Maryland offers free tuition to students who watch full football game

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 28 Oct, 14:44 · Archive

University of Maryland is offering one student a semester of free tuition worth roughly $8,000 if they stay through the entire football game against Illinois on Saturday.

The University of Maryland is offering one student a semester of free undergraduate in-state tuition, worth roughly $8,000, if they remain in their seats through the entire football game against Illinois on Saturday. Students must claim their tickets for the game, scan them at the gate of SECU Stadium and then scan a QR code displayed on the video board to be entered into the raffle. Five finalists will be brought to the field during the game, with one ultimately winning the tuition prize.

The promotion takes place amid a difficult season for Maryland football. The Terrapins sit at 2-5 overall and 0-4 in the Big Ten conference. Head coach Mike Locksley has been fired. The university has also struggled with attendance, averaging 42,264 fans through four home games, which ranks 15th out of 18 teams in the Big Ten.

According to Rachel Palmer, the university's assistant athletic director for fan development and marketing, the promotion was developed over the summer and is not directly related to the team's poor performance. Palmer told WBAL-TV that student attendance is a challenge across college football generally. 'It's a pretty long game and they have a lot of other things they can be doing,' she said.

How it is being reported

• Maryland is going to some embarrasing lengths to make sure students stay until the end of gamesThe Maryland Terrapins are raffling free spring tuition to keep students in the stadium through their Halloween college football game against Illinois.Fox News · 28 Oct, 18:02
• Maryland offering college kids free tuition if they stay for full game watching struggling football teamThe University of Maryland's football program is at rock bottom once again, sitting at 2-5 and having just fired head coach Mike Locksley.Daily Mail Sport · 28 Oct, 14:26
• Maryland offering student free tuition under one condition — they stay for a full football gameA Maryland football game is a tough watch these days.New York Post · 28 Oct, 03:16

In this story: University of Maryland · Illinois · Mike Locksley · Rachel Palmer · Maryland

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