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Oklahoma State Ties Highest Football Attendance Ranking Ever in 2017

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The season may have been a slight disappointment, but the box office did not display that (of course the box office may incur that hit in 2018 instead). For just the second time in the modern era (and I’m guessing ever), Oklahoma State ranked in the top 30 in FBS football in home attendance with an average of 56,790 in tickets paid for.

This also came in a year where OSU reduced the maximum seating capacity inside Boone Pickens Stadium, from 60,218 to 56,790. So if I’m reading that correctly, Oklahoma State is reporting that it sold out every game in 2017 (a quick scan of the box scores confirms this).

Anyway, in a year in which CFB attendance plunged, OSU thrived. The Pokes ranked No. 30 in both home attendance and overall attendance. Even though it wasn’t their biggest year from a ticket standpoint, they’ve found a rhythm when others are struggling.

Biggest OSU years
Rank Year Avg.
1 2013 59,126
2 2015 57,668
3 2011 57,229
4 2017 56,790
5 2012 56,557

Unsurprisingly, the top four here were years in which Oklahoma State played Bedlam in Stillwater. How’s that criticism of Mike Holder’s “you have to buy season tickets” policy working out?

Also, that 2013 record will now never be broken until (if) OSU adds another deck to the stadium when Brandon Weeden’s son takes over as athletic director in 2065.

2017 National Rankings
Rank Team Avg.
1 Michigan 111,589
2 Ohio State 107,495
3 Penn State 106,707
4 Alabama 101,722
5 Texas A&M 98.802
6 LSU 98,506
7 Tennessee 95,779
8 Texas 92,778
9 Georgia 92,746
10 Nebraska 89,798
11 Florida 86,715
12 Oklahoma 86,520
13 Auburn 86,446
14 Clemson 80,773
15 Wisconsin 78,824
16 South Carolina 78,586
17 Notre Dame 77,622
18 USC 72,683
19 Michigan St. 72,485
20 Florida St. 70,943
21 Washington 68,822
22 Iowa 66,337
23 Arkansas 63,224
24 Virginia Tech 63,214
25 Miami (FL) 58,682
26 Ole Miss 58,631
27 Mississippi St. 58,100
28 Iowa St. 57,931
29 NC State 56,850
30 Oklahoma State 56,790

It’s sort of remarkable that OSU is able to punch with some of the teams higher on this list. One-sixth of OSU’s overall athletic budget ($15 million) comes from ticket sales to football games, and they have one of the smaller budgets (if not the smallest) of the top programs right now. You’re essentially doubling the ticket money for an Ohio State or Michigan so you’re just right up front tacking on an extra $15 million their athletic department has to work with. That’s a big deal.

OSU also ranked No. 30 in the country in 2011 but has never rated higher than that in a given year since the stadium was expanded in the late 2000s. It will be interesting to see if they can maintain this pace in future years.

I think one of the smartest moves they’ve made in recent years is reducing the capacity. It creates a greater sense of demand and helps you fill the place to the brim for big-boy games. I think other schools (and many sports teams) will move to do this as more and more folks are driven by their TVs and other devices to stay at home.

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