Griz break season ticket record for second straight year

(Gogriz.com) For a second-straight year the Montana Grizzlies have set a new football season ticket record at Washington-Grizzly Stadium, with 18,816 packages sold and distributed as of Friday, Aug. 23, still a week away from kickoff.

As the winningest FCS team of the 21st century, demand for Grizzly football is at an all-time high coming off the program’s 19th Big Sky championship season and its eighth trip to the national title game. A robust 95 percent of last year’s season ticket holders renewed for this year’s seven game slate, helping Montana surpass 2023’s record of 18,761 sold and the previous record of 18,622 set in 2009.

“We are again in awe of the support Griz Nation gives our student-athletes and coaches,” said director of athletics Kent Haslam.

“The investment our season ticket holders make in in Grizzly football is vital to our institution. We rely on that investment more than any other FCS program and more than many FBS programs across the country. Simply put, we could not do it without the incredible support of our fans, and we can’t thank them enough for their dedication.”

The new season ticket total sets Montana up for more overall and single game attendance records in 2024. UM set a new school and conference record in 2023 for combined attendance with 225,623 fans crossing the turnstiles to average 25,069 fans across nine home games – both marks that were tops in the FCS and more than a third of the FBS.

Montana sold-out all six of its regular season games last year and sold out the semifinal game against NDSU – the first playoff sellout in program history. The Griz also packed more than 27,000 into WGS for the first time ever in 2023 with 27,178 in attendance to see the Griz beat Montana State 37-7 in the Brawl of the Wild game. All told, four of the five highest attended games ever in Missoula were set in 2023.

With the new record, Montana continues to be a leader in season ticket sales among college football program at any level in the western U.S.

A recent report noted that Oregon State had sold 15,819 season tickets for the coming season, a 96 percent renewal rate from the year prior for the Beavers.

In 2022 the Idaho Statesman reported that Boise State had sold 17,403 season tickets, and the San Diego Tribune had sold just under 16,000 in its first year at the new Snapdragon Stadium. The Griz are even in the same ballpark as UCLA, now a Big 10 program that sold 23,077 season tickets at the Rose Bowl in 2022, according to the New York Times.

Season ticket holders will get more bang for their buck in 2024, with Montana hosting seven regular season home games for the first time since 2007. New season ticket packages remain on sale, with limited quantities remaining. With demand for postseason games at an all-time high, season tickets are the only way to guarantee access to Montana's next playoff run as well.

Single game tickets – both home and away – are also on sale now, as are three-game mini plans.

The Griz are now 230-35 (.867) at home since the stadium opened in 1986 and 33-7 (.891) in home playoff games in that time, creating one of the most intimidating home field advantages in college football.

Bobby Hauck, the winningest coach in Big Sky history, is set to coach his 100th game in Missoula on August 31st when the Griz take on Missouri State in the season opener, holding an 88-11 (.889) home record at UM with five perfect home seasons under his belt.