Diagnosing the "flutie effect" on college marketing

In this article, it goes into detail of how sport success leads for colleges to get more applicants to apply to their college.  The "Flutie Effect" is named after former BC quarterback Doug Flutie, who made one of the most famous plays in college football history.  After Flutie's heroic play, BC saw a dramatic swing in applications.   There was a study conducted by Doug J. Chung showed how on-field heroic do improve the quantity and quality on students that apply to the college.  Some of his findings included, when a school rises from mediocre to great on the football field, applications increase by 17.7 percent, to get the same effects, schools would have to decrease tuition by 3.8 percent, Even student with high SAT scores are affected by athletic success, and schools become more academically selective with athletic success.

So what do you think?  Is this "Flutie effect" real?  Do you think Keene State should consider forming a successful football team to attract more students?


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