SEMO's Vargas hopes NCAA Tournament has lasting impact on university, future enrollment

DAYTON, Ohio — As the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks play on Tuesday night in Dayton, Ohio, it will be in front of a national audience as March Madness tips off with the Redhawks First Four matchup against the Texas A&M Corpus Christi Islanders.

Southeast president Dr. Carlos Vargas said seeing the run the Redhawks have made has been fun to watch.

“It has been an incredible experience,” Vargas said Tuesday afternoon. “It’s wonderful to have the opportunity to interact with the students, the team and the coaches. I’m very excited, and it certainly means the whole world to me.”

If you turn on a sports network, the chances of hearing SEMO mentioned in some capacity are high. Vargas said he hopes that is a proud moment for everyone.

“I’ve been interacting with people, and it really has surprised me in some ways how broadly this situation has become in terms of people knowing about it,” Vargas said. “The fact that we’ve been mentioned on national TV has made a big impact in a positive way. Since 2019, we’ve won an OVC Championship in every sport we compete in, so the university as a whole is doing extremely well. I’m also proud it’s not just the athletics, but academically we are doing fantastic. I am very proud to be the president of this institution.”

Vargas, who became the 18th president of Southeast Missouri State in 2015, is hopeful that the appearance in the NCAA Tournament will translate into future positives for the university.

“When you look at history and the way things happen at other institutions when something like this has happened, there is a lot of impact,” Vargas said. “I want to believe that this is something that will make an impact on prospective students. Athletically, we’re hoping to maintain the rhythm, but it’s a challenge because it requires resources. I have the impression that this is going to be making a very, major impact academically and athletically on the institution and as a result in the entire community.”

SEMO's first game of the tournament tips off at 5:40 tonight.