CEDAR FALLS - Timed tests may trump timeouts this weekend as University of Northern Iowa students choose between finals and football.

More students are expected to stay on campus this weekend as they prepare for a week of tests before heading home for the holidays. However, some say they won't have time for football in between their studies. Andrew Kilbourne, a UNI junior, said he is usually a Panther football fan - but not the weekend before finals.

"I would usually at least listen to the games on the radio, but I probably won't even have time for that this weekend," he said while studying in the Maucker Union Wednesday.

Jamie Udeze, a senior in exercise science, said his weekend plans are "still up in the air," but he nodded in agreement at Kilbourne's assessment.

Athletic Director Troy Dannen said about 7,000 of the more than 16,000 available tickets were sold by early Wednesday afternoon. Only 300 student tickets had been purchased at that time. Though sales are lagging behind last year's repeated sellout games Dannen said attendance is actually on par with other playoff runs.

"You're making a comparison to the aberration," he said.

Several students said they were waiting to hear if the university would be footing the bill for student tickets again this week before making a decision about attending the Saturday game. Sophomore Nathan Tafolla said he would definitely snap up an offer for free tickets, but would be less likely to attend if he had to pay. He also knows that if he doesn't go, he can still catch the game on ESPN.

Sophomore John Lawyer is already committed to cheering on the Panthers inside the UNI-Dome, but he admits there isn't the same hype about this year's team as last year's squad - which went undefeated in the regular season and earned a No. 1 ranking for several weeks.

That, he said, has also translated to the student cheering section.

"I've heard from some people that there is just a different atmosphere at these games," he said. "The crowd just isn't as rowdy, even on Homecoming; when it was packed, they just weren't as rowdy."

Dannen said last week's ticket giveaway will not be repeated this weekend. Even when the tickets were free, only about 1,000 students took the school up on their offer. He said the Athletic Department already has plans to talk with student groups about why student attendance steadily dropped off throughout the season.

Sue Sonnenberg, a buyer for University Book & Supply, said the Panther playoff run has "helped to loosen some purse strings a little bit."

"This fall has been slow for everybody, but with that big win over the weekend, we are seeing some effect from that," she said.

The store is currently carrying NCAA-sanctioned merchandise in the store, which also is available during the games. Online sales also have spiked since the playoffs began.

"I think people are excited coming into this next game," she said.

Dannen said some fans are even looking to the future and making tentative plans for the possibility of a winter getaway to Chattanooga, Tenn., the site of the championship game.

"If there hasn't been a buzz on campus, there certainly is now," Dannen said. "Whether that equates to ticket sales, I don't know, but this team is in the semifinals, the final four. … We've already got 300 or 350 folks who have indicated an interest in a charter flight, which is more interest than we had last year."

Contact Emily Christensen at (319) 291-1570 or emily.christensen@wcfcourier.com.