Recent performances show SU may no longer be a “basketball school”
Students say SU may no longer be “basketball school”
A recent Orange Pulse survey shows student opinions regarding SU athletics shift as the school’s NCAA teams experience varying levels of success.
Syracuse University Basketball’s 69-80 loss to Pittsburgh on Feb. 18 marks its 11th loss to a conference opponent this season, tying the program’s record for total conference losses in a single season since 1979.
To make matters worse, with four more conference games on the schedule, the Orange are at risk of breaking the record altogether and are one loss away from matching their most losses in a single season.
What once was a team that contended yearly for the national title with a cult-like fanbase, Syracuse Basketball has become a shell of its former dynasty, as fans no longer question how far the Orange will go in the NCAA tournament but instead question whether the team even makes March Madness in the first place.
On top of the basketball team’s underwhelming season, other SU sports teams have had newfound success. The Syracuse Football team, for one, improved dramatically this year, as they finished 20th in the AP Top 25 Poll and won a bowl game for the first time since 2018.
Because of this, The Newshouse’s Orange Pulse team asked Syracuse students to compare their perceptions of SU athletics before they attended the school with how they view them now. We also questioned if the students believe that the performances of SU sports teams affect the university itself.
85 Syracuse University students responded to our survey. With more than 75% of respondents claiming to be undergraduate upperclassmen, it’s reasonable to assume that the majority of the sample has years of experience watching SU athletics.
Basketball down, everything else up
It's common to hear universities and colleges that have profound athletic programs in certain sports be referred to by that sport. For example, the University of Georgia has long been known as a “football school,” due to its program’s consistent success at the highest collegiate level and its lack of comparative success and recognition across all of its other sports programs.
The survey data showed that nearly 70% of respondents associated SU with the term “basketball school” before attending the school. Yet, only 29% of respondents considered Syracuse to be a “basketball school” now, less than half of the original response rate.
Syracuse student opinions on the basketball team appear to be trending negatively. However, this may be opening the door for other SU teams to move into the forefront of student minds.
49% of respondents said that SU should be associated with the term “football school” at the present moment; over double that of respondent’s perceptions before attending the university (25%). More respondents also associated Syracuse University with the term “lacrosse school” than “basketball school” at the present moment.
Team performances affect student opinions
The change in perceptions around Syracuse sports before and while attending the school has a direct relation to student ratings of the recent performances of SU teams. When respondents were asked to rate the recent performances of specific SU sports teams on a scale of 0-10, the average rating of SU men's basketball was 2.95; the lowest average rating across all teams mentioned in the survey.
Syracuse sports teams that students believe currently represent the school’s athletics as a whole received much higher performance ratings. Football received an average rating of 6.83 and men’s lacrosse received a mean rating of 7.70; the highest of all SU sports. SU women’s lacrosse, which has made the final four in the NCAA championship for the past two years, and men's soccer, which earned the school’s most recent NCAA championship in 2022, also received high scores, with average ratings of 7.22 and 6.75, respectively. SU athletics, overall, received an average rating of 5.98.
Syracuse sports affect the school’s reputation
Regardless of whether the performance of Syracuse sports teams has affected the university at all, student perceptions on the subject are mixed. In the survey, over two-thirds (68%) of the sample believe that the performance of SU athletics has had some impact on the school’s reputation. Of those respondents, about 60% believe that SU’s reputation is negatively affected by the performance of their sports teams. While opinions vary, it’s clear that the majority of SU students believe the performance of Syracuse athletics has a meaningful impact on the university’s image and public perception.
Looking toward the future of SU sports, student perceptions are likely to continue shifting. The football team looks to further their success under Head Coach Fran Brown with one of the toughest schedules in the country ahead of them, while the basketball team awaits the arrival of potentially the most anticipated recruit in program history, Kiyan Anthony. Syracuse sports continue to put the university on the national stage, for better or for worse, and students are keyed into how results could change the public perception of the school.