Moody Center Lines Call for Early Arrivals and Mobile Tickets
By Ethan Ferguson
Reporting Texas TV
AUSTIN, Texas — The new Moody Center had long lines of students at the Nov. 10 Texas Longhorns basketball game against the Houston Christian Huskies.
The desire to get a good seat caused students to get in line early.
UT sophomore Javier Diaz De Sandi arrived at the game about two hours before tip-off.
“I would imagine that half of the whole experience of these college games is that the students are a part of it,” De Sandi said.
The new student section, called The Corral, has seating for about 1,250 students in the center’s lower bowl. The previous venue, the Frank Erwin Center, held 1,500 students in the student section.
Texas men’s basketball head coach Chris Beard applauds his players during the home game against Houston Christian University on Thursday, Nov. 10, 2022. (Photo: Ethan Ferguson, Reporting Texas TV)
UT senior Jonathan Stewart, who is a member of The Corral Executive Board, said students should start thinking about basketball games like football games.
“You’re gonna have to get there early to get a good seat before they turn students away, so if you wanna be here, be here early,” Stewart said.
UT Athletic Director Chris Del Conte brought donuts and coffee to students who got in line for the Gonzaga game at 5 a.m.
Students who are unable to obtain a seat in The Corral must stand in an upper-deck balcony with a capacity of 550 students. No students were turned away from the Houston Christian game.
Texas Athletics announced students who attended the Houston Christian game would be able to claim a mobile ticket for the game against Gonzaga in an attempt to shorten lines.
Students in The Corral try to distract HCU forward Jason Thompson as he shoots a free throw. (Photo: Ethan Ferguson, Reporting Texas TV)
UT’s men’s basketball coach Chris Beard said the game against the No. 2 Bulldogs would be a challenge.
“We’ll have to play our best game of the season to this point. We’ll have to play Texas basketball on all cylinders,” Beard said.
The No. 11 Longhorns were able to do just that as they defeated Gonzaga 93-74.
The Gonzaga game was sold out with 11,313 fans in attendance, 600 more than the 10,763-seat capacity,
Texas men’s basketball remains undefeated with a 3-0 record. The Longhorns’ next game is against Northern Arizona on Nov. 21 at the Bert Ogden Arena in Edinburg, Texas, as part of the Leon Black Classic.