @GamecockRewards or email screward@mailbox.sc.edu.