Colts Blackout Deadline Extended – No Chance Colts Game Is Blacked Out

by Kent Sterling

This is the silliest story of 2014 – even sillier than the wall-to-wall snow coverage we get every time a flake sticks to I-465.  The NFL, Indianapolis Colts, and WTHR would rather listen to WIBC’s Stan Lehr recite school closings for four hours on WIBC than announce a blackout of Saturday’s Colts vs. Kansas City Chiefs playoff game.

Someone is going to make sure that either every ticket is sold, or at least is claimed.

I don’t know how the sellout business works, but during the two years I programmed the St. Louis sports station carrying the Rams games, they sold out every single game.  There was no way in hell every ticket to every game played at the Edward Jones Dome was sold.  The Rams were terrible in 2011, and interest in the team was negligible.  I would have loved a blackout.  Listenership for blacked out games skyrocket, and I enjoyed seeing excellent ratings.

Someone made damn sure that the Rams games qualified as sellouts through some measure of tomfoolery, and all were broadcast on local TV.

Prompting the hysteria defies logic as the only people disappointed that the game would be blacked out would be those with no interest in going because they will watch it on TV.  Those who want to go to the game can’t watch it on TV.  The people compelled to buy tickets because of the blackout have no reason to care.  This is called a paradox, and causes great confusion in marketing departments everywhere – as in “Why would anyone buy this?”  “I don’t know, but we are selling millions!”

The game will be televised in Indianapolis.  Owner Jim Irsay is no tool, and will try to motivate as many ticket buyers as possible to log onto Colts.com to buy some of the remaining 3,000 ducats with this wacky deadline, but I guarantee this game will be announced as a sellout prior to the 4:30p Friday deadline.

Buy tickets and go to the game because it’s going to be a hell of a time in one of the best stadia in the NFL, and will likely result in the first playoff win of the Andrew Luck Era.  It’s a Saturday afternoon game, so get a couple of pre-game beers, watch the game, and then grab a steak at St. Elmo’s before retiring to Nicky Blaine’s for a night cap.  No work the following day, so do it up.

Ignore the wackiness, and embrace the opportunity.