The Topeka state journal., 1916-11-27
6 MILLION FANS
Has a Greater Follow
ing Now Than Ever Before.
The Gate Receipts This Season
Break All Records.
BY FRANK G. MENKE.


The football attendance for 1916
threatens to smash all records. The
country has become afflicted with pig
skin madness and is pouring its gold
into the athletic Golfers of the college
in exchange for "gazes' at the per-
forming athletes.
One of the best little statistical
fiends outside of Jail hazarded the
guess the other day that all the col
lege and high school games played
this season will attract upwards of
100000 folks, at an average price Of
IS cents per head.
And my figures are very conserva-
tive, too" added the fiend.
The four big games in the east this
year will draw close to 100000 and
the gross receipts will go above $780,
600 for those four games alone. The
Harvard-Princeton combat drew 40,-
600 at 81 per head; the Yale-Prince-
ton game drew the same sized multi
tude while the attendance at the Yale
Harvary frOlic was estimated around
$4,000.
And then there's the Army-Navy
game in New York that drew about
$4,000 at So per head, a gross intake
of $129,000 for a single game.
Others Big Crowds.
The Yale-Brown, Yale-W and J.,
Yale-Colgate games drew a total of
$4,000. The Harvard Brown and Har-
vard-Cornell affairs each produced a
1000 crowd. The big games in which
the Pittsburg Panthers have figured
Syracuse, Pennsylvania and w. and J.
have brought out total crowd of
over $4,000. And the Pitt-Penn State
game on Thanksgiving day is good for
another 1000.
Syracuse, Brown, Dartmouth, Penn
sylvania, Colgate and Cornell, all have
played to huge throngs in each of their
important games and drawn big even
in their preliminary encounters.
And what has come about in the
east is also true of the west The out
Z pourings this season for all the big
games have averaged far beyond other
years. Of course, they haven't such
/ immense stadiums in the west as have
the big colleges in the east, yet in all
the important combats the stands at
each of the universities have been
freighted to capacity.
Ohio State and Northwestern have
played to larger audiences than ever
before in theft history. The Minnesota
and Wisconsin Gates" have been
large to an extreme. Only in Chicago
has there been a slight falling off-and
no wonder. Chicago has a Joke eleven
this year.
How They Split "Gate."
How do the colleges split on the re-
ceipts? Any way that is agreed to by
both parties. Sometimes they work
on a $3.50 basis; on other occasions
the visitors get a percentage
The w. and J.-Yale game drew at
least $4,000 in New Haven-and it
got about 100000 which was less than
its travelling expenses. Yale got the
other $4,000 or whatever was the exact
amount. Quite right; it doesn't seem
fair for w. andJ.actually to lose money
in playing Yale and for Yale to pocket
big roll. But, dontcha see, the w.
and ]. fellows are supposed to get pres
tige in playing Yale-and that's con-
sidered sufficient remuneration ac-
cording to Yale viewpoint.
The majority of the teams that play
Yale. Harvard and Princeton get guar
antees only, according to our infor-
nation. And they are very very small.
However, when Yale, Harvard and
Princeton play against each other the
split is $3.50.
The Army-Navy game is worked diff
! ferently- Each school was given ap-
proximate1y $4,000 seats this year
That accounted for $4,000 The total
seats sold were about $4,000 The in
! come from those extra 1000 seats
! $4,000. was given to the New York
Giant management which financed the
| affair. turned over the use of the Polo
| grounds, took care of printing, dis.
| tribution, extra stands, etc.