Football attendance at Texas is down 11.8% from '12, and the program in many respects is "caught in a perfect storm," according to Brian Davis of the AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN. The team is 7-9 under coach Charlie Strong and fans "definitely didn’t like the higher season ticket prices implemented" by former men's AD Steve Patterson. As of Wednesday, about 15,500 tickets were "still available for the Big 12 opener against 24th-ranked Oklahoma State" on Saturday, and there are also "more than 4,500 tickets" still available on the Texas end of the Cotton Bowl for the Oklahoma game. UT's average home attendance for its first two games against Rice and Cal was 89,013, which is the lowest total since '07, the "final year before the north end zone expansion goosed the overall capacity." Football ticket sales are a "chief revenue driver for one of the biggest athletic departments in college sports." If ticket sales "continue tapering off, Texas has a serious problem" (AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 9/25). In Dallas, Stephen Young writes the fact that UT "has yet to sell out its allotment of tickets" for its annual game against OU "would have been unheard of 10 years ago" (DALLASOBSERVER.com, 9/25).
THE SOUND OF SETTLING: ESPN's Brett McMurphy noted UT regents on Thursday "approved a financial settlement" with Patterson. Details were not released, pending final acceptance from Patterson, but it was "confirmed Tuesday that the settlement is worth" up to $2.8M. The final amount will "vary, depending on what Patterson might earn if he gets another job." McMurphy cited a source as saying that Patterson is "guaranteed" $1.4M, "whether or not he gets another job." If Patterson does get a new job, UT will "be responsible for paying only the difference between the new salary" and the second $1.4M. UT Chancellor Bill McRaven on Thursday said that final details of the deal "could take several days to announce" (ESPN.com, 9/24).
