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FARMVILLE – The NCAA Tournament is more than just a series of games. For the schools who compete, it’s also a major marketing opportunity, a chance to show off for at least one day in front of a national audience. Overall, that’s what college athletics does for a university, Longwood Athletic Director Tim Hall believes.

It’s why he was 100% in favor of giving men’s basketball coach Griff Aldrich a 10-year extension and why he’s looking ahead.

“Because of society’s insatiable appetite for college athletics, a college program, done right, done well and done successfully, can provide a very very large lens through which hundreds of thousands, if not more, can see into the university and the other really fantastic things that are going on,” Hall said.

He gives the example of University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), which broke hearts and brackets when they beat Virginia in 2018.

“The New York Times reporters came up to the school and in the articles, only four paragraphs were about the team,” Hall said. “The rest was about the school, the county and the environment.”

Translating wins into enrollment

And that marketing translates into increased enrollment, among other things.  A 2020 study by Washington State University found that for a “Cinderella” school, a mid-major with an average of 1,253 freshmen, an NCAA Tournament spot translates into about $7.3 million in revenue and a two-year enrollment increase of 40%.

Sometimes, it’s even higher. In 2010, Butler made a Cinderella run in the tournament and that translated into a 66% increase in enrollment applications. After Wichita State made a run in 2013, they saw an 81% increase in applications the next fall.

That same Washington State report found a tournament appearance also helps on the donation side. Cinderella teams see anywhere from a 35% to 60% increase in donations the next year.

Hall compared that to Longwood University making it to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history last year. For that stretch between the Big South Conference Tournament and NCAA first round, the school started getting noticed on a national level.

“Taking a team to the tournament for the first time last year opened a lot of eyes,” Hall said. “It’s clear Griff came in here and did the things necessary to build a winning program. Now this extension will signify there will be continuity.”

College athletics focus on top third

Hall believes that Longwood’s teams, not just men’s basketball, should have a yearly goal. That is, they should work to be always in the top third of the conference.

“Let’s contend, compete for and win a Big South championship,” Hall said. “The rest after that is gravy. If, for example in men’s basketball, you get a good seed from winning the conference championship, then you get into the NCAA and anything can happen.”

And some of that means dealing with the constant shifts in the NCAA. Hall said he expects even further expansion for men and women’s basketball when it comes to the NCAA Tournament in the future. And in order to be in the conversation, it’ll be more important than ever for a school like Longwood to be in the top third of their conference.

“My guess is that before long, the tournament is going to expand,” Hall said. “You might see it get to 96. If the NCAA Tournament increases to 96, it’ll be to get more programs from the Power 5 conferences in.”

Would expansion help or hurt mid-majors like Longwood? Hall said it’s way too early to judge something like that.

“You’d like it to help, but I think it’s just too early to tell,” Hall said.