Roman Foore

Why invest in college sports? College presidents, board members, athletic directors, admissions offices, and fundraising teams know that successful athletics enrolls students, fills beds, and builds new buildings. Florida Gulf Coast’s admissions applications increased over 27% after their Sweet 16 run. Visits on the FGCU admissions page jumped from 2,280 to 42,793. Butler’s applications nearly tripled after two Final Fours while the university was able to build, expand, and upgrade $255M in campus facilities including a business school and a new arts center. George Mason’s admissions office inquiries went up 350% after their Final Four run in 2006 including a 54% increase in out-of-state applications. In the 1980’s, John Chaney’s men’s basketball program changed the landscape of Temple University as a whole helping increase freshmen enrollment by 18.1% and transfer enrollment by 6.1%. Nick Saban’s football program helped propel the University of Alabama. Between 2007 and 2022, enrollment at Alabama increased by 51%, from 25,580 to 38,645 students. In that same time, the college more than tripled its endowment, surpassing a record $1 billion in 2022. It also has nearly doubled its physical footprint, adding an engineering quad and state-of-the-art dorms and recreational facilities.