The Wolverine

June-July 2015

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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  INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS MICHIGAN STADIUM ATTENDANCE TAKES A HIT For the first time in 17 years, Michigan Stadium could not lay claim to host- ing more fans than any other venue in college football; the Wolverines ranked third for home attendance with an average of 104,909 fans per game, behind Ohio State (106,296) and Texas A&M (105,123). U-M's six-percent drop from 2013 (111,592) was the greatest percentage decrease among the 17 programs that averaged 80,000-plus during the 2014 season, and represented a seven-percent drop from a peak of 112,252 in 2012, CBSSports.com reported. In the Big Ten, attendance fell by close to 4,000 fans per game, with a 2014 average of 66,939, down from 70,431 in 2013. Hit by a seven-year run of poor on-field performances (with the 11-2 cam- paign in 2011 the lone exception), Michigan had a very difficult time filling its seats and was forced to give away tickets in bunches to continue its streak of 100,000-plus crowds at 258 current games. According to Angelique Chengelis of The Detroit News, U-M doled out 62,879 free tickets in 2014, or 8.6 percent of The Big House's total attendance last season. In 2013, only 2.8 percent of attendance came from comped tickets, she reported. By comparison, in 2010, coming off 3-9 and 5-7 campaigns under then- coach Rich Rodriguez, Michigan gave away 20,122 tickets to keep its 100,000 streak alive, but that season, the Maize and Blue entertained rival Michigan State and Big Ten power Wisconsin. In 2014, there were no rivals on the home schedule, with Penn State repre- senting the best draw. "It was the most challenging schedule from a ticket sales standpoint," Michigan associate athletic director Dave Ablauf told Chengelis. "It was the first time since the mid-60s [1966 to be exact] we didn't have any of our rivals on our home schedule." PAID VERSUS COMPED TICKETS IN 2014 Date Opponent Paid Comped Aug. 30 Appalachian State 89,013 12,854 Sept. 13 Miami (Ohio) 87,608 10,143 Sept. 20 Utah 92,507 4,475 Sept. 27 Minnesota 91,967 5,896 Oct. 11 Penn State 99,548 3,080 Nov. 1 Indiana 89,076 9,508 Nov. 22 Maryland 82,268 16,293

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