The UNI men’s basketball team has done incredibly well this season and I am really happy that the team’s hard work has paid off. From the team’s and fans’ perspective, it must be very rewarding to see them go so far. I say “it must be” because as much as I am happy to be at UNI, I have never had an overabundance of school spirit or interest in UNI’s sports or teams — not because I think our team lacks the skill or talent, but because I genuinely do not care about sports. 

I’ve never been interested in them. I know nothing about them, and to this day I couldn’t tell you a single rule about any sport, whether it be tennis or football, rugby or baseball. So, with this very biased perspective, I don’t really see this recent exposure of the men’s basketball team as being a huge hook for future students who were not already interested in UNI’s basketball program. 

Whatever you are interested in, you will most likely be drawn to schools and universities that align or are involved with that interest: theatre, swimming, marching band, etc. If someone is interested in a great Library Sciences program, they will go to a school that offers one; if they are interested in choir competitions, they will go to a school that is known for their choir prowess.

In short, students will go to schools where their interests are showcased. Thinking back to four or five years ago when I was looking into colleges for the first time, university sports teams never played a role in my decision-making, but other things factored in, like the English and Art programs, the size of the classrooms, the culture of the city and tuition costs. I wasn’t solely interested in the academic side of the university, but I definitely wasn’t interested in the university’s sports teams.

The recent attention to the UNI men’s basketball team would only solidify the positive opinions of students who are already interested in the team and the college. Just as I would be interested in fiction workshops at a university, my opinion of the program would be strengthened if there was significant exposure to award-winning professors or lecturers. 

There are so many factors that go into choosing a college and if I was in high school looking for future colleges, I personally wouldn’t be swayed at all by the basketball team’s achievements.