Much of the news trickling out of the University of Northern Colorado over the past few years has not been good.
Some would even say it's been downright bizarre: A jealous punter on the football team is serving prison time for stabbing the starter. A renowned theater professor was convicted for videotaping young boys in his Greeley home.
There have also been budget cuts and tuition hikes. And there is the nagging notion that UNC is considered Colorado's "third" university — stuck behind the University of Colorado and Colorado State University, both in prestige and enrollment.
But student body president Matt VanDriel — whose parents met and became engaged at UNC — never bought into the idea that UNC was second, or third, to any other institution.
"Anybody who has ever visited this campus knows how great it is here," said VanDriel, 23. "We just needed to show everybody."
UNC's visibility and, perhaps, prestige got a boost last month when the Bears' men's basketball team made an improbable trip to the NCAA tournament.
National cameras and basketball pundits were fixed on UNC's team and its followers all the way from the Big Sky Tournament in Greeley to the NCAA first-round game in Tucson, where the Bears lost to San Diego State University on March 17.
"All the commentators were very complimentary and said nice things about us and the team," said Kim Parker, conference and tourism director for the Greeley Chamber of Commerce.
Between the Big Sky tournament — and the State 1A boys' basketball tournament that was hosted in Greeley in March — about $350,000 was spent at local restaurants and hotels, Parker said. "Basketball was good to us this past month."
UNC's push to the national stage brought other short-term benefits. Businesses and the school became partners in boosting the team and its supporters. As many as 500 tickets were sold to a UNC contingent that attended the game in Tucson and caravans included residents and students.
One local business owner paid for the lodging and gas for a group of about 40 students.
UNC's website traffic was up by 20 percent during the week of March 7, compared with a year ago, and the school had 66,431 visits that came from unique IP addresses, said UNC spokesman Nate Haas.
UNC's official Facebook site saw more than 600 active users with 1,500 visits during the week of March 7, Haas said.
Besides being a trending topic on Twitter, UNC garnered plenty of traditional attention, Haas said. A sixth-grader from Concord, Calif., wrote to the university, taking great care to draw UNC's logo on the envelope's cover, requesting UNC memorabilia.
"We sent him T-shirts, pennants, decals and tattoos," Haas said. "That's my favorite story."
UNC and city officials now hope to parlay the tournament appearance into long-term success.
"We really want to feed on this now, keep the momentum going," VanDriel said.
UNC may not know for a year if the increased visibility helped boost enrollment, which is at about 13,000 students.
But it might provide impetus for a proposed "university district" near campus, where residents can enjoy diverse housing and also take part in the cultural and sports amenities provided by the university.
Greeley Mayor Tom Norton — who proposed the district while running for office — said the city and university haven't always worked together on projects that could benefit both.
"I just think there are better ways for the university and the downtown to coordinate and get involved with each other," Norton said.
The NCAA tournament appearance not only helped UNC get some positive publicity but Greeley did as well, Norton said.
"It was great hearing the positive, as opposed to the negative things that find their way into the media," Norton said. "This has been nothing but positive for both of us."
Or in the words of VanDriel: "It's great to be a Bear these days."
Some would even say it's been downright bizarre: A jealous punter on the football team is serving prison time for stabbing the starter. A renowned theater professor was convicted for videotaping young boys in his Greeley home.
There have also been budget cuts and tuition hikes. And there is the nagging notion that UNC is considered Colorado's "third" university — stuck behind the University of Colorado and Colorado State University, both in prestige and enrollment.
But student body president Matt VanDriel — whose parents met and became engaged at UNC — never bought into the idea that UNC was second, or third, to any other institution.
"Anybody who has ever visited this campus knows how great it is here," said VanDriel, 23. "We just needed to show everybody."
UNC's visibility and, perhaps, prestige got a boost last month when the Bears' men's basketball team made an improbable trip to the NCAA tournament.
National cameras and basketball pundits were fixed on UNC's team and its followers all the way from the Big Sky Tournament in Greeley to the NCAA first-round game in Tucson, where the Bears lost to San Diego State University on March 17.
"All the commentators were very complimentary and said nice things about us and the team," said Kim Parker, conference and tourism director for the Greeley Chamber of Commerce.
Between the Big Sky tournament — and the State 1A boys' basketball tournament that was hosted in Greeley in March — about $350,000 was spent at local restaurants and hotels, Parker said. "Basketball was good to us this past month."
UNC's push to the national stage brought other short-term benefits. Businesses and the school became partners in boosting the team and its supporters. As many as 500 tickets were sold to a UNC contingent that attended the game in Tucson and caravans included residents and students.
One local business owner paid for the lodging and gas for a group of about 40 students.
UNC's website traffic was up by 20 percent during the week of March 7, compared with a year ago, and the school had 66,431 visits that came from unique IP addresses, said UNC spokesman Nate Haas.
UNC's official Facebook site saw more than 600 active users with 1,500 visits during the week of March 7, Haas said.
Besides being a trending topic on Twitter, UNC garnered plenty of traditional attention, Haas said. A sixth-grader from Concord, Calif., wrote to the university, taking great care to draw UNC's logo on the envelope's cover, requesting UNC memorabilia.
"We sent him T-shirts, pennants, decals and tattoos," Haas said. "That's my favorite story."
UNC and city officials now hope to parlay the tournament appearance into long-term success.
"We really want to feed on this now, keep the momentum going," VanDriel said.
UNC may not know for a year if the increased visibility helped boost enrollment, which is at about 13,000 students.
But it might provide impetus for a proposed "university district" near campus, where residents can enjoy diverse housing and also take part in the cultural and sports amenities provided by the university.
Greeley Mayor Tom Norton — who proposed the district while running for office — said the city and university haven't always worked together on projects that could benefit both.
"I just think there are better ways for the university and the downtown to coordinate and get involved with each other," Norton said.
The NCAA tournament appearance not only helped UNC get some positive publicity but Greeley did as well, Norton said.
"It was great hearing the positive, as opposed to the negative things that find their way into the media," Norton said. "This has been nothing but positive for both of us."
Or in the words of VanDriel: "It's great to be a Bear these days."
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