NCAA Championship Week Attendance: SWAC > Sun Belt!

Conference championship week is our penultimate look at college football attendance this season, and with the ticket prices being fairly low for many of the big conference games, it’s no surprise that the American conference championship was outdrawn by the FCS-level SWAC Championship. But what other surprises are in store? Let’s take a look.

Worst overall Division 1 attendance last week: 4,897 – Sam Houston State vs Chattanooga on Saturday. An FCS playoff game that drew fewer than 5,000 folks, this was a five point game that went to the home team. The driving rain on Saturday in the area was clearly a factor, as you can see in this action shot:

Worst overall FBS attendance last week: 11,137 – Texas State vs Arkansas State. 1-10 Texas State fans had little reason to come out to a rainy Bobcat Stadium in San Marcos this weekend, but over 10,000 still did. They ultimately saw a 36-14 loss at the hands of the 7-5 Arkansas State Red Wolves to give Arkansas State a share of the Sun Belt conference championship.

Worst overall Power Five attendance last week: 42,746 – TCU vs Kansas State. The highest “worst attendance” of a power five school this year, because of the nuances of the Big XII schedule, TCU puts 40,000+ in the stands and still gets considered the worst. Sorry, Horned Frogs.

Emptiest FCS stadium as a percentage of capacity: Alcorn State (34.7% full, 24,917 in attendance)

Emptiest FBS stadium as a percentage of capacity: South Alabama (36.4% full, 14,812 in attendance)

Emptiest FBS Power Five stadium as a percentage of capacity: Pac 12 Championship Game (68.8% full, 47,118 in attendance)

And now, for your browsing pleasure, every game and the corresponding attendance for this week. Enjoy!