The 2025–2026 season marked the first official year that the USI Athletics Program gained postseason eligibility in national competitions, as the school’s Division I probationary period ended one year early in a mutual decision with the NCAA. However, the university has been playing in the Division I Ohio Valley Conference since 2022–2023. Since 2023, the school has won multiple conference titles in men’s and women’s basketball and women’s cross-country. The university has also hosted multiple Women’s National Invitational Game games.
However, how do students feel about USI Athletics? At the end of the day, the sporting world is an entertainment industry. Sports provide a world to get away from the trials and tribulations of life on this Earth. It goes without saying that the college experience is tumultuous and stressful for most students. It is why sports are an escape for some students.
This month, The Shield conducted a detailed survey with a sample of 25 students, asking a variety of questions about USI Athletics and their sentiment toward the institution.
The sample of students was split on their viewpoint of USI Athletics. 54.9% of students expressed a neutral stance on the athletics program, while 36.4% were optimistic. The remaining 9.1% had a negative opinion of the program.
Participants who answered negatively were asked to explain their responses. The most common response (82.9%) was that the environment of sporting events are not lively, and well-attended by students. One response went on to say that students who did attend “just sit and don’t cheer.” Clearly, USI Athletics and Archie’s Army, the USI Athletics fan engagement club, attempt to draw students to sporting events through promotional events such as the First Friday Tailgate and item giveaways to incentivize attendance. However, it seems student engagement is not strong enough to create a passionate fan experience. Perhaps a re-structuring of Archie’s Army organizational structure to incorporate the vision of students would be the way to go.
Another issue that students addressed in the poll was attendance at sporting events. 63.6% of the sample said they attended less than five sporting events this season. Other responses to the poll included 18.2% at 5-10 events, 9.1% at 10-15 events and 9.1% at 20 or more events. This issue could be due in part to the university having an on-campus population percentage of 37%, which is about 2,676 students of total enrollment of 7,233 in Fall 2024, according to U.S. News & World Reports. However, commuting student quotas are another conversation
The teams that students have watched the most showed an emerging trend: Women’s basketball reigns supreme, representing a 58.3% majority in the poll. Men’s basketball placed second, with 33.3%, while women’s soccer held 8.3%. The women’s basketball and soccer teams have been seeing increasingly successful seasons. Despite men’s basketball’s declining success, men’s basketball is naturally a popular sport, so it will likely not fall out of the top two.
The online engagement of athletics is a developing strength of the program. Of the students polled, 63.6% said that they follow USI Athletics on Instagram, X, Facebook or other social media platforms.
As for Archie’s Army, the online engagement was not as strong, but it still had a solid base. 45.5% of the sample have downloaded the Archie’s Army Rewards application to their mobile devices.
The next question posed to students was sports that they want the USI Athletics program to pursue next. An obvious one was football, but what was interesting was that only 40% of the sample chose football. The other choices each represented an estimated 10% of the pie, which included: wrestling, women’s lacrosse, men’s volleyball, javelin, hockey and archery. It seems that he campus has a wide variety of sporting interests.
As for the feasibility of adding these sports, football is the least feasible, as profitability in the NCAA Division I Football Champion Subdivision of college football is hard to come by. To look at some profit margins in FCS football of a school comparable to USI, Eastern Illinois University operated at a loss of just over $3 million, while Western Illinois generated a loss of $2.8 million in 2024, according to knightnewhousedata. The university would likely raise tuition prices for the campus to cover increased athletic expenses, as well as funding for a football field and athletic facilities that meet NCAA standards. Is that a bill that students are willing to pay?
Hockey is slightly more feasible than football, as the university would only have to sign a contract with the City of Evansville to play at the Ford Center, while the Evansville Thunderbolts are on the road. This is clearly more economically sensible than renovating and maintaining Liberty Arena to accommodate a hockey rink. However, this also comes with creating a schedule that fits that need, as the Evansville Thunderbolts likely have priority over USI.
As for the other sports: wrestling, women’s lacrosse, men’s volleyball, javelin, and archery, are certainly feasible sports to add to the USI athletic program.
In all, is the university’s athletic program providing an engaging and entertaining display for students? It is hard to say, as more polling and studies are needed to obtain more detailed and data-based answers. However, this study shows that USI Athletics provides an adequate experience for students, but the fan engagement problem needs to be addressed for future athletic events.