INDIANAPOLIS — Sitting just north of the center of Indianapolis, Butler was a relatively unknown private university.
That was true until the buzzer went off ending the Bulldogs’ regional final victory over Kansas State on Saturday, March 27, the day the men’s basketball team thrust itself into the national spotlight.
Founded in 1885, Butler University is located north of downtown Indianapolis in the Butler-Tarkington neighborhood. As a private, liberal arts-focused university, enrollment is 3,897 full-time undergraduate students and 4,512 students overall. According to the university’s Web site, its mission is “to provide the highest quality of liberal and professional education and to integrate the liberal arts with professional education, by creating and fostering a stimulating intellectual community built upon interactive dialogue and inquiry among students, faculty and staff.”
Known by many for its academic prowess and graduation rates, Butler is slowly creeping on the radar of sports fans around the country.
Though basketball draws the most attention nationally, Butler competes in nine other sports in the Division I Horizon League. Football is the only one not in the Horizon line-up, but instead is a part of the Division I-AA or Football Championship Subdivision.
Participating in the NCAA tournament is nothing new for Butler, having appeared nine times with two prior Sweet Sixteen trips. Making it to the Final Four may have peaked the nation’s interest, but for Butler faithful, like Abby Thompson, success on and off the court is no surprise.
“Hopefully, their success will highlight the student athlete,” Thompson said. “Our athletes are great students and have the backing of the entire Butler community. Maybe it will interest students who weren’t looking at Butler before.”
Even if they don’t succeed in winning a championship, the Bulldogs have made great strides towards national recognition.
Only four years ago, an unknown school from northern Virginia was in the same spot that Butler is today.
George Mason was an underdog in the 2006 NCAA tournament. Later that March, they became only the second No. 11 seed to reach the Final Four. Knocking off top programs such as Michigan State, Connecticut and North Carolina made them a sentimental favorite nationally.
Although George Mason didn’t win the tournament, the repercussions from its achievements stretched beyond the court. According to an impact study conducted by Robert Baker of the Sport Management Center at George Mason, finances, media coverage and admissions spiked after the 2006 season.
Financially, the school was given a part of the CBS television contract, which meant $1.8 million over six years is given to the Patriots. Attendance records for the Colonial Athletic Association were also set the year following their Final Four run. Undergraduate applications increased 10 percent with 17 percent coming from out-of-state schools.
Despite being seeded higher this year than George Mason was in 2006, Butler is in line for a similar boost. Those with close ties to Butler already have noticed such benefts.
“The attendance has steadily climbed with success,” said Butler Assistant Sports Information Director Joshua Rattray, a 2006 Butler graduate. “This year, we averaged more than 6,800 in our home games, which was the highest since Hinkle’s capacity was lessened due to renovations. Also, with our success, we have found the ability to schedule better opponents at home such as Ohio State, Xavier, Northwestern and UAB.”
Recent graduate and Butler alumni Jackie Koumpouras watched the rise of Butler basketball and loves attention the Final Four is bringing to the university.
“It is mind-boggling and surreal how much awareness has come about from this,” Koumpouras said. “It is all well-deserved because Butler has always been a prestigious school and all of a sudden (there’s) all this basketball glory and it’s like, ‘Oh yeah, Butler University.’ I love it.”
Playing in a smaller conference such as the Horizon League means Butler doesn’t always have the opportunity to play against more well-known programs from conferences. Still, over the last four seasons, Butler has led the state of Indiana in victories. The Bulldogs have also beaten every Division I school in the state in their last meeting.
Still, Butler Sports Information Director Jim McGrath knows there is still progress to be made.
“It sometimes takes awhile for perception to catch up with reality, but reaching the Final Four certainly has focused attention on Butler,” McGrath said. “But we’re a small school located directly between two major Big Ten universities, so it’s often easy to overlook Butler. I think the basketball community understands how good Butler has been, and our run this year will help take that message to a larger audience.”
Now, all Butler can do is wait. Wait to see how the team performs, what affects the success has on the school and what the future holds for Bulldog Nation. Knowing what the team has done can only benefit Butler, McGrath embraces the new frontier and attention the athletics have brought.
“The tremendous exposure we’ve been receiving will benefit our efforts in fund-raising, sponsorships and ticket sales,” McGrath said. “We can expect a big spike in student applications and of course it enhances the sense of pride within the Butler community. It’s a good day to be a ‘Bulldog.'”
A team of Indiana University journalists is reporting for the Final Four Student News Bureau, a project between IU’s National Sports Journalism Center and the NCAA at the men’s tournament in Indianapolis.
