Thanksgiving Takeaways

For the first time ever, South Dakota State hosted a playoff football game in Brookings. The game drew 4,367 fans for the 58-10 SDSU blowout, well below SDSU's season average of 13,338 over the course of five home games this year.

Me, the curious type, wanted to put the numbers in perspective. So I rounded up the attendance numbers from the last four years of first round FCS playoff games and compared them to what that host team had averaged during the season. The numbers shine a harsh light on the showing today in Brookings.

(Note: The 2012 season figures are up to Nov. 23 and do not include the playoffs. For the sake of time, I used the NCAA attendance average for each team for 2009, 2010 and 2011 and the season averages include the playoff game and games following. Even though the averages are not perfect, it gives you an idea of what their usual draw is. )

 

A few takeaways here:

• SDSU drew roughly the lowest percentage of its average fanbase for its playoff game at 33 percent. That's not good. I think I remember laughing at Eastern Kentucky for outbidding James Madison in 2011 and drawing as few as they did but that's basically what happened with SDSU, except I think it was worse. As a few pointed out to me today, it only emphasizes the theory that Jackrabbit fans pack it in during the month of November unless it's a rival or Hobo Day.
• Some simple hypothetical math: If every fan in attendance was an adult (obviously we know that wasn't the case) and paid $25 per ticket, the gate would have totaled $109,175. Factor in the minimum bid of $30,000, knowing SDSU likely bid higher and know that the NCAA will take most of it of that end figure. 
• Was the bid worth it? Yes. SDSU was at home and didn't have to worry about travel. They had 4,000 fans who were as loud as 4,000 can be. And SDSU won by 48. It's still a success.
• There was about 12 solid rows of students. Maybe Brookings businesses will pay for students to get free tickets again but I wouldn't count on it.
• Wagner drew a SEASON-HIGH today for the first round. They had some low figures all year and then were able to bring in over 3,000 for their win over Colgate today. I'm impressed. Stony Brook did the same in 2011. The Seawolves charged $14 for adults and $10 for youth during today's playoff game against Villanova. 
• There will be eight games on Thanksgiving weekend next year when the FCS playoff field expands from 20 to 24.