2008 Woodie Awards
Debating the Existence of the Flutie Factor
Matthew Coyne
Issue date: 10/1/08 Section: Sports
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George Mason University, a mid-major basketball team from the Colonial Athletic Association, was seeded 11 going into the 2006 NCAA Basketball Tournament. Instead of exiting the tournament early like an 11-seed should, George Mason strung together numerous victories and made it all the way to the Final Four, defeating 3-seed North Carolina and top seeded Connecticut along the way.
Robert Baker, director of George Mason's Center for Sports Management found there was a correlation between the team's Final Four run and the quality and quantity of applications the next year - quantity to the tune of a 22% increase in applicants and quality as in an SAT score hike of 25% for the Class of 2011.
The number of out-of-state freshmen jumped from 17% to 25% of the student body. Admissions inquiries rose an astounding 350% as well.
Gonzaga, another school with a mid-major basketball program, has made the NCAA Tournament every year since 1999, and their student body has grown from 4,500 to around 7,000 in that time frame.
These schools have experienced what has become known as the Flutie Factor, or Flutie Effect. In 1984, Boston College defeated the University of Miami after Doug Flutie threw a 63-yard Hail Mary pass in the closing seconds of the game. In 1985, Boston College received more applicants than ever before.
"I think the Flutie Effect has been given publicity in the NCAA Basketball Tournament," MC Athletic Director Bob Byrnes said. "The Flutie Effect is huge for name recognition from the time you get your bid until the first game [of the NCAA Basketball Tournament.]"
MC made the NCAA Tournament two consecutive years in 2003 and 2004. The 2004 team pulled off a 15-point victory over 5-seeded Florida. There was a drop in applications in 2004, but an increase of 176 applications in 2005. However, the increase in applicants was part of a much greater trend in increasing applications to the school. MC had over 5,000 applicants for the Class of 2012.
"When we beat Florida a couple years ago, people in Florida didn't even know our school. The Average Joe didn't know Manhattan College, but we corrected that," Byrnes stated. "Those moments, I think, are proud moments for the people who go to the school, but you have to work at [getting applicants]."