Lamar Athletics Ticket Office gears up for 2026-27 season

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Podcast: S9 Ep. 22
Date: August 18, 2026
Title: Lamar Athletics Ticket Office gears up for 2026-27 season
Host: John Rollins

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JOHN ROLLINS: Welcome to the LU Moment where we showcase all the great things happening with Lamar University faculty, staff, students, and alumni. I'm John Rollins, associate director of community relations and public affairs here at LU, and I want to welcome you all to this week's show. August is here, and that brings with it the start of a new school year here at Lamar University, but that also means a new athletic season is about to begin. Today, I'm sitting down with two members from the Lamar Athletics Ticket Office, Jonathan Scroggins and Antonio Leopardi. Welcome to the show, guys.

JONATHAN SCROGGINS: Glad to be here.

ANTONIO LEOPARDI: Appreciate you, John. Definitely happy to be here.

JOHN: So, let's go ahead and start with what is your role for each of you and your titles here on campus.

JONATHAN: Well, this is Jonathan Scroggins. Two years ago, I got hired to join Lamar Athletics as the director of ticket sales and service. So, I manage a team of salespeople. We work on the season tickets, group tickets, fan experience, packaging, all that. Really trying to elevate the fan experience and sell the space that we have. It's been a good opportunity and a lot of room for growth.

ANTONIO: I guess I would start with graduating from Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. I have a degree in sport management, a minor in marketing, and I earned that in 2023. In that same year, in August, is when I not only interviewed and took the job here at Lamar, but moved over 1,000 miles away from home, essentially to pursue a career in college athletics. Jeff O'Malley was the interim athletic director at Marshall for a stint, and the leadership that I saw from him, his willingness to show up, I really admired. He's a guy I wanted to work for. It's a good place to start a career. I took the leap, and here I am.

JOHN: Fantastic. I like that you pointed that out because I was going to ask what brought you to Lamar, so Antonio, we’ve got your answer. So, what about you?

JONATHAN: I graduated from Utah State in Parks and Recreation, and I've been involved in a lot of different industries throughout the past couple of years. But I wanted to get back into what I started as an intern there, working in the ticket office, and I kind of wanted to get back into that. We really found a passion in that and trying to find the purpose, you know, to stay busy, but like what you're doing while you're staying busy. So, I got a master's from the University of Alabama and applied to a bunch of different positions. The one at Lamar offered me a position, so I decided to do the same thing: move a couple thousand miles across the country. Originally from Las Vegas, so, yeah, I just came into this industry, and it's been good so far. It's been like what Antonio said: The focus on the leadership and the people that you work with is one of the more important things. So, that's why we continue to work here.

JOHN: Yeah, that's—I mean, that's a great draw for Lamar, and I hear Jeff O'Malley come up a lot as people's why for coming here. So, that's great to hear. You know, it starts at the top. I guess y'all both kind of explained how you got into your roles because I was going to ask, "How'd you get into the ticketing side of college athletics?" But since we know where you are, we know your titles now, let's go ahead and just jump into it. Lamar Athletics' upcoming season is what we're going to talk about. So, for those who don't know, we are a Division I school. We are members of the Southland Conference. We have 17 sports here at LU.  So, let's go ahead and preview the upcoming fall sports and what fans can look forward to in the next several months.

JONATHAN: Yeah, no, I mean, as far as the ticketing side, we have 17 amazing sports happening at this university. Specifically, for ticketed sports, we have seven sports: football, basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball, soccer…

ANTONIO: Men's basketball, women's basketball…Are we missing any?

JONATHAN: No, I think the other 10 sports, you know, they're free to attend for anybody in the public. You know, tennis, track and field and golf, you can attend those.

ANTONIO: Those are certainly a priority of ours as well, not just the ticket office specifically, but the athletic department as a whole, for sure. Not to say that we do the best job of it.

JONATHAN: No, yeah, the Cardinal Athletic Fund goes to fund all the athletes, not just the ones that we're focused on. But, you know, it's the draw of the public to go to those ones.

JOHN: Yeah, yeah.

ANTONIO: He mentioned the Cardinal Athletic Fund. I mean, anything that anyone can give will go to contribute to a number of things, not just facility upgrades, but most importantly, student-athlete scholarships. And that impacts the life and, I don't know, development of young adults.

JOHN: You speak about these seven ticketed sports. You know, I know we've got three big ones coming up: football, soccer, and then volleyball right around the corner. Actually, this month.

JONATHAN: Yeah, no. Soccer’s had some amazing preseason games. They won both of their preseason games and whatnot, and they play tonight, actually, in El Paso at 8 o’clock. But they’ll be back here on Sunday, and that’ll be their first regular-season game. Volleyball has an exhibition on Saturday, so Lamar sports are among us.

JOHN: So, tell me, I was looking through the list of football ticket deals that are coming up, and I saw for the home opener game, there's a really good $40 deal. And that's on Saturday, August 29: four tickets, four hot dogs, four popcorns and four sodas for $40.

ANTONIO: Big Red Snack Pack!

JOHN: Come on! Where are you going to catch a deal like that? Nowhere.

JONATHAN: Yeah, as far as the Beaumont deals, you know, it's a great option for those, you know, average families of four. And if you have an extra member, you know, just give us a call and let us know, and we'll work with you on the phone for that stuff. You know, but yeah, no, it really gets you in the game, gets you eating some food and watching some great sports. We're up against Abilene Christian.

ANTONIO: Yeah, that's a rematch. Literally, the last game that the Lamar Cardinals football team played was against Abilene Christian in the first round of the NCAA FCS playoffs, and obviously, that didn't go our way. But feeling really confident about what we know about the team and getting them at home. And if we can get, and this is for all sports, Beaumont specifically, the surrounding area to start to come out and understand that tickets are affordable and we want them here, yeah, do what we can to get them in the gate. We need them.

JONATHAN: Yeah, I think attendance will always matter. You know, we've got facility sizes. Our football stadium seats 16,000 — 8,000 on the home side — and the basketball arena is definitely big, too. But, oh yeah, yeah, we definitely would love to fill every seat. But I think, as of right now, we want to, more than anything, elevate the fans' experience. You know, get them into the stadium. But for me, you know, I love to show up to the game beforehand, get a part of the tailgating action and be part of the crowd, but not just for the game.

ANTONIO: You know, absolutely, the in-game atmosphere as well. Micah Buetell, he does a fantastic job. I am maybe, I don't know, you know, you got your jokes and stuff. I'm a huge fan of his in-game music. I think that he elevated that arriving here. It brings a certain energy and feel. And even if you're not a sports-specific fan, you can 100% enjoy the game day experience. Specifically, not just, you know, marketing it. I feel like the direction we're moving in every aspect and department in the Lamar Athletic Department is doing a good job to make sure that that's the reality.

JOHN: I completely agree, and I know that the first game I believe is 6 o'clock. It’s an evening game, right?

JONATHAN: Yeah, we got our first game at six, second game's at six, and then the rest are at 3 o'clock.

JOHN: And that experience is awesome. I know last year between the light work that they were doing and the fireworks and all the different things. I don't know if that's coming.

JONATHAN: Yeah, no, tons of stadium upgrades from the previous years, and I kind of matched everything. You know, every time we get a touchdown, I think twinkle the lights, right, or flash the lights increases there. It's cool. It's cool. It's it's cool opportunity to see all that.

ANTONIO: There's something super fun in store on October 4, so just keep an eye out for that.

JOHN: Okay.

ANTONIO: Something very exciting. That’s all I’ll give you.

JOHN: So, let’s go ahead and talk about how the community can support Lamar Athletics. You know, I know groups, companies, organizations and, obviously, individuals can get involved, as well as our staff and our students. So, tell us a little bit about that. How can we get that engagement going? Because we want them here, like you said. We want them, we need them, and we invite them to come be a part of it.

JONATHAN: Okay, faculty and staff. One of our biggest discounts is the faculty and staff rate. We're doing 50% off season tickets for faculty and staff. So, if you know someone, if you don't work for Lamar but you know someone who does work here, you know, get them to take advantage of that with you. And they can bring it not just for football, but for all the sports, for that matter. And then, you know, tickets start as low as $60 for staff to get in. You know, you're sitting at the 10- to 20-yard line, and it's really a great experience to be had.

JOHN: It’s worth it.

ANTONIO: And the 10- to 20-yard line can be almost right next to the video board, which is cool, and right where the team comes out. There's not a bad seat in Provost Umphrey Stadium.

JONATHAN: Oh, but yeah, we're always, you know, with season tickets, like with most things, you're saving about 30% to 40% on the single-game side for that. We offer payment plans earlier in the season and earlier in the year and whatnot. So, there's options to afford things all the time, and we want the fans out there. I know that I notice there's a lot of things happening in high school. The high school games are big Friday night, so we're trying to turn that from Friday night to Saturday night as well. And so, we'll be out and involved in a lot of high school events this year as well, to be able to recognize and honor them.

JOHN: Oh, I love that. And you make a good point. We're a small town or small city, so Friday Night Lights definitely takes precedence over everything. Yeah, why not make it a full weekend?

JONATHAN: But as far as professional sports here in Beaumont, you know, Lamar is where it’s at. We’re here to stay and whatnot.

ANTONIO: Yeah, we definitely don’t have anything firm on it yet, but we’re going to plan on continuing to build something to lean into Mid County Madness and get Port Neches and Nederland fan bases, specifically, and every surrounding area around Beaumont, to kind of interact and just find a way to get them at the game. That’s the big thing.

JOHN: So I think engagement is the key. I like that you’re bringing that up. Something else we need to bring up really quickly is that students get into every single athletic event for free. I think that’s something we need to pump up, right? Y’all do a good job of that, but maybe we need to keep going with it — find new ways to reach them and let them know.

ANTONIO: Yeah, absolutely. It’s something that’s wild to me, that students don’t know they get into athletic events for free. You wouldn’t believe the number of students who will come to the ticket office and ask if there’s a student discount. But if you’re a Lamar University student, your tickets are free, and we want you to come to events. The student section is what has a true impact across the board. Not just at Lamar, but in college athletics in general, if you have a good student section, that presence puts pressure on the opposing team and impacts the game.

JONATHAN: No. I think about the schools that I come from or the schools that I’ve been to before. You know, the decibels when you’re in the basketball arena are just so loud that they’re missing shots and things are happening like that. And you’re able to, you know, we’ve had an increased number of students attending games, and in my two years that I’ve been here, it’s been amazing. The Cardinal Activities Board and the Flock Student Organization have really kind of elevated that.

JOHN: They’ve blossomed for sure. So, something else, you know, how can people, if they’re interested in maybe coming out to a tailgate or claiming a spot for the season, do y’all work in that area as well?

JONATHAN: Yeah, no, lamarcardinals.com/buytickets. We’ll be saying that a lot, or you’ll hear it a lot. But yeah, that’s where they can go for single-game tickets, and tailgating spots are available. Tailgating specifically, right next to the Montagne Center, we’ve got 24 great spots that are available. We can expand as we grow. We also have tailgating over on the campus side, where all the Boomtown tailgating action happens. For that tailgating, it’s four parking spots for $50. You bring out your cars, your tents and your RVs, set up a trailer, and there’s a lot of action that takes place. It looks great out there.

ANTONIO: Yeah, and I’ll touch on that, too. LamarCardinals.com/buytickets is the easiest place, I would say. But also, if you want to talk to our awesome sales team, Jonathan and Wes, call (409) 880-1715. That is the ticket office phone number.

JOHN: So, tell me a little bit more before we wrap up, just so people know. You know, let’s speak about kind of the operational side and the sales side of what you all do, or what an athletics ticketing office does.

JONATHAN: Yeah, no, most definitely. My sales team is comprised of me and Wes Barnett, who’s a recent new hire, and Alex Shillow and Rayela Rodriguez in sponsorship development. Our specific team is making phone calls out into the community for season tickets, but more importantly, group tickets. We’re working with businesses, groups and organizations to come out. You know, if you’ve got a group of 20, or your peewee football team or your little league team is coming out, I think one of the cooler parts of that is we can offer some great fan experiences, including a cool tour of the brand-new locker rooms. Yeah, yeah. Let’s set up some high-five tunnels with the players, you know.

JOHN: Right, right. And to your point, you brought up peewee football. Same thing with basketball. If you’ve got a Little Dribblers group, bring them out. Those are our loudest cheerleaders in the arena. They’re making the most noise.

JONATHAN: At halftime, we do some games. You know, let the Little Dribblers play on the court.

JOHN: Lots of opportunities!

JONATHAN: Yeah, no, we’re making hundreds of calls a week, about 300 between the two of us, and, yeah, just elevating the fan experience and making it more than that.

JOHN: Fantastic.

ANTONIO: Absolutely. And from the ticket operations side of things, that’s more of, I guess you would say, the logistics role. What it’s turned into from here, I don’t believe I’ve had two days that you could say were relatively exactly the same. I’ve expanded my knowledge in this role and, talking about the transition from TicketReturn to our current ticket software, Venu, starting there, I found a way to copy a live database file, and now we’re currently able to run queries against that using SQL Server Management Studio. So, you know, that’s way out of line with the expectation of the role, right? And aside from that, it could include speaking with a season ticket holder or a single-game ticket buyer, not necessarily managing students, but working with students who work for the Lamar Athletics Ticket Office.

JONATHAN: Yeah. It takes a village. You know, sponsorships and ticketing, development, coaches, public relations, marketing — they all play a role. Sure, the hours may not always fit on the calendar, but we can hopefully get the finished product, the fruits of our labor, out there.

JOHN: Yeah, a lot of moving parts for sure.

ANTONIO: Also, quickly before we wrap up, I’d be remiss if I didn’t have a chance to mention the Lamar Athletics Ticket Office staff, not just our sales team, which they are fantastic. Don’t get me wrong, but the people who sell the tickets, scan the tickets, manage the events from a ticket operations perspective on game day. Two students who are blossoming and really come to mind are Mia Castro and Jada Thrash. Both of those individuals — specifically Mia — have taken on a very much more full-time sort of role. I would say she’s put in the volunteer hours, so to speak, just simply going above and beyond, and she’s capable of handling almost any athletic event, I would say, almost anywhere in the country. And not only that, on the back-end side of things, we’re currently working through creating credentials and that sort of thing, which is outside of the normal scope of a ticket office. And then I’d also like to mention Jada Thrash for the same thing — having that initiative to step up and be willing to manage athletic events from the ticket operations side of things, doing a fantastic job and doing so. That seems to be paying off, as she has been extended an offer from the Houston Dynamo ticket office and is awaiting an interview for group experiences with the Houston Astros. So I wanted to mention them. And then just a quick Golden Girls mention to our long-term, part-time hourly employees: Donna Kramlick, Carla Barat, Yolanda Avery, Mary Savit and Jennifer Wolf.

JOHN: Alright, fantastic.  Thank you both. And I like that you bring that up — that we’re growing our students and sending them on the right path toward greater things, for sure. So that’s exciting for those students you just mentioned who help you out as well. So, Jonathan and Antonio, thanks for joining me today. We’re excited for this 2026-27 athletic season. And let’s go ahead and let the people know one more time. I know we’ve said the website two or three times, but say it one more time so people can get their tickets and come out and join us this season.

JONATHAN: Yeah, that’s lamarcardinals.com/buytickets. Yep, and give us a call at (409) 880-1715.

JOHN: Alright, easy to remember. And you can also find us at Lamar Athletics on all social media, right?

JONATHAN: Correct.

JOHN: Okay, perfect. Alright, folks, that’s a wrap on another episode. To catch the LU stories, just like Jonathan and Antonio’s, be sure to search LU Moment wherever you get your podcasts to keep up with the events, activities, programs and people right here at Lamar University. This is John Rollins, your host. Thank you for listening, and we’ll talk to you next time.