Last season’s Week 1 showdown between Texas and Ohio State at Columbus lived up to the billing. Although both offenses struggled, the game was close until late in the fourth quarter. With both Buckeyes and Longhorns having disappointing ends to their seasons (Texas didn’t even make the playoffs), the return leg of the home-and-home series is already generating buzz. And it is reflected in the surging ticket prices despite the game being months away.

The Buckeyes will travel to Austin for the high-stakes non-conference matchup on September 12. ABC will broadcast the game, and interestingly, College GameDay has already announced they’d be on-site for the festivities. But if you’re trying to get a ticket for the game, it’s going to cost some, especially if you’re looking for premium seating.

Tickets in some sections of the stadium are currently priced at $4,116 and $3,995, respectively. While there are cheaper options available (bad seats) at $605 and $600, most sections range between $1,000 and $4,000. As per the current resale pricing, sections 119-123, where most visiting fans sit, start around $600 and go up to $850 per ticket.

The University also designates sections 32, 131, and 132 as primary visitor seating. If you want to be in the lower bowl behind the visitor bench, sections 7 or 8 are good at around $930.

The Texas Longhorns have even hiked prices for university students by 8%, going from $250 to $270. That’s not it; students would have to have a Longhorn Foundation membership to get the tickets 24 hours before the sale by big companies. Even the membership value has increased from $130 to $150.

Even last year, the anticipation for the Week 1 game was crazy. As per SeatGeek, the average resale prices at the site were $739. The 12-team playoff format made the game even trickier, and in some ways, the loss against the Buckeyes cost Texas its playoff aspirations.

SeatGeek also revealed that 35% of the buyers on their platform were based in Texas, and people from Ohio purchased only 23%.

OSU faces growing revenue reality

Ryan Day got a reality check, even after defeating the Texas Longhorns in week 1 of the season, the team saw a rather indifferent response in the attendance of the fans in lesser games.

Ohio State earns revenue from scanned tickets, which include how much one spends on parking, food, and merchandise, helping the Athletic department more than the announced attendance. When OSU played Grambling State, only 75,746 filled Horseshoe Stadium, even though 100,023 tickets were announced.

These numbers come after the program experienced a major surge in ticket sales following the 2024 season. For FY 2025, which included the 2024 campaign, ticket revenue climbed to an impressive $81.7 million, a massive increase from $58.8 million in FY 2024.

The Ohio State University Department of Athletics also reported a school-record $336.1 million in total operating revenue. However, the noticeable gap between announced attendance and scanned tickets last season could prevent the latest campaign from producing a similar financial jump once officials release the updated figures.