NC State’s football and men’s basketball teams are our school’s pride and joy. It’s for all the right reasons; our teams are incredibly talented, with the stats to show for it, and the revenue that each of them bring home each year is astounding.
However, it’s time Wolfpack fans start passing around the love for the University’s non-revenue sports, which practically consists of any sport other than the aforementioned pair. Some of these sports include swimming and diving, track and field, baseball, softball, tennis, wrestling, gymnastics, soccer and rifle. The list is exhaustive, and it goes to show that there’s much more to our school than tailgating at Carter-Finley Stadium on a Saturday — even if it is an age-old tradition.
For the sake of my argument, I’ll be comparing non-revenue sports statistics to football, as it’s NC State’s largest cash cow.
In the entirety of Wolfpack football history, the program has only had one 11-win season, which was in 2002. The Pack’s gotten close in the past couple years, with our most recent 8-5 season ending in a rather unremarkable bowl game. In 2021, NC State was 9-3 with sights set on 10 wins before the Holiday Bowl was canceled.
In contrast, NC State’s swimming and diving teams have amassed more ACC titles than our football team could ever imagine. From 2015 to 2022, the Wolfpack men’s swim and dive won 12 straight ACC titles, they also have the most titles for the sport in ACC history. As for women’s swim and dive, it’s earned four ACC titles in program history. Notably, senior Katharine Berkoff currently holds the American and US Open record for 100-yard backstroke with a time of 48.74 seconds. She was the first woman to break the 49-second barrier in this event.
Additionally, these teams have produced Olympians, Olympic medalists, USA Champions, NCAA Champions, All-Americans and title-holders. Both men’s and women’s teams rank in the top five, with the women sitting at No. 4 and the men at No. 5.
It goes without saying that Wolfpack fans must also put some more respect on one of our most talented athletes right now, junior distance runner Katelyn Tuohy. At 20 years old, Tuohy is decorated with NCAA Champion, ACC, All-American honors and more. She’s broken several records throughout her career, and there’s arguably not another athlete as gifted as her at NC State right now.
In fact, on Jan. 29, Tuohy broke an NCAA record by finishing third in the women’s indoor mile with a time of 4:24.26, beating Jenny Simpson’s past record of 4:25.91, set in 2009. Tuohy’s record is now on the U.S. top mile times list.
Now, a quick run of other non-revenue sports that deserve some more attention: wrestling has been ranked among the top 10 for the last seven years, women’s tennis just earned a No. 6 ranking while men’s tennis was ranked at No. 19 and our gymnastics team is currently ranked No. 23 in the nation. Our women’s track and field squad ended up ranked No. 4 in the 2021-22 season as well.
While I understand that some of these non-revenue sports may have lower viewership when compared to football and basketball, it shouldn’t diminish their relevance. Because these sports don’t get as much attention as the previous sports, it’s even more important that Wolfpack fans show these incredible athletes that you care about them just as much.
The events are usually free of charge and lots of fun, and you’re supporting NC State Athletics even more. Even if you don’t understand the rules of wrestling, swimming, tennis or any other non-revenue sport, you can be a part of something bigger by helping these athletes feel appreciated.
