Each year, 64 teams make it to the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, granting their schools national media exposure. This kind of exposure cannot be bought, only won through sweat, tears and baskets.
The benefits of this exposure for budding schools like AU? Priceless, according to Athletic Director Keith Gill.
“Being on CBS during Primetime last year for [AU] is probably the exposure that we can’t really buy,” Gill said. “During that entire broadcast they talked about what a great school [AU] is, great academics … all the good things we are doing.”
Three areas Gill believes have been positively affected by AU’s exposure in the NCAA Tournament are alumni relations, recruitment and enrollment.
Despite a proven positive link between college basketball success and alumni donations, Gill did not mention an increase in alumni donations due to the Eagles’ success in the tournament. Instead, he spoke of the tournament as a chance for alumni to rally behind their alma mater.
“It’s wonderful if you walk into work one day and your colleague’s are like, ‘Oh my gosh, I saw your alma mater on TV, and they played Villanova tough.’ Obviously that is going to be appealing to the [alumni].”
Knowing this appeal, Gill said AU improved its alumni relations over the last two years and will continue.
From a recruiting standpoint, Gill said “success breeds success.”
“If you’re a recruit, and you see the people rushing the floor at Bender, and you see the excitement, and just how fun and what a great atmosphere that was, I think it would be hard for you to not to want to come to school here,” Gill said.
Exposure from the NCAA Tournament has also allowed AU to broaden their recruiting horizons.
“I think that our recruiting is probably getting looks by prospective students that maybe would not have looked at us in the past, because they know about our success from an NCAA standpoint,” Gill said.
AU has not conducted research on the effects of the NCAA Tournament on recruiting. However, Gill said the impact of tournament exposure will be seen over the next few years and he is already pointing to the current talent on the men’s basketball team as evidence.
Regarding enrollment and the number of applicants to AU, Gill and Greg Grauman, the director of admissions, agree that there has been no significant connection between the NCAA Tournament and the number of applicants.
“It’s difficult to measure the degree to which the success of the men’s basketball team has contributed to an increase in applications,” Grauman said. “However, any time the university receives positive nationwide media exposure, it is a benefit to our recruitment efforts. We proudly promote the successes of all our athletic achievements to our prospective students.”
According to application counts from the Department of Admissions, the number of applications received has decreased since a high of 15,849 in 2007. Nevertheless, Grauman said the university received more then 16,800 applications for fall 2010. A final count has yet to be released.
Despite no blatant correlation between NCAA exposure and the number of applicants to AU, Gill said the tournament has helped with enrollment. The tournament takes place in March, which is around the same time regular applicants receive their acceptance letters.
“The NCAA tournament comes around right when people are making their admissions decisions,” Gill said. “If you’re thinking about going to American or Colby or what have you, and all of a sudden you decide, ‘OK, I’m going to go to American’ because you see all these positive images.”
According to Gill, successful men’s basketball seasons have been one of many factors assisting the university in meeting enrollment goals.
“I think that men’s basketball success sends positive and powerful messages that have helped the institution meet some of its goals in terms of matriculates,” Gill said.
Having become accustomed to the benefits of NCAA Tournament exposure, the Eagles’ current conference standing, 4-2, could jeopardize a third consecutive trip to the tournament.
From an admissions standpoint, Grauman does not think prospective students determine whether to enroll solely on the strength of the university’s athletics.
“The students who choose to enroll at AU are a diverse group who bring to our community varied interests and life experiences,” Grauman said. “I don’t believe the win-loss record of any AU athletic team will significantly impact whether or not most admitted students choose to enroll.”
On the other hand, Gill said the athletic department believes the team will go to the tournament, a belief that does not change season to season.
“We are hopeful and we are preparing in the same ways that we prepared last year so that when the time comes we are really able to take advantage of it,” Gill said. “And be sure that we maximize the opportunity for the institution.”
While the two sides, athletics and admissions, differ, both agree that AU’s participation in the NCAA Tournament has had a positive effect on the university. One step in continuing the good media exposure is for AU to make the NCAA Tournament again. To do that though, the Eagles first must beat Lehigh University on Saturday.
You can reach this writer at sports@theeagleonline.com.
