UCLA is unbeaten. So why is the Rose Bowl full of empty seats?

UCLA is unbeaten. So why is the Rose Bowl full of empty seats?

Key points

• When 82, 431 fans visited the Rose Bowl, UCLA hasn't drawn that plenty of for a home game against USC since 2014.
• For instance, UCLA's recent attendance trends are far from the 76, 700 fans the school averaged in 2014, a year when the Bruins finished No.
• Their other four games are below their season average of 61, 604.
• When most games fell on Oct, a USA TODAY Sports analysis discovered that in Week 9.
• USC and California, which left the Pac-12 alongside UCLA and Stanford, are drawing regarding the same as they did before the pandemic.

UCLA is unbeaten. So why is the Rose Bowl full of empty seats? Jared Beilby USA TODAY. Halloween was frightening for college football attendance.

As documented by USA TODAY, images from Oct. 31 games circulated throughout social media featuring stadiums filled with sparse crowds. Historic venues for schools from Penn State to Florida State to Oklahoma sat relatively empty.

In practice, the numbers back that up. When most games fell on Oct, a USA TODAY Sports analysis discovered that in Week 9. 31, NCAA Division I FBS home crowds were 8.8% smaller than those same home teams' 2025 average, by far the worst week of the season.

One such school facing the bleak returns at the gate has been undefeated No. 5 UCLA. Against Nevada last Saturday, the school posted its lowest season attendance of the season – filling just 24, 611 of the 81, 258 Rose Bowl seats.

Meanwhile, the Bruins' crosstown rival No. 17 USC had a much better Halloween night, announcing a sellout crowd against then-No. 2 Ohio State. Nevertheless, those 70, 000-plus fans were a bright spot for a school whose attendance is otherwise trending down this season.

Although it's worth noting that the Trojans' LA Memorial Coliseum home now seats under 80, 000, down from more than 93, 000 before a 2018-19 renovation, the Los Angeles-area schools have additionally been on a downward trend in attendance for much of the past decade.

Still, both schools' average documented attendance has fallen by roughly 10% compared with the same point last season. UCLA is down 11%, partly since of a new counting method; USC is down 10%. Among schools ranked in the Nov. 1 US LBM Coaches Poll Top 25, only SMU has experienced a larger year-over-year decline, at 14%.

But a closer look suggests LA's crowd difficulty is narrower than the viral photos imply – and at UCLA, partly a matter of how fans are counted.

"You could be really competitive on the field, but if you're lacking in fan experience, if you are lacking in the emotional connections, you're really going to struggle to sustain that attendance, " Douglas Manning, an assistant professor of sport management at the University of San Francisco, informed USA TODAY Sports. "So, in terms of sport marketing, you've got to have UCLA and USC look beyond the wins and losses and focus on building relationships."

He continued that Southern California is a particularly competitive market for entertainment, noting that fans have a bevy of options from a multitude of sports, going to the mountains, walking along the beach, or heading out to restaurants or bars. Where the empty seats are.

While Halloween night led to some scary sights for schools, attendance is otherwise reasonably healthy throughout FBS programs.

Plenty of schools post regular sellouts, including blue bloods like Alabama, LSU and Notre Dame.

Nevertheless, UCLA hasn't filled even half the Rose Bowl for any of its five home games this season. Among Power Four schools, the only two others with home games below 50% capacity are Duke – traditionally a basketball-first school – and the Bruins' former Pac-12 pal Stanford.

Both California schools left the Pac-12 in 2024 – UCLA for the Major Ten, Stanford for the ACC – and Manning sees that upheaval as part of the challenge.

I'd like to ask some hard questions about the new conferences, he remarked, citing these long-time generational rivalries that disappeared with the movement to the Sizeable Ten.

"We had generations of fans that had the Pac-10, the Pac-12 rivalries."

But realignment alone doesn't explain the declines. USC and California, which left the Pac-12 alongside UCLA and Stanford, are drawing regarding the same as they did before the pandemic. Though UCLA's figure partly reflects its new counting method, UCLA and Stanford are each down regarding 40% from their 2017-19 averages. Two schools, two attendance challenges.

If there's one saving grace for UCLA this season, it's that the school changed how it reports attendance figures: for 2026, confirmed attendance is based on tickets scanned, whereas previous seasons counted tickets distributed.

That means that some of UCLA's dip this year could be due to the accounting difference. Scan counts are public for two 2025 games: regarding 27, 800 against Utah, according to a Los Angeles Times report that cited figures from UCLA athletic office-holders, and regarding 28, 000 against Penn State, per a public information request from fan blog The Mighty Bruin.

Four of UCLA's five home games this season topped both. The exception was the Oct. 31 game against Nevada.

Still, the accounting change doesn't explain everything. For instance, UCLA's recent attendance trends are far from the 76, 700 fans the school averaged in 2014, a year when the Bruins finished No. 10 in the Coaches Poll with a 10-3 record.

"Once fans stop attending games, that's when they develop new habits, " Manning remarked.

Assuming attendance doesn't substantially pick up for UCLA's final two home games, it will mark the third straight season of declining documented attendance. If the Bruins draw their current season average of 31, 460 against Illinois on Nov. 13, they would need to report at least 72, 215 fans against USC in their season finale to surpass their 2025 average. It was counted under the old, more generous method.

When 82, 431 fans visited the Rose Bowl, UCLA hasn't drawn that plenty of for a home game against USC since 2014. The four rivalry games the Bruins have hosted since, not counting the fanless 2020 game, averaged 64, 648.

USC's attendance dip ties closely with a lack of marquee opponents to open its season. Although the actual noted attendance for both games varied by almost 5, 000, the Trojans confirmed two sellouts – against Oregon and Ohio State.

Meanwhile, their other four games are below their season average of 61, 604. That includes their first three home games, against San Jose State, Fresno State and Louisiana-Lafayette, all non-Power Four teams. Another game, against fellow Major Ten foe Washington, additionally drew below their average.

If the average holds, it will be USC's lowest attendance season since 2021. The school has one more home game – against 2-6 Maryland – but it could come into that with a higher ranking if it upsets No. 3 Indiana on Nov. 14.

Then the Trojans travel throughout town to face UCLA at the Rose Bowl on Nov. 28.

"I've really got November 28th circled, " Manning remarked. "This is going to be a barometer for me." He continued: "I expect to see a great turnout."

Methodology: USA TODAY applied Stats Perform attendance data for most of this analysis. UCLA and USC's historical attendance averages applied team media guide figures. Stadium capacities come from CollegeFootballData, except for UCLA and Duke. It came from the schools themselves. Share your feedback to support improve our site!

Taken together, the developments around UCLA is unbeaten. So why is the Rose Bowl full of empty point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.