Texas' week two trip to Michigan could set a Longhorns record
The Texas Longhorns are no strangers to large crowds. In 2022, the program set a Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium record for attendance when an announced crowd of 105,213 watched the Longhorns fall just short versus Alabama in week two of the season. The 2023 campaign saw an average attendance of 101,625 across the six games in Austin, setting a new record and surpassing the 101,175 on average that filed into DKR to watch Colt McCoy in 2009.
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In 2023, every UT home game save for the scorching season opener against Rice had over 101,000 in attendance. The 609,748 total that walked through the gates in 2023 was the highest for a six-game home slate and the fifth-highest in the history of the program.
The Longhorns may be used to crowds six figures in size but with a week two matchup against the Michigan Wolverines in Michigan Stadium, the largest sports stadium in the United States and the third-largest in the world, a record could be set for the highest official attendance, home or road, for a Texas Longhorns football game.
It’s worth noting that this would be for official attendance. In 2019, the official attendance for the matchup between Texas and eventual national champion LSU was 98,763. However, Texas athletics director Chris Del Conte later admitted at a fan town hall that they scanned over 116,000 fans into the stadium for that contest.
The current official record for attendance at a Texas football game, home or road, is 105,565. That was set on September 10, 2005 when the Longhorns entered Ohio Stadium at night and left Columbus with a 25-22 win over the Ohio State Buckeyes. Even if the crowd size in early September only meets Michigan Stadium’s listed 107,601 capacity, it would still set the official record for most to ever watch a Longhorn football game live.
Michigan has approached 116,000 in official attendance on a handful of occasions. In 2013, 115,109 filed into The Big House for Michigan’s 41-30 win over Notre Dame. That’s the largest official crowd to ever file into an on-campus stadium and watch an American football game.
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Michigan’s 2011 matchup with Notre Dame was right behind at 114,804.
In 2023, the Wolverines’ national championship season, an average of 109,971 fans made it to Ann Arbor for U-M’s seven home games. The high-water mark for the 2023 season was November 25, when 110,615 watched No. 3 Michigan defeat No. 2 Ohio State 30-24.
Texas has never ventured to Michigan. In fact, the two historic programs have faced off just once. During the 2005 Rose Bowl, Vince Young and Ramonce Taylor outdueled Chad Henne and Braylon Edwards and Dusty Mangum hit a 37-yard field goal as time expired for the Longhorns’ first BCS Bowl win.
Michigan Stadium and DKR won’t be the only 100,000+ stadiums on this year’s schedule. The return of the rivalry with Texas A&M means the Longhorns’ first trip to Kyle Field since it underwent major renovations following Johnny Manziel‘s two electric two years. Kyle Field held 88,645 the night Justin Tucker‘s kick sailed through the uprights in 2011. Last season, 108,101 were in College Station to witness the Aggies lose to Alabama.
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But Michigan Stadium stands alone when it comes to capacity among college football venues. When Texas plays there in September and Quinn Ewers looks to add another high-profile road win to his resume, the attendance figure is likely to break a nearly 20-year-old record.
