Applicants drawn by football success
518 students enroll for every MU football win.
June 4, 2008
Senior tailback Tony Temple led MU to a Cotton Bowl victory on Jan. 1, capping off a historic season. The Tigers’ success on the gridiron is considered a factor in the record undergraduate enrollment expected this year.
At a School of Journalism event several weeks ago, Director of Athletics Mike Alden compared the school’s sports program to a man’s tie. While a tie does not serve a more important purpose than socks, a shirt or a coat, it is what people look at, he said.With the football team’s success last season, the Tigers gave a national audience more to look at than ever before.As of May 19 the admissions office had 14,261 applications for first-time college students in 2008. This is compared to 11,996 for the same criteria in 2007 and 11,414 in 2006.
“The football team’s success certainly has not hurt us,” Chuck May, Senior Associate Director of Admissions, said. “But we think people are also drawn more and more to Mizzou for a variety of reasons: excellent programs, new and improved facilities such as housing and recreation, beautiful landscaping, and the value of the MU degree.”
Publicity is what makes athletic programs a factor in enrollment numbers. Between 2006 and 2007 an increase of 518 students followed each win for the football team. After a four-win increase and a brief number one national ranking last season, 2,265 more students applied to MU.
“It doesn’t make it (athletics) the most important thing, it’s just the most visible,” Alden said. “We have the opportunity to be able to showcase the University of Missouri, a fine institution, because of the magic of sports, to thousands of people.”
Alden showed a five-minute video on the football team’s appearance in the Cotton Bowl this year, narrated by Pat Summerall. It was just one example of how athletics can promote a university and spread the word to a national audience.
“I do not believe that the size of the next freshman class is dependent upon the success of the Missouri football team,” May said. “We have had record enrollments over the past few years and we hope to continue to build on our successes. However, that being said, I would love to see a national championship.”
The football team has already received an opportunity to create more attention for MU as their game against the University of Illinois was selected to be nationally televised on ESPN.
The season-opener game will take place at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis.
More June 4, 2008 Sports Stories
- Small Time Skates and a big time skater — Eight years ago, Alex Vestal hit his foot on a television set, and the resulting broken toe changed his life. ...
- A day at the pool — Nothing is better than spending a day at the pool, right? There’s something for everybody. Kids splash their friends. Some ...
- Applicants drawn by football success — 518 students enroll for every MU football win.
- Sports shorts — Baseball season ends in Florida After Missouri beat Ole Miss in their first game of the NCAA Regional 7-0, they ...
Most recent Sports Stories
- Cowboys rein in Tigers' streak — The defense did well against a strong opposing offense.
- Missouri wins 'biggie’ over Kansas — In a matchup of two teams with identical 2-5 Big 12 records, the Missouri volleyball team came away with a ...
- Coffman's performance shines in Tiger's loss — The senior tight end was one of few to step up.
- Texas capitalizes on Oklahoma linebacker's injury — For those who watched the annual Oklahoma vs. Texas Red River Shootout tilt on Saturday, you may have a tough ...
- TV spotlights tough stretch for volleyball — The team must continue focusing on consistency, coach says.