NIU Athletic Director Gerald O’Dell spoke Wednesday at the monthly athletic board meeting about how football scheduling works and how the Huskies stand in terms of classification and attendance.

In his report, which was requested by the board in November, O’Dell said NIU is in no danger of losing its Division I-A status yet. But its attendance average must improve by 1991 or there could be problems.

The Huskies have two options to choose from in order to stay qualified. Option one says that the stadium must seat 30,000 or more, the schedule must have a minimum of seven I-A schools and attendance must average 17,000 at home games once every four years. Option two states attendance must average 20,000 at all contests both home and away. Once an option is met, a school does not have to meet the requirements for another four years. In 1986, the NIU attendance average was 28,276 at away games and 17,897 at home.

“We have averaged 15,000 at home in the last five years,” O’Dell said. “We are looking to improve that attendance by 1990.”

O’Dell broke down attendance figures for the 1988 season. Approximately 50,000 attended the six home games this past year—Akron 6,500; Middle Tennessee 10,000; Southwest Missouri State and Ball State between 12,000 and 15,000; Western Illinois 6,000; and Western Michigan 3,000.

Besides wanting to attract more students, O’Dell wants to increase the number of season tickets sold. While revenue went up $30,000, the actual number sold depleted. The number of season tickets sold this year was about 1,500. A major concern for the athletic department is paid attendance. For example, Parent’s Day was up by 900 over 1987 and revenue increased, but the actual figures were down. In 1985, 11,400 attended Parent’s Day. This number decreased to 9,000 in 1986 and went down further in 1988 to 6,400.

“This is a concern,” O’Dell said. “We have to ask ourselves ‘what kind of synergy we have to have.’ We’re trying to schedule (Parent’s Day) no later than the third week of October. The event is more than just a game.”

Scheduling is an important priority for the NIU AD. While the athletic board did not find much difference between O’Dell’s scheduling criteria and the previous administration’s criteria, one change the board noted was that no home game will be scheduled on Labor Day weekend.

O’Dell also said it is important to play other teams with similar format in size and scope. “If we want to be Division I Independent, then we want (to play that), O’Dell said. He is also scheduling “big-name” schools like Iowa, Illinois and Kansas State. “This (KSU) is the first Big 8 team we’ve played. This is an evolution,” O’Dell said.

“We are developing a five-year plan ending FY94,” O’Dell continued. “As far as football is concerned, it should represent the (athletic department’s) growth. Bettering the schedule improves growth.”