The UConn men’s basketball team was eliminated from the NCAA tournament last week in a heartbreaking two-point loss to the Florida Gators. This comes after a historic run over the past two years, securing back-to-back championships for the first time in men’s college basketball since 2007. The women’s basketball team is still in competition this year in the Sweet Sixteen, fighting for the program’s 12th national championship. For the past two years, this school has been riding high on the men’s victories, providing us with recognition and respect on a national level. Now, as the three-peat dreams have been dashed, this school has been brought back down to Earth. But the women are shaping up to be very strong contenders, so there is still hope among the UConn community that we will be able to experience the same pride and joy again. I think there’s a more interesting question to ask in this situation: what happens if they don’t?
To explain with a comparison, look at the economic troubles of Argentina. It is fairly easy to see when looking at the country that there are some longterm issues that have created structural instabilities in their economy that continue to affect the population to this day. Aside from that, Argentina is also home to the greatest national soccer team in the world. It is a well-studied phenomenon that whenever a national soccer team has a great international performance, such as at an event like the FIFA World Cup, it positively impacts the country’s economy. In fact, Goldman Sachs’ research has demonstrated that in the months after such a win, a country is expected to beat the stock market by 3.5% on average. As one of the strongest contenders year after year and a three-time winner, this country has personally seen these benefits. For example, in the 1990 world cup, even after just being the runner-up against West Germany, the markets outperformed by 33% in the following months. In 2022, after Argentina most recently took home the trophy, the impact was expected to be an extra 0.25% in economic growth, an improvement to the tune of billions of dollars for the country’s GDP over the next two quarters. A victory like this contributes to the “economic good mood” that distracts citizens from the general sociopolitical insecurities that to high poverty rates and out of control inflation; but ultimately, it doesn’t last. In all these cases, the impact of such a victory does not continue past few months and the “mood” eventually ends as people return to look at things as they are.
UConn is in a very similar place right now. It is hard to deny that for the past two years, this school has existed in a state of frenzy because of our basketball success; just look at the sheer explosive ecstasy released on campus light poles following both victories. On a broader level though, the ability to say that we are back-to-back national champions has contributed to a similar good mood for UConn students, alumni and arguably, the entire state of Connecticut. For students who were lucky enough to be able to attend a part or the entirety of this historic moment, it is undeniably a crucial part of their specific identity in relation to UConn. This is super influential to the further recruitment of students, as Vice President of Student Life & Enrollment Nathan Fuerst noted that application numbers always spike in the cycle after a win. Ultimately, it’s about brand recognition. A win in the athletics department has created positive associations for the UConn brand within the general public and put our name into the mind of the general population.
So, if we’ve been on such a high in terms of campus culture and brand recognition, what happens now that the party might be over?
Well, it’s clear right now that despite the shiny image we may provide to the outside world, things are not going very well at UConn. Academic departments are having their budgets cut and some are potentially facing faculty layoffs as well. Meanwhile our university has denied that this is happening and continues to accept rising numbers of students, spreading already limited resources across an even larger student body. As we are first and foremost a university, these issues ought to be of the utmost importance to students who are here to learn. The amount of funding, resources and the overall quality of education available to us are ultimately going to be the factors that heavily influence our success in achieving our goals for after graduation. This is all not even to mention the ongoing housing crisis, our school’s complete lack of commitment to its sustainability goals, the administration’s suppression of free speech, the constant lack of communication between administration and students and the many other institutional issues that truly govern student’s lives here at UConn.
We have a gilded image because reality is largely glossed over by good public relations focusing on our biggest strength: our athletics. It is the institution of athletics which binds so much of this community, and so that is what we can point to all the time. So, again, what happens once we stop winning? Obviously, one year of no national championships won’t kill a fanbase; but at that point, half of the student body will no longer know what it’s like to have that winning experience. There will be less people able to reminisce on what it was like when we won, it’ll move a little bit further into the past. Will UConn’s promotional materials become a little less effective when we can no longer say we’re the reigning champions? Will people focus more on what the rest of this school is like at that point? Will they take more action on those issues? It’s a question worth thinking about not just for next year if we lose, but also in general considering that no sports program is on top forever.
If we consider athletics to be an institution that governs the culture of this school at the same level as Greek life, clubs or even student governments and social institutions, then it follows that the strength of this institution is clearly in how much our sports teams win generally. As institutions like these hold and maintain power in a space, they influence its dominant culture. UConn and sports are inseparable conceptually for most people because one is intrinsically connected to the other. As we move forward into potentially less successful straits for UConn basketball, it’s worth questioning what this campus looks like if sports aren’t the dominant factor. Although I am truthfully hoping that the UConn women take home another trophy for this school, I’m very much more curious about what happens if they don’t.