Four run in the 2011 NCAA tournament. The Rams basketball team, after receiving a play-in seed in the tournament, went on a legendary run defeating powerhouses Georgetown and number 1 seed Kansas, before losing to Butler in the Final Four. The school saw a 20% increase in applications after their 2011 appearance. Florida Gulf Coast and Wichita State Two schools experienced similar effects following runs in the 2013 NCAA tournament. Within a year of Florida Gulf Coast's Sweet Sixteen run, sales of men's basketball-related merchandise increased more than 20-fold, the total number of applications to the school increased by 36%, and out-of-state applications increased 41%. Wichita State saw applications rise by 81% after the Shockers made the Final Four. Texas A&M During the early 2010s, Texas A&M experienced an increase in incoming freshman applications and merchandise sales due mainly to the rise to national prominence and mainstream success of the Texas A&M Aggies football team. The Aggies were led by breakout freshman quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel. The Aggies finished with an 11-2 record and a #5 national ranking during the 2012 season, and a 9-4 record and #18 national record during the 2013 season. According to a study, Manziel was worth over $37 million in media exposure and merchandise sales and the school bookstore had sold out all 2,500 of their replica Aggies jerseys. Loyola–Chicago Loyola University Chicago experienced significant increases in freshman applications following a surprise run to the 2018 Final Four. The school enrolled its largest freshman class ever in the 2018–19 school year, at over 2,900. While this was an increase of only 4.1% from the previous year, Loyola's admissions director told the institution's student newspaper, the Loyola Phoenix, that the full effect of the Final Four run would not be seen until the 2019–20 school year because the NCAA tournament takes place late in Loyola's admissions calendar. New visitors to the university's website increased more than four-fold during the Ramblers' upset of Tennessee during the Final Four run, and visits to the undergraduate admissions page increased by more than 50% during that same game. References Works cited External links Article discussing scientific analysis of Flutie effect Video of Flutie's Hail Mary Pass Boston College Eagles football Student sport University and college admissions