New ticket data another measure of excitement over Gophers' football season

A 10-win season has bolstered Gophers football attendance even more than the team has indicated.

The team's average announced attendance — the number of tickets sold — was 46,190 this season, up from 37,914 one year earlier.

But the actual number of tickets scanned spiked from 22,656 last season to 37,703 this year, according to data the Star Tribune obtained from the University on Monday.

The year-by-year comparison shows that 81.6% of the tickets the Gophers sold this season were actually used, compared to just 59.8% last season.

The Gophers typically play seven home games each season at TCF Bank Stadium, where the official capacity is 50,805.

Minnesota announced its first two sellout crowds since 2015 for the final two home games this season. In each case, the scanned tickets were below capacity — 45,025 for Penn State, and 44,609 for Wisconsin.

But those scanned ticket numbers were considerably higher than the two final home games last season — 15,434 for Purdue, and 15,160 for Northwestern.

Here's a look at the announced crowds and ticket scanned numbers for the past two seasons.

2019

Date Opponent Announced Actual

Aug. 29 South Dakota State 49,112 38,702

Sept. 14 Georgia Southern 41,021 33,696

Oct. 5 Illinois 39,341 30,142

Oct. 12 Nebraska 43,502 34,035

Oct. 26 Maryland 44,715 37,710

Nov. 9 Penn State 51,883 45,025

Nov. 30 Wisconsin 53,756 44,609

Average 46,190 37,703

Percentage of sold tickets used: 81.6

2018

Date Opponent Announced Actual

Aug. 30 New Mexico State 41,291 20,218

Sept. 8 Fresno State 38,280 27,087

Sept. 15 Miami (Ohio) 41,162 22,873

Oct. 6 Iowa 48,199 37,461

Oct. 26 Indiana 33,273 20,357

Nov. 10 Purdue 31,068 15,434

Nov. 17 Northwestern 32,134 15,160

Average 37,914 22,656

Percentage of sold tickets used: 59.8