October 26, 2015
The entire college football world will revolve around Philadelphia this week. ESPN’s College Gameday has elected to broadcast from Philadelphia’s Independence Hall on Saturday morning, prior to the biggest game of the week pitting the Notre Dame Fighting Irish against the Temple Owls at Lincoln Financial Field.
Temple has been one of the biggest surprises in college football this season, entering the game with a 7-0 record and ranked in the AP Top 25 for the first time since 1979. The No. 21 Owls will host the No. 9 Fighting Irish in what will be the biggest game in Temple football history. So big, there’s not just a secondary market for tickets, it is the most expensive game in college football this weekend.
The current average price for Temple vs Notre Dame tickets is $313.80 with a get-in price of $156. No other home Temple football game since 2010 has sported an average price above $200. Only two games have even exceeded the $100 average price mark, both against Penn State in 2013 and this season. The close proximity to Penn State had much to do with the two matchups against the Nittany Lions drawing such high prices.
Following those games, the next most expensive Temple game came against another local school, Rutgers, in October of 2012 with an average price of $85.09. No other game since 2010 has crossed over a $70 average on the secondary market.
While there’s a ton of optimism around the Temple football program, there’s still a long way to go for this type of enthusiasm to be sustained. The Owls’ next home game will come on November 21 against the Memphis Tigers. The Tigers are ranked No. 16 in the AP Poll and play in the same conference as the Owls.
With this year seeing the first American Athletic Conference Championship Game, this matchup could decide the host team. There will likely be a rematch in the Championship Game, as Temple and Memphis play in separate divisions. However, with so much potentially on the line for that game, the average price is just $34 with a get-in price of $12, more like the Temple games of the past.
Even a close loss against the Fighting Irish could be a big boost for Temple football, but the real key could be how demand continues after Gameday and Notre Dame pack up and leave the City of Brotherly Love.
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