Michigan officials are making an all-out press this week to get the student section at Michigan Stadium filled before Saturday's noon kickoff against Iowa, writes Angelique S. Chengelis in the Detroit News.
Last weekend, athletic director Dave Brandon said there were 11,000 empty seats — there are approximately 22,000 student tickets — for the noon kickoff against Northwestern. It only sparsely filled in as the game went on.
For the 3:30 p.m. kickoff against Michigan State on Oct. 20, there were 3,500 no-shows, Brandon said. And, another 1,000 students came in and validated their tickets to re-sell, bringing the total to 4,500 no-shows.
On Wednesday, athletic department officials released brief video messages from quarterback Devin Gardner and safety Thomas Gordon encouraging students to attend Saturday's final home game. They asked, as Gardner says in his video, the "Michigan Nation" to arrive early to be part of the pregame ceremony honoring the seniors.
