The Penn Athletic Department decided over the summer to grant faculty and staff free access to Quakers football games this year, in an attempt to boost sagging attendance.
Based on Week 1 numbers, the plan may not be working just yet.
Only 8,672 fans came out to watch Penn defeat Duquesne, 41-14, in its season opener. In last year's home opener, 16,572 fans turned out to witness the Quakers' dramatic loss to Villanova.
Saturday's attendance, instead, was more comparable to last season's Ivy League opener against Dartmouth, when Franklin Field welcomed a season-low 8,419 fans. The other three home games all drew over 10,000 people, but two were on Family Weekend and Homecoming, and the third was the de facto Ivy League championship game.
Still, ticket manager Matt Barnes is not concerned with the first-week attendance drop-off from last season, attributing it mostly to the difference in opponents.
"It was only our first home game, so it is hard to tell," he said. "I was happy with our student turnout on Saturday, but there is definitely room for improvement."
The Penn-Villanova rivalry is certainly more historic and more meaningful than Penn-Duquesne. Villanova entered last season's matchup ranked No. 11 in Division I-AA by the Sports Network.
Furthermore, Villanova fans needed to drive a mere 25 minutes to Franklin Field, while Duquesne fans would have to drive over 300 miles to Penn. This may help to explain the 7,900 more fans that attended last season's home opener, compared to this year.
Indeed, Penn's game against Villanova at Franklin Field on Saturday may be a better indication of the new policy's effectiveness. In fact, when Penn hosted Duquesne in 2003, 8,181 fans attended the game, which is nearly 500 fewer than attended this year's matchup.
Barnes insists that although numbers have not improved, faculty and staff have welcomed the new policy.
"The interest is definitely out there," he said. "I've heard faculty and staff come in to the ticket office, and they like it, they're happy we are doing it.
"So far, the word of mouth is there," he added. "We just need it to spread."
When asked if more faculty and staff would take advantage of the new policy once the Ivy League season starts, Barnes said, "I hope so. Maybe then they will be more familiar with our opponents. But it remains to be seen."
Penn Director of Marketing, Promotions and Community Affairs, Dan Flynn, was unavailable for comment.
