Football tickets are a hot item, and Ohio State has a hierarchical method of distributing them.Each year, 15,000 seats in Ohio Stadium are available for OSU employees. The remaining 73,000 seats are sold to alumni, students, various OSU club members and long-term purchasers, according to Kevin Gorham, assistant ticket director.Faculty and staff must be OSU employees by September to be eligible to apply for season tickets. However, seating is not guaranteed. The 1997 faculty and staff football ticket eligibility is based on a point system, according to the Department of Athletics. Points ranging from 10 to 35 are assigned to faculty on the basis of their title and years of employment at OSU. The more points a person has, the higher they will be placed on the priority list for tickets.Professors receive 35 points, the highest level on the faculty point scale. Lecturers receive 10 points, the lowest level. Each receive one additional point for each year of employment at OSU, said Gorham.Staff member tickets are awarded by salary. Employees earning $55,000 a year or more receive 35 points, while those earning under $20,000 receive 10 points. Faculty and staff who applied for tickets and had their money refunded because there were applicants with more points then them have complained, he said. Those who do get tickets are usually seated on the west side of the stadium. High priority seats are located in section 17, on the 50 yard line. Ticket criteria is developed by the Athletic Council. It consists of five to seven students and members of the university community. Members are appointed by the Athletic Council, faculty, the President’s Office, the Alumni Association and USG, said William Napier, aide to President Gee.The committee decides eligibility requirements and recommends ticket prices yearly. The final seating criteria and price are approved by the board of trustees, Gorham said.Student seats are located on the west side of the stadium from section 15, near the 40 yard line, to the north stadium.Undergraduate seating is determined by class rank. Seniors have the highest priority. Students can indicate a seating preference on their yearly football ticket applications. This year, most students requested ‘A’ Deck, Gorham said.Graduate and professional student ticket priority is based on the number of credit hours earned at OSU since entering a program. Students should be aware of every group member’s class rank when reserving a block of stadium seats, Gorham said. “If you have someone in your group with a low class ranking, everyone gets the lowest priority seating,” he said. President’s and Buckeye Club members receive ticket priority based on their donations. President’s Club members donate a minimum of $2500 a year to OSU, and receive two season tickets. Buckeye members make individual donations to OSU athletics. Alumni can purchase two single tickets per year in the south stands, if they pay a $35 alumni fee, said Linda Crossley, an Alumni Association spokesperson.