Super Bowl wrap-up
The Super Bowl has come and gone from Indianapolis, but the exposure that the University of Indianapolis received during that time will last for months. During the week leading up to the game, the New York Giants used the Athletics and Recreation Center on campus. On Feb. 2, the Giants’ Head Coach Tom Coughlin recognized the university in a prepared statement to the press.
“I thought I’d recognize the University of Indianapolis and the fine folks that work there for their hospitality and their preparation,” he said. “The facility there for us to practice in is outstanding. I know the NFL has been involved closely, and I know the field will be used for some needy school following our work there.”
Arsenal Technical High School, the school mentioned in Coughlin’s statement, will receive the turf from the ARC and an indoor track surface will replace the turf.
The Giants’ first visit to the campus was on Feb. 1, two days after arriving in Indianapolis. The team had requested a warm welcome from students and faculty when getting off the bus and walking into the ARC. Coughlin praised the reception and some students even received autographs and pictures of some of the Giants.
“When we found out that they [the Giants] wouldn’t mind being welcomed to campus as they were arriving, that was a nice treat,” said Director of Media Relations Scott Hall. “That took a little bit of organization to figure out how much information we could release and how we could have a nice turnout and have a good showing for UIndy out there at the site without disrupting what the team had to do here and the business they had to do.”
For the remainder of the week, Coughlin praised the university, the ARC and the people and increased the campus’ exposure to a national audience.
“This [the ARC] is an outstanding facility, absolutely outstanding,” Coughlin said in a statement to the pool reporter covering practices. “What I like about it is that the college teams here have been working out here all fall, so the turf has been broken in well. It’s settled in, and it’s in great shape. It’s going to be great for our players to be able to work out in here all week.”
With all the media outlets covering the two teams during the week, Coughlin’s statements placed UIndy before a national audience. However, according to Hall, the media attention the university received began much earlier.
“Well, I’d say the media attention we got from the Super Bowl connection really began a couple of years ago, when it was first announced that our Athletics and Recreation Center would be the NFC practice site,” Hall said. “So off-and-on it’s been of great local interest since then, as well as a little bit of national interest.”
According to Hall, the university uses a media monitoring software that estimated the amount of attention UIndy received in the week prior to the Super Bowl, as well as the few days afterward. The university received 600 mentions in print, web and television located across the United States, Canada, the U.K., Australia and China. The coverage also included more than 70 mentions in local and national television and references on the NFL Network and New York City Stations WABC, WNBC and WCBS.
“For that week, our name was mentioned in newspapers to an estimated readership of about six million people, an estimated TV viewership of over six million and an equivalent advertising value of about $3 million,” Hall said. “That’s publicity that we can’t buy or earn in any other way.”
Overall, Hall believes that the attention given to the university opened the doors to people who had never heard of the campus. The campus frequently seeks to attract prospective students, and with the help of Coughlin and the entire Giants team, the university received more attention than expected.
“Overall, I’d have to say that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the city and for this university,” Hall said. “And we’re grateful and proud that the University of Indianapolis was able to contribute something to this great moment for Indianapolis.”
