Alright, here’s how I tackled finding those Griz tickets without draining my wallet last week. Woke up thinking, “Game day’s coming, gotta get seats without getting ripped off.”
Starting Online & Getting Sticker Shock
First thing, grabbed my coffee and hopped on my laptop. Typed in “Montana Grizzlies football tickets” and boom – tons of those big resale sites popped up. Clicked around, found the game I wanted. Nearly choked seeing the prices. Service fees? Delivery fees? Total cost looked like they added another darn ticket to the price!
Decided to check the official athletics site itself. Price was slightly better, but still… Oof. Felt like I was paying extra just for the privilege of looking at the website. Not cool. Closed that tab fast.
Digging Deeper & Trying the Locals
Figured there had to be another way. Remembered a buddy mentioning fan forums sometimes have folks selling extras. Went searching – found a couple Montana sports boards. Scrolled through pages of old posts and game threads. Saw a few “ISO tickets” but not many sellers. Tried one post anyway: “Looking for 2 tix for Oct game. Avoid fees?” Crickets mostly. One guy replied but wanted face value plus 20 bucks for the “hassle.” No thanks, pal.
Then I thought about alumni groups. Couldn’t access the closed ones easily. Felt stuck again.
The Game-Day Hail Mary (& Winner!)
Game day rolled around, still ticketless. Told myself, “Screw it, just drive downtown Missoula early, worst case I hear the cheers from the bar.” Parked a few blocks away from the stadium, started walking towards the gates, resigned to probably paying too much at the official box office last minute.
Passed the tailgate lots… smelled the burgers, heard the music. Then saw a guy standing next to a beat-up pickup truck, holding a cardboard sign scribbled with “2 Griz Tix.” Honestly, my first thought was “Sketchy.” But desperation kicked in.
Walked over, trying to look casual. “Hey man, how much for those?” He named a price. Lower than ANYTHING I saw online, even before their stupid fees. Almost couldn’t believe it. “Seriously? No extra charges?” He laughed, “Dude, cash only. Right here, right now.” We haggled a tiny bit, settled on a price maybe 15 bucks under his first ask.
Handed him the bills, he handed me the physical tickets. Felt weirdly thrilling and old-school. Did a quick check – tickets looked legit, date was right. Done deal.
The Takeaways
- Resale sites are a last resort unless you love surprise fees.
- Official site isn’t always cheapest either.
- Online fan boards… meh, maybe weeks before the game?
- The REAL winner? Being brave enough to scope out the official parking/tailgate areas on game day. Saw multiple folks holding signs! Cash rules out there, but prices were consistently way better than online. No fees, instant transfer.
Lesson learned: Sometimes the “analog” method beats all the fancy websites hands down. Took some legwork and a bit of luck, but scoring those tickets without paying extra felt awesome. Definitely doing the parking lot stroll first next season!
