Scott Van Pelt criticizes Maryland football as homecoming tickets plummet

10 hours ago

2 min read

For an athletic department that put a premium on increasing revenue and donations while announcing the fourth sellout over the last six games ahead of the non-conference finale, Maryland football is staring at humble reality for its next home game.

Tickets for Maryland's Oct. 17 homecoming game against Rutgers can officially be purchased for under $10. Tickets dropped to as little as $1 on Monday with both Vivid Seats and SeatGeek selling for $9 and Ticketmaster listing for as little as $12.

It comes after the program suffered a setback in attendance ahead of the Big Ten opener, which ended in arguably the most embarrassing loss of the Mike Locksley tenure after UCLA dominated en route to a 54-3 finish. It marked Maryland's biggest margin of defeat since the week four loss exactly seven seasons prior when James Franklin and Penn State handed Locksley a 59-0 loss in his first Big Ten game as head coach. The only problem is, the pessimism mixed with apathy surrounding the program in the midst of a prove-it season for Locksley has led to a nosedive in fan interest, a concerning reality setting athletic director Jim Smith and senior deputy AD Diana Sabau up with their first true test.

Maryland alum and ESPN host Scott Van Pelt also criticized Maryland for its loss while reiterating that the program "can't cry poor anymore."

"You cannot lose a Big Ten opener by 51 points as a one-point dog," Van Pelt said. "There's very little statistical, historical comparison for that — it just doesn't happen because it cannot happen. It is an inexcusable result. Period."

"It's not unfortunate," he said. "It's unacceptable."

Maryland is preparing to face Nebraska and Ohio State on the road over the next two weeks before returning to host the Scarlet Knights, a chance to end a disappointing two-game losing streak. What happens with the program's leadership ahead of or immediately after the Rutgers game remains to be seen with head coach Mike Locksley set to lead his team into the Big Ten road opener this upcoming weekend. Maryland has won three of five homecoming games under Locksley since 2021 with the Rutgers game marking arguably the next winnable game on the schedule. ESPN's matchup predictor gives Maryland a 59% chance at a win.

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