<p>Has anyone else seen the Forbes article, basically giving the football program credit for attracting the large numbers of out of state kids? Don’t get me wrong, we love football, but my son is going to college for academics. UA football was not a factor in his choice, Dean Karr was a bigger influence!</p>
<p>Same here. My D loves UA and engineering. She met Dean Karr and Dr. Sharpe at a meet-and-greet a few years ago. She was so impressed by the opportunites for students at UA. Imagine her surprise when she found out that they had a football team! Just kidding!!</p>
<p>I agree that football is not the reason that the high stats scholarship students are choosing Bama. However, it may be a good part of the reason why the full-pay OOS students lean towards Bama.</p>
<p>Think that both go hand in hand in a way. The football program brings in a lot of money, both through ticket/merchandise sales and donations. That money allows for the building program and scholarships which both help to bring in the high stats kids. In time, and we are seeing this now, the high stats kids bring up the academic records which helps to bring in other high stats kids.</p>
<p>My belief is that Bama utilized their football program and its associated benefits to help improve the academic side. It seems like a great plan to me…of course that is only my opinion/guess.</p>
<p>Either way, DS loves it so Roll Tide</p>
<p>My son (from the Chicago area) is not a scholarship recipient, we pay his tuition. He chose UA because he wanted a school that had a strong advertising program, conservative values, a beautiful campus, a strong Greek system, and beautiful young women. 
He got all of those things and then some!</p>
<p>The football team is a huge bonus. Our Big 10 daughter is now a Crimson Tide fan and we can’t wait for the season to begin. Roll Tide coach Saban, Roll Tide!</p>
<p>MemphisGuy, they had a huge capital campaign 2005 - 2010 that raised 500 million for scholarships and building. That said, I agree with you the football program is an asset…just not one that has competitive kids chosing UA over other schools, their academics do that.</p>
<p>^^ Nothing instills school pride and spirit, or loosens alumni wallets, like a hugely successful football program. And the huge licensing revenues certainly help. It all goes hand and hand, and I for one am really happy to have Nick Saban AND Dean Karr.</p>
<p>Txdoula - Basically we are on the same page here. My belief is that the football program is one of the biggest reasons that Bama can conduct a successful capital campaign (certainly doesn’t hurt). For many of us with the high stats kids it is/was the scholarships that got us to at least take a look. After that the folks at the Honors College and the academics get their chances to shine.</p>
<p>Completely agree that is it not usually the football program per se that sways the high stats kids. But the current and former Bama administration has done a great job of figuring out how to successfully leverage the program for something beyond just athletics.</p>
<p>When we first started our college search Bama was not on DS’s list. He agreed to visit because it was basically on the way home from a visit to that technical school in Atlanta. As with most on this board the initial visit was very impressive and took Bama up into the top 3 or so on his list, and it moved up from there.</p>
<p>Unlike most on this string though football did play into his final choice…well not really football, more halftime. Band kids can be a strange lot :)</p>
<p>^^^ditto…Dean Sharpe was a big seller for us. Not to mention the Honors program, the awesome dorms, the Nationally ranked Accounting program, Katie L. the Capstone Lady who conducted our tour (that was one spunky knowledgeable kid), the beautiful campus and dare I say it , the incredible Southern Hospitality that awaited us when we arrived. Going to UA AND having an NCAA National Championship Football team playing right in your own backyard is like being told you just hit Lotto and by the way it’s tax free.</p>
<p>Yes, band kids are a strange lot, so says this Band Mom. I love’em! </p>
<p>UA was not in the top 3 for our DD. It was in the top 10. It was the last of the schools to visit. We happened to go over a football weekend and got tickets to the game. DD and DH have been lifetime fans of Bama football, DH is a Bama Boy. DD attends a high school that is over a 100 years old with very strong traditions and awesome football. She is a band kid and heavily involved. It was the football game and all of the goings on that Saturday that sealed the deal for her that Bama it was. She has gone back and forth about joining the MDB but has decided it would be nice to attend a football game in the student section and not in a band uniform. Funny though, she feel in love with the majorettes and would like to try out next year. Never twirled in her life, HAHAHA! I’m all behind her though and her efforts to try and make that team </p>
<p>The school that was at the very top of her list does not have a football team. On the West Coast and was just way to introverted for her after we visited, it dropped. But was still at the top until that fateful Autumn Day in 2012 when she stepped foot onto the campus in Tuscaloosa. From there on out it has been all crimson, white and houndstooth. </p>
<p>Yes, the football team helped but the whole bundle sealed the deal. Getting a teeny scholarship was a bonus for mom and dad. She loves the campus, the vibe, the future classmates/roommates that she has met, the looks and all that is The University of Alabama. </p>
<p>Roll Tide Roll</p>
<p>Not going to Alabama, but if I had looked into Alabama, it wouldn’t have been for football.</p>
<p>We’ve got kind of the reverse situation in our house – my husband, a University of Texas grad, has become a rabid University of Alabama football fan because our two daughters are attending on full scholarship! </p>
<p>Alabama ended up on their lists due to the fabulous scholarships, the outstanding academic opportunities, the unbelievably helpful and accessible faculty and staff, and the fact that I am an alum and not because either of the girls has much interest in football. Their Dad, however, is pleased as punch that they ended up at a great football school to boot!</p>
<p>Not going to Alabama, but if I had looked into Alabama, it wouldn’t have been for football.</p>
<p>:)</p>
<p>My older son had no interest in football when he enrolled at Bama. However, he did “catch the fever” once he was there and has watched every game since. lol</p>
<p>As a soph in high school, my younger son loudly announced that he didn’t want to go to the same college as his older bro. They had attended a small private high school, so S2 had gotten tired of following in S1’s footsteps. We were fine with his decision to want to go elsewhere. However, after he went to a Bama football game with us and then helped with S1’s move-in, he announced that he was ONLY going to apply to Bama. We made him apply to a few more…just in case. </p>
<p>Both have now graduated and both love Bama.</p>
<p>My kid was getting some interest from one of the East coast basketball universities. My son told me he didn’t see himself going to a school that didnt have a football program! I dont believe he saw Bama with back-to-back championships though! Like most of you said, Dr Sharpe sealed the deal and made Alabama his new home. This has been a great ride. Roll Tide!</p>
<p>The ongoing renaissance at the University of Alabama is the real deal and is attributable to myriad, earnest folks executing a brilliant master vision. The football program, which provides financial support to both academics and athletics, is an integrated component of this vision, and a flashing neon sign that exclaims, “Excellence Here!”</p>
<p>Roll Tide.</p>
<p>Interesting. My son turned down the National Merit full ride at UA because he simply couldn’t stomach the football culture. A lifetime of assumptions that he was a rabid Tide fan was too much for him to bear. We’re not sports people, so he felt there would be a lot of explaining to do every time someone tried to talk about the athletics with him.</p>
<p>The Honors College program is brilliant, but ultimately we all decided that it was not going to be a good fit for him. Unfortunately, this means we’re now going to pay tuition, so I wonder if perhaps he should have given UA a closer look, just to be extra sure.</p>
<p>EastCoastGirl715: Not every kid who attends Alabama is a rapid football fan. I know that must be tough to believe, but I’ve spoken with some parents who have said that their kids never attended a game in four years. One mom told me that her daughter went there because of the National Merit offer. The family was familiar with the region, and they liked it. No one in the family was into sports. She had a great four years there.</p>
<p>My son, who just graduated, took the National Merit offer, because the economy tanked, and he did not want student debt (we’re OOS). He had a great four years, too, and he developed into a rabid Crimson Tide fan. His kid brother, a HS junior, hopes to go to UA. He is the sports junkie, the kind who will be painting his face for every home game.</p>
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<p>My D loves the football culture - the school spirit, the tailgating, going to the games, etc. - but it wasn’t her main reason for choosing UA (although it didn’t hurt!). When it comes right down to it, there are only 7 home games a year, plus the A-Day game. Relative to the time spent in class, studying, participating in extracurriculars, etc., it’s far from the biggest part of the experience.</p>
<p>^^^Plus the SEC Championship game, plus the BCS Championship game, and, in 2014, the semifinal playoff game, followed by the new national championship game. ;)</p>
<p>Seriously, though, beth’s mom’s point is spot on. Football is the cherry on the Alabama sundae.</p>
<p>Hey, I’m not saying my son made a good decision, I’m just saying why he made it. He was also put off by what seemed to be a huge Greek culture, and the conservative values of the state in general. As I said, I wish he had taken a closer look - he refused to spend any time on the campus when there were actual students there. I had hoped he would at least spend the night with some honors college students so he could see if he could avoid the sports and frats, but he was very stubborn about it.</p>