Beyond the Flutie Factor

One of the effects of intercollegiate athletic success that has been commonly studied is the impact success has on the overall institution. The increase in the quantity and quality of applicants to higher education institutions is commonly referred to as the “Flutie factor.” This is a reference to Boston College’s Doug Flutie, whose famous pass in a 1984 football game contributed to a victory over University of Miami. To revisit and expand this phenomenon, a qualitative research design was implemented to determine the role of athletics success in student applications and attendance at North Dakota State University. An open-ended survey was sent to incoming, out-of-state freshmen at the university. Results were analyzed for themes beginning with awareness and then identifying other impacts athletics success had on their application and ultimately attending NDSU. The authors determined that athletic success played a role in initial awareness, decision to attend, and community and student engagement. The Flutie factor is a known effect of athletic success, and these results further the understanding of the phenomenon, resulting in key implications in utilizing athletic success to increase applications, enrollment, retention, and financial success.