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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — The Orange Krush student section is defending itself after their tickets were canceled for Saturday’s Iowa-Illinois basketball game.
Iowa’s men’s basketball fired back saying that Krush posed as a charity to get the tickets. Krush leaders admitted they used the Boys and Girls Club name but not a particular club, so they thought it was ok.
It’s a tradition the group has done for 20 years to go to a road game but usually they make up a fake charity. Over the years, the Orange Krush have gone as a youth group, a family reunion and fake alumni group to get into arenas.
The Krush is taking issue with Iowa waiting so long to reject the 200 tickets they bought in September. It wasn’t until yesterday that the athletic department told them their tickets were invalid. Krush Vice President Kilton Rauman said they can’t get their money back for the buses they had reserved.
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“We’re just going to have to eat the cost of the charter buses and that’s fine,” Rauman said. “That’s the risk we took because Iowa does reserve the right to take back the tickets at any point. So, that is the risk that we incurred, and we’ll just eat the cost of that.”
This will cost Krush $6,000 of its yearly $30,000 budget. Despite the controversy, Raumen said they’re not getting down about it.
“We just thought this is an opportunity to turn a negative into a positive and really push forth the philanthropy side of Orange Krush. And the more our name is out there, maybe that inspires a few more people to donate,” Raumen said.
In a Facebook post, campus bar KAMS said they wanted to support Orange Krush and would be donating $6,000 to cover losses.
