Luke Loucks cracks joke about the status of his checking account after buying 500 beers for Florida State students

On Tuesday, Florida State hosted No. 15 Virginia at the Tucker Center. Hoping to bring in a rowdy home crowd, Seminoles head coach Luke Loucks declared he’d pay for the first 500 beers purchased by fans at the game.

Loucks held up his end of the bargain and fans did their part, packing the arena and raining down cheers throughout the game. Florida State ultimately fell 61-58, but Loucks was thankful for fans’ support, even if his wife wasn’t exactly happy with his method of motivation.

“I hope they had a good time. Someone yelled at me when I was walking into halftime that we need to do this every game. I don’t think my wife would agree with that when she checks our checking account,” Loucks said. “When you’re building a program, everyone has to step up in different ways and sometimes entice people to come to the games whe we’re not a top 25 team.

“… This town respects winning. When you win, the fans show up, and when they show up, this is one of the best atmospheres in college basketball. I’ve experienced that as a player.”

Loucks is in his debut campaign as Florida State’s head coach. He was an assistant coach in the NBA from 2016-25 before taking over the Seminoles.

As Loucks mentioned, he understands the importance of a home-court advantage. He played at FSU from 2008-12 and led the program to its first ACC Tournament title during his senior season. He wants to return FSU to its former heights and give fans a reason to attend games.

“We’re here to win championships, and that’s what fans want, and that’s what they should want. That should be what we’re all driving for,” Loucks said. “From football and men’s basketball, all the way down to every sport, this is a championship culture. And, they respect winning. So we got to do our part and keep winning games.

“That’s the biggest, to me, enticement for fans to show up and have a good time. But while we build this, we’re not going to go undefeated, certainly this year or next year, I’m hoping we can put together a good product and find other ways. … I love hoops. I love football. I think it’s a fun environment to come to, but it’s the most fun when it’s packed and it’s loud and when they’re a little intoxicated.”