University of Wisconsin?s football team ranked 15th in the
nation for total fan home attendance, making them fourth in the Big Ten.

According to Don Walker of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,
attendance rose from 81,368 fans per game in 2006 to 81,747 fans in 2007.
However, the rise in attendance was not enough to surpass any other schools on
the list, and UW remained in the 15th slot.

In his Jsonline.com blog Walker reported the University of
Michigan again led the nation in attendance this year with an average of
110,264 attendees per game. Penn State again came in second place with an average
attendance of 108,917 fans.

Ohio State rounded out the top three, leapfrogging
Tennessee, with an average attendance of 105,110.

UW athletics spokesperson Vince Sweeney said the reason the
other Big Ten schools have larger attendance is because they have bigger
stadiums.

UW Athletic Director Barry Alvarez said he was not sure if
attendance would match the other schools if UW had a larger stadium. However,
he said stadium size is a factor.??

?Well, we?re sold out every game,? Alvarez said. ?We don?t
have the largest stadium.?

Alvarez said the attendance rankings do not bother him
because the current situation suits him well.

?I like to keep it where tickets are hard to get,? Alvarez
said.

Alvarez also said he was proud of UW fan support on the road
this season. According to Alvarez UW sold all of its 10,000 tickets to the
Outback Bowl in Tampa, Fla. In addition, many fans also purchased tickets in
Tampa.

Overall, Alvarez said UW fans constituted ?at least half? of
the total crowd in Tampa.

However, Sweeney said attendance rankings do not give an
overall picture of fan support.

?It?s not just the numbers; it?s the passion and loyalty and
support of our fans that counts,? Sweeney said.

Sweeney added UW football games ?have been sold out for
seasons.?

?I think our fans have shown for decades that football is
important in Wisconsin,? Sweeney said.

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