NOTE: This column was published for students in The Santa Clara campus newspaper to give students more background and encourage them to get behind Athletics.
ICYMI, SCU recently began a long overdue additional funding plan for athletics and programs to build more school visibility.
Students noticed and last May, Olivia DeGraca, writer for "The Santa Clara " newspaper wrote; "Is Santa Clara Athletics Buying School Spirit?" Is school spirit more centered on campus clubs, Greek life, or one basketball game vs Gonzaga?
It's been over 20 years since Santa Clara earned a berth in the NCAA Men's Basketball tournament.
That means that the majority of current students were not born yet! Therefore, many didn't choose Santa Clara for its athletics, unless you play a sport or are from a family that likes sports.
Since 1996, except for a few programs like women's soccer or volleyball; SCU athletics went off the radar and with it, our sports reputation.
The Administration went "all in" to develop the Campus infrastructure and it is amazing! More students and ever increasing tuition means more financial aid and an operating budget to feed this expansion.
Meanwhile, athletics was on the equivalent of "work scholarship." Until recently, many coaches had to do their own fundraising to make their budgets work. Imagine asking professors to fundraise so they could conduct a great class? Unthinkable...
Enter Fr. Engh and the "Commission on Athletics". The question. "What would a nationally competitive Athletics program mean to the University?" The answer, enormous untapped potential.
The Trustees approved with a major refocus on Men's Basketball as the enabler of national recognition. For example, last years NCAA MBB tournament had over 150 million viewers.
The MBB reboot is in its second year and everything is new and different. The biggest changes have been the coaching and the culture. Our new coach is one of the best coaches in college basketball - Herb Sendek. Check out his WIKI. He's the real deal.
The culture change is still a work in process under new A.D. Renee Baumgartner. The past eras of meager resources and low athletics performance expectations are gone. Winning is in, whining is out.
This culture change includes everyone; alums, season ticket holders, and students.
Why should students care? Students have said, "We don't go because; we don't win enough, we don't play any good teams, and we have better things to do with our friends."
I get it. "Claradise" is a great place. We all love it...
But as much as SCU is giving and has given to us - we need to "give back" to make it better.
Over 70% of current SCU undergrads receive financial aid, nearly 4,000 students. Ever consider where that money comes from? BTW, the F/Aid need for fiscal 2018 is $100 Mil!
Many think the university is just "clipping coupons" to meet F/Aid needs. Nope. The University endowment of $900 Mil only generates about $37 Mil of the need. The other $63 Mil must come from fundraising.
Successful fundraising feeds off visibility. And THAT's why the University needs Athletics and YOU to help meet your growing F/Aid and strategic needs. Simply put, whether you have F/Aid or not, SCU is investing in your future. Why not pay back some early dividends by investing in more school spirit?
I can assure you SCU Men's basketball will do more winning. BTW, this seasons schedule includes a good number of NCAA post season qualifiers and seven top 100 RPI teams with Nevada and Valparaiso marquee non-conference home games.
FYI, last season name wins were vs Valpo on the road and BYU at home. We took the #2 Zags (NCAA finalists) to the final two minutes in the WCC semi-finals. SCU was the most improved team in the WCC with 5 more wins year over year.
Most think the way into the NCAA is playing the hardest possible schedule. Not so. The NCAA at-large selection is all about RPI*. You need to have just enough "name" wins to finish with a under 75 RPI.
As students do you always choose the hardest classes in your schedule? Not if you want to optimize your G.P.A. Those calcs are a lot like RPI calcs. Just like you may need a good G.P.A. for grad school or a great job, we need a good RPI to have chances for post season tournaments.
Net, net. There's some very positive "blips" on the Doppler for SCU Men's Basketball and Athletics.
Your teams need your support. Why do we play stronger against St. Mary's or Gonzaga at home? You're there and LOUD! Rowdy. Your teams feed off of it.
So, give it a shot. Go. There's lots of Rough Riders and it's time for the posse to show up. You are attending SCU at a very special time when you will witness, on the court, the resurgence of Men's basketball. National.
Trust me. Your support and spirit will be the "adrenalin" that helps take SCU Athletics to the next level. The level where our Campus, Academics, and Athletics all reach their potential and raise our national visibility.
And that's a "Claradise" we'll all be proud of.
Fred Crary is an SCU alum and author of The Bucking Bronco Men's Basketball Blog. For more Articles subscribe at www.thebuckingbronco.blogspot.com. Or send email to facrary@gmail.com.
* Is SCU Athletics "Buying" School Spirit
** RPI is the calculation used by the NCAA tournament selection committee.
