Marketing the game is a different sort of challenge at a Division III school.

The Division III philosophy specifically requires a "clear line of demarcation between intercollegiate athletics and professional sports." For Division III athletics programs, their role is as an "integral part of the educational program" and the role of the athlete is as an "integral part of the student body."

A football game at a Division III school is often just that: a football game. Paul Hesse, assistant athletics director at Mount Union College in Alliance, Ohio, said that though the athletics department doesn't embark on a specific marketing campaign or provide entertainment other than the game, administrators still manage to fill their stadium to capacity every year -- even selling standing-room-only tickets for the more popular games.

Hesse said the extent of the school's marketing plan is pushing season tickets and a reserved-seating system as a way to guarantee a full house at Mount Union Stadium. No general admission tickets are sold, so people know they are guaranteed a seat at each game for which they purchase a ticket. The school also publicizes the upcoming games in the local newspaper.

Basketball games are not as well-attended, and Hesse said the athletics department is attempting to feed off of the success of the football program by offering tickets for basketball with tickets to football games for select fans.

"I think if you look at a Division I program, they do a lot of marketing, and we don't do any per se," Hesse said. "We don't get into that at all."

Instead of spending time planning elaborate entertainment for spectators, the focus of a Division III athletics department is the participants in the sports, not the halftime show or the number of fans who show up.

"Essentially, it is about the student-athletes," he said. "At our level, it's more of a casual thing. There's not as much pressure where we have to have so many fans attend our games."

Hesse said he doesn't believe the school feels any pressure to be any different -- fans are happy with the simple entertainment of the game. The lack of demands on athletics departments to do more is in keeping with a philosophy that is uniquely Division III -- the student-athlete experience. No Division III student-athlete receives a scholarship for his or her athletics ability. Division III schools treat athletics departments the same as any other department and emphasize the impact of sports on the participants, not the spectators.

"We don't rely on our athletics program to bring in revenue," Hesse said. "We can't depend on it."

According to Hesse, a football game at Mount Union is pure fun enjoyed by Purple Raiders fans of all ages. The marching band performs, the cheerleaders and the mascot interact with the crowd and the student-athletes play the game. The school's biggest draw will be the October 30 match-up with rival Baldwin-Wallace College, which last year drew 8,000 people in a stadium that has fewer than 6,000 seats. The school doesn't promote tailgating, though the alumni director will occasionally promote pregame events that are alcohol-free, Hesse said.

"We don't do a lot of things. We may have presentations throughout the season, but we don't bring in a lot of extraneous things to attract people," he said. "We have a rich, deep tradition at Mount Union College. We've been around for a long time."

-- Michelle Brutlag Hosick