March 20, 2011 - 4:35pm
Ann Arbor named best college sports town for second consecutive year
BY LAUREN DAVIES
Despite the Wolverines’ disappointing football season and Michigan’s consistently gloomy economy, Forbes said Ann Arbor has a lot to offer — more, in fact, than any other college town in America.
A recent Forbes article named Ann Arbor the top college sports town in America for the second year in a row. University of North Carolina, University of Oklahoma and Stanford placed 2nd, 3rd and 4th respectively.
Winners were chosen based on both the quality of their sports programs and the city’s quality of life. The top 10 came from an initial pool of the 50 best schools in the Directors’ Cup, which rates universities’ performances across all sports. The 50 schools were narrowed down to 10 based on housing market affordability, crime rate, and the quality of public schools.
Forbes also applauded Ann Arbor’s business opportunities, restaurants and bars and high quality arts, like performances and museums.
High scores in all these categories pushed Ann Arbor to the top of the pack. Stanford, for example, ranked first in the Director’s Cup, but the million dollar homes in Palo Alto are unaffordable for most incomes, bumping Stanford to fourth place.
Michigan also beat out Penn State University, the only other Big Ten school to make the list two years in a row. Indiana University and the University of Wisconsin made the cut in 2009, but not 2010.
Bruce Madej, associate athletic director for communications at the University, said there are many people responsible for the University’s success, from University officials to individual citizens.
Madej credits some of the success of Michigan’s athletic program to Don Canham, who was the University’s athletic director from 1968-1988 and oversaw major expansions of the department’s programs and facilities, calling him the “guru of the marketing of college athletics.”
Madej also applauded the University’s top resources and facilities like the world’s largest living alumni group, the luxury boxes recently added to the Big House and the golf course designed by Alister MacKenzie. MacKenzie also designed the course at the Augusta National Golf Club, which hosts The Masters.
Madej believes Forbes recognized the University of Michigan because “when you put that together and mix it all up, (there is) an interesting blend of city and campus.”
“You’re not just coming to a sporting event, but… for the ambiance, and an entire day to enjoy all that Ann Arbor has to offer,” Madej said. “We’ve been fortunate. Sometimes I think people take it for granted.”
George Hoffman, professor of French, has never been to what he calls a “big game,” but said he still enjoys life in Ann Arbor. He said guaranteed business to restaurants on game days “cheapens” their quality, because “they don’t have to try very hard,” but that he “loves Ann Arbor the same.”
Like Hoffman and Madej point out, it is the numerous reasons to love Ann Arbor that put it on the winners stand.
LSA freshmen Christine Irish agreed, saying, “There’s a lot more to a college town than just its football team … there’s a lot of elements of the community that make it great.”
But for many students on campus, the excitement of a football Saturday in Ann Arbor still plays a major role in making Ann Arbor the sports town it is.
LSA freshman Jeremy Neuman said he was “not surprised” by the rankings.
“The fever on game day is crazy,” he said.
