Despite the football team's recent losing streak, the Gators ticket office has not seen a decrease in demand for tickets to Saturday's game.
"The Homecoming game has a very good demand because it's Homecoming, which is usually an event that's very well-attended," said Mark Gajda, the assistant athletics director for ticket operations.
As of 10 a.m. Tuesday, there were 500 non-student tickets available for the game.
Gajda expects the tickets to sell out by Saturday. Ticket prices range from $50 to $325.
Saturday's Homecoming game will be the football team's first game in Gainesville after losing four straight games on the road in October.
The game will begin at 12:21 p.m. and will be broadcast live on the SEC Network.
The Gators now have a 4-4 record and are not eligible for the SEC title.
Should the team lose Saturday's game, the Gators would be in danger of not qualifying for a bowl game for the first time since 1979, the Alligator reported Monday.
Adam Shapiro, a 21-year-old industrial engineering senior, has seen a loss of interest in Gators football.
Shapiro is looking to buy an extra ticket to Saturday's Homecoming football game against Vanderbilt University, and the number of remaining tickets for sale both pleases and saddens him, he said.
"The fact that there is a lot of tickets being sold for the Homecoming game, of all games, tells you that interest in our team has been all but lost for this season," Shapiro said. "No one wants to go see a mediocre team who's only playing the rest of the season for a shred of dignity."
A Facebook group called "Gator Football Ticket Exchange 2011" allows members to buy and sell both student and non-student tickets to the football games.
As of Tuesday night, there were 86 posts in the group that advertised tickets for sale to Saturday's game.
The average asking price for a ticket was $30.
Student football tickets bought through the Gators ticket office are $15, plus a $1.50 service charge when bought online through the unclaimed ticket sale.
The sale will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday at gatorzone.com.
Jon Rodriguez, a 20-year-old biology and anthropology junior, is planning to attend the football game, despite its recent losses.
"I just love the great atmosphere Homecoming provides," Rodriguez said. "Hopefully, we'll see the team do a lot better in November."
