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ABILENE – The hope in building the first on-campus football stadium since World War II was that ACU would see an increase in fan participation in every aspect, from pre-game tailgating to attendance.
Those hopes and dreams materialized as new traditions were established surrounding games at Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium in 2017, and late last week ACU learned it had finished in the top 25 in FCS football in average per-game attendance with an increase of more than 60 percent over the 2016 season.
ACU – which averaged just 6,342 fans per game in its final season at Shotwell Stadium in 2016 – averaged 10,441 fans per game in 2017, the inaugural season of Wildcat Stadium. The Wildcats sold out two games – the stadium opener against Houston Baptist on Sept. 16 and Homecoming against Southeastern Louisiana on Oct. 21 – and had two other crowds with at least 10,500 in attendance.
“When we began building Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium, we were hoping to reinvigorate our fan base, help develop a new passion for ACU football, and revolutionize the gameday experience,” ACU director of athletics Lee De Leon said. “These attendance numbers reflect that we were able to accomplish what we set out to do with the stadium. We are so thankful to our students, alumni and fans for taking their support of the Wildcats to the next level.”
Montana led all of FCS football in average attendance at 23,535 fans in six games, while 2016 national champion and 2017 runner-up James Madison was second in average attendance at 21,724 fans in nine contests. JMU led FCS football in total attendance with 195,514 fans with 2017 national champion North Dakota State second in total attendance at 164,996 fans in nine home dates. The Bison finished seventh in average attendance at 18,333 fans per game.
Stephen F. Austin led the Southland Conference in attendance, averaging 11,376 fans in five home games, while ACU checked in second in the league and 25th in the country. ACU welcomed 52,204 fans into Wildcats Stadium in five 2017 home dates.
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Those hopes and dreams materialized as new traditions were established surrounding games at Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium in 2017, and late last week ACU learned it had finished in the top 25 in FCS football in average per-game attendance with an increase of more than 60 percent over the 2016 season.
ACU – which averaged just 6,342 fans per game in its final season at Shotwell Stadium in 2016 – averaged 10,441 fans per game in 2017, the inaugural season of Wildcat Stadium. The Wildcats sold out two games – the stadium opener against Houston Baptist on Sept. 16 and Homecoming against Southeastern Louisiana on Oct. 21 – and had two other crowds with at least 10,500 in attendance.
“When we began building Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium, we were hoping to reinvigorate our fan base, help develop a new passion for ACU football, and revolutionize the gameday experience,” ACU director of athletics Lee De Leon said. “These attendance numbers reflect that we were able to accomplish what we set out to do with the stadium. We are so thankful to our students, alumni and fans for taking their support of the Wildcats to the next level.”
Montana led all of FCS football in average attendance at 23,535 fans in six games, while 2016 national champion and 2017 runner-up James Madison was second in average attendance at 21,724 fans in nine contests. JMU led FCS football in total attendance with 195,514 fans with 2017 national champion North Dakota State second in total attendance at 164,996 fans in nine home dates. The Bison finished seventh in average attendance at 18,333 fans per game.
Stephen F. Austin led the Southland Conference in attendance, averaging 11,376 fans in five home games, while ACU checked in second in the league and 25th in the country. ACU welcomed 52,204 fans into Wildcats Stadium in five 2017 home dates.
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