After falling to Villanova 28-24 this past weekend, there was something the Quakers could take from the tough loss: the turnout.
The attendance of 23,257 ranks 10th so far this year in all of Division I-AA , and was the largest crowd Penn has seen in the last two years.
Twenty-three thousand fans may not seem like much compared to the drawings teams like Texas and Notre Dame get each home game. However, when you consider the average I-AA attendance last year was a mere 7,666 people, and the average Ivy home game was also under 10,000, Saturday night's turnout, which was technically a home game for Villanova, is quite impressive.
"It's good for the kids, it's good for I-AA football. It's good for the Ivy league and it's good for the area," coach Al Bagnoli said. "Obviously when we get 20,000-plus sometimes it doesn't look like it at Franklin Field, but at the I-AA level that's a big crowd."
The second biggest attendance of the last two seasons was last year's game against Villanova, when Franklin Field hosted 16,572 fans. It is also worth noting that last year's home finale loss to Harvard drew only 15,123. This was despite the fact that both teams then were undefeated in the Ancient Eight (both 5-0), and essentially the two Ivy giants were playing for the league title.
"There's a natural rivalry from Villanova and Penn, so that's going to be a big crowd," Matt Barnes, Penn Athletics Ticket Manager said. "We were drawing from both fan bases, and they are both very passionate for their teams. "
Both the athletics and ticket offices of Penn and Villanova are constantly trying to promote their games. Each year Penn has a homecoming and a parents weekend to draw more fans. They also hand out schedules, ticket plans and this season even put up a billboard on I-76.
For the 2005 season, Penn introduced a new plan in which faculty and staff get a free ticket as well as four additional guest passes to any game at Franklin Field. Also, for the game last Saturday Penn donated tickets to local West Philadelphia youth groups. Both of these are obviously not efforts to make more money, but simply to get more people into the stadium on gameday.
Villanova Assistant Athletic Director Dean Kenefick, was able to promote the Wildcats' "home game", possibly accounting for some of the extra fans at this years game. Villanova can't come close to 23,000 fans because their home stadium holds barely half that number.
"We included it in our ticket packages, that was probably the biggest difference [from the 2004 game]," Kenefick said. "We could promote it like any other game. ... Two successful programs for a long time and the combination of great weather, and it's a good football game in Philadelphia."
One can argue that there may have still been as many Penn fans at the Harvard game last year as there were against Villanova last weekend, but the game last weekend clearly garnered up a lot more interest for the average fan, who may not necessarily have a connection to the schools or the area.
While Penn has its traditional Ivy League rivals, fans still might rather see two local teams play.
The Quakers are allowed to play three non-conference games each year, and in the last three seasons Penn has scheduled Bucknell three times, Duquesne twice, and San Diego once.
While Bucknell put up a fight the last two years, Penn demolished Duquesne and San Diego by a total of 153-42.
Penn students don't exactly get excited seeing the Quakers beat up on Duquesne, a school that most people don't even know how to pronounce. As a result, the opener against the Dukes fielded a measly 8,672 fans.
There is no logical reason for Penn consistently scheduling the season opener against teams like Duquesne or San Diego, when they could use their few non-conference opportunities to play better, more appealing opponents.
There is no reason to try to build creampuff wins into the schedule when Penn is not even going for the postseason.
Unlike in basketball, in which the Quakers consistently challenge the sport's heavyweights --such as this upcoming season's contest against Duke -- the football team never plays any games remotely as challenging .
Penn's football team still could benefit from hosting teams like La Salle, Delaware or even Division I-A Temple. The owls have struggled mightily to a 0-4 record this season, allowing over 47 points per game and not yet reaching 20.
However, Penn has started in the right direction toward scheduling more attractive matchups by now playing Villanova. The last two matchups, although losses, have both come down to the wire and have been very entertaining. As of last year, the two teams began to play regularly, and they have an eight-year contract to play through 2011.
Whomever else Penn plays, now we know that the Villanova game will be a fixture in the football schedule. No matter what promotions the other contests may have, the game between the Quakers and the Wildcats will be the showcase.
Josh Wheeling is a sophomore in the College from Philadelphia. His e-mail address is jw4@sas.upenn.edu.
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