MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — With thousands of athletes competing on or near its campus annually, Middle Tennessee State University administrators recognize the Spring Fling as an extra recruiting tool. Each of the more than 2,200 athletes is seen as a potential college student taking an unofficial campus visit.

“We try to keep in mind that it’s a big deal to the high school kids and the parents just to be at a championship event,” MTSU athletic director Chris Massaro said. “We want them to enjoy their stay here and try to always put our best foot forward.

“I’m sure it has helped some students and their families decide this is a place they would like to go to school. Every high school athlete’s goal is to come to MTSU for their championships. It’s nice to be associated with something that is that big a deal and can make an impression. You want them to have fond memories of when they’re here.”

MTSU has become the recognized state championship site for nearly every TSSAA-sanctioned sport. It has hosted he girls’ state basketball tournament for more than 40 years, and the boys’ tournament has taken place at Murphy Center for more than 20 years. The state volleyball tournament has remained at MTSU for more than 20 years, and all five Division I state championship football games have been there for the last eight years.

Spring Fling became the latest addtion to Murfreesboro’s title event collection in 2005 and will remain the host city for at least one more year.

Ooltewah junior sprinter Sammy Seamster was at MTSU for two days to compete in the state track and field meet this week. He is being recruited as a football and track athlete by Tennessee, North Carolina State and MTSU. Although he was busy competing, he did get a chance to look at the campus.

“The facilities are nice and I’ll be coming back up later in the summer for a football camp,” Seamster said. “I had never been to MTSU before, but I got to check out the school and a little bit around town by coming up for track.”

Because MTSU’s track and field stadium, tennis facility, basketball arena and football field are all within walking distance of one another, the layout allows visitors to become familiar with each.

The city’s Chamber of Commerce estimates the Fling draws more than 22,000 people into the city. With more than 23,000 students, MTSU has the state’s largest undergraduate enrollment, passing the University of Tennessee’s Knoxville campus about five years ago.

“Bringing more people into the city and to the MTSU campus has been a major reason for their effort to host as many of our championships as they could,” TSSAA executive director Ronnie Carter said. “I was told at one time that more than 50 percent of their student population said their first contact with the MTSU campus was a TSSAA event. Some of those students came as kids to watch and maybe later as a player, and after coming several times they just became comfortable with the campus and the city.

“The city and the university understood the potential impact early on, and now you see how much Murfreesboro has grown over the last few years — and MTSU now as well.”

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