Luke Loucks is pulling out all the stops — including his credit card — to pack the Donald L. Tucker Center for Florida State men’s basketball’s top‑15 showdown with No. 15 Virginia (20‑3).
The first-year head coach is buying a beer for the first 500 students in attendance at the Tuesday, Feb. 10 game, hoping to spark a rowdy, energized atmosphere as his Seminoles (11-12, 4-6 ACC) host one of the ACC’s top teams.
“I don’t know what the 500 beers is going to cost me. I don’t have a final bill, and I didn’t ask my wife. I know it’s going to be a lot of money, but it’s worth it,” Loucks joked after practice on Monday.
Loucks said fans will need a valid student ID, and, of course, a driver’s license or equivalent ID to prove they’re of legal drinking age.
It’s a unique approach for the Seminoles program, but after three straight wins and a top‑15 matchup on deck, Loucks wants to bring the Tucker Center back to the roaring environment he remembers from his playing days between 2008 and 2012.
An upset win over the Cavs would put the Seminoles at .500 overall this season, and push their ACC record to 5-6, which would put them firmly into the discussion for a conference tournament spot.
Loucks acknowledged that Tallahassee is a place that respects winning, and he hopes the recent run of wins, victorious in four of the last six, most recently an 82-79 road win vs. Notre Dame, can give the local crowd a reason to pack the Tucker Center.
While the first 500 beers are free for students, everyone can expect to see deals at the concession stands for the Virginia game, with the university picking up the tab to help reduce costs for fans.
“This town, Tallahassee, respects winning, and that was built by Bobby Bowden a long time ago. This town expects a high level of competitiveness and a high level of chasing championships, which I love,” Loucks said.
“If you don’t win, they don’t respect it. It’s cutthroat, but that’s what we signed up for. From experience, when you win games, fans will come… this is one of the best home court advantages in college basketball when the fans and students show up.
“But you’ve got to win to get them to show up. That’s how we are built, right, wrong, indifferent, doesn’t matter, you gotta win. The good thing is we’ve been winning… I expect a rowdy crowd. And I expect a lot of students to show up, and I expect them to have a good time. With that, that helps us go and do our job at a high level.”
How to watch FSU basketball vs. No. 15 Virginia
Liam Rooney covers Florida State athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at LRooney@gannett.com or on Twitter @__liamrooney.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU’s Luke Loucks to buy 500 beers for students to pack arena for UVA game
Reporting by Liam Rooney, Tallahassee Democrat / Tallahassee Democrat
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