The CU president went to bat for CSU on the importance and benefits of investing in and having a good football program:”This is the spotlight, and it’s football if you really want to come down to it,” Benson said. “About four years ago, we played a Thursday-night game and won in overtime; we were the only team on television. I can truck out all the Nobel laureates, and all the MacArthur fellows, and all the fundraising stuff, and people don’t care. They say, ‘Yeah, but I saw you guys on TV the other night.’
“And that’s what’s important,” Benson said. “You’ve got to keep the spotlight on these institutions and energize your alums, your donors and your potential students.”