Fresno State landed Selland for basketball ‘throwback game.’ How can it make money?
The City of Fresno made several concessions to give Fresno State an opportunity to generate some badly-needed revenue from its throwback basketball game against Cal State Bakersfield, which was moved to the downtown Selland Arena from the Save Mart Center.
But whether the Nov. 30 game, billed as the Return to Grant’s Tomb, will be a financial home run for the Bulldogs will come down to the Red Wave and the number of tickets sold.
“I’m grateful for Mayor (Jerry) Dyer and the city for working with us to make this a reality, and the fact that they understand the importance of our history here,” athletics director Garrett Klassy said.
“The mayor is a Bulldog through and through, and It’s great to have good partners to be able to bring something nostalgic back to the Red Wave.”
Legends Global LLC, which manages the arena and Fresno Entertainment and Convention Center for the city, will keep 100% of revenue from parking fees and the sale of food and beverages, according to the contract between the city and Fresno State, which was obtained by The Bee through a public records request.
But the city waived a $7,350 arena move-in cost and cut the rent it charges for similar events to $10,000 from $14,700. That will save Fresno State $12,050 for use of the facility, where the Bulldogs won nearly three-quarters of their games from 1967-68 through 2002-03, going 390-135.
The city is sponsoring use of the arena’s LED video board system at a cost of $4,500 and included the cost for equipment such as the basketball floor, venue audio and wireless internet in the rental fee. It also cut its box office fee and Ticketmaster facility fee. The facility fee was discounted to $1 per ticket sold from $3 per ticket.
“We want to be a good partner,” Fresno mayor Jerry Dyer said, at an Oct. 15 press conference where the city and school announced the game and the move from the Save Mart Center on campus.
“Ruth Quinto, my assistant city manager, has done everything she can to reduce the cost quite frankly for Fresno State to come in here and make it profitable for them, and we want to do that because we know that when people come downtown for an event like this they’re also stimulating our other parts of our community in terms of our economy. We’re going to have the doors open as often as Fresno State wants to be going through them.”
Game expenses for Fresno State are expected to come to $36,690 for security and event staff and rent on the facility, though the actual number may vary depending on staffing requirements.
The more staffing required, the better for the bottom line for Fresno State, which last played a game at the downtown arena on Dec. 1, 2009, a loss to Pacific.
The Bulldogs last season averaged 4,614 in home attendance at the Save Mart Center. Ticket revenue is not yet available, but in 2023-24 when the average home attendance was a record-low of 3,471 the athletics department averaged $42,970 in ticket sales per game with an average cost per ticket running about $12.
Turnout for the throwback game against the Roadrunners, which will be played on the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend, would have to be very low for Fresno State not to cover its costs.
Selland holds about 7,800 for basketball, with tickets available starting at $15.