How Towson Athletics Uses Texting to Boost Game Day Engagement

Women’s lacrosse team huddling together on a turf field before a game

Towson University’s Athletics Marketing team adopted Mongoose’s Conversation Intelligence Platform in Fall 2023 to solve a common problem: students weren’t seeing emails or flyers promoting athletic events. By shifting to concise, visually engaging text messages, the team increased sign-ups, improved clarity around event logistics, and dramatically sped up communications—especially during last-minute game day updates. Texting has become a fast, reliable way to capture students’ attention and get them excited about showing up and showing school pride.

Key Highlights:

30+ student signups per campaign using targeted texts
Real-time game day updates sent in minutes (not hours)
Graphics-based texting drove buzz among student-athletes
Less time on approvals and email formatting—more control for the team
Direct texts helped bypass ignored emails and posters

Reaching Students Where They Are: Their Phones

Towson University, a Division I institution in Maryland, is no stranger to high-energy athletics. But as inboxes filled up and posters blurred into background noise, the school’s Athletics Marketing team needed a faster, more effective way to rally students to events in real time.

The solution came in Fall 2023, when the team implemented Mongoose Text to streamline outreach and simplify game day promotion.

The Solution: Timely, Targeted Texts

In Fall 2023, Towson adopted Mongoose Conversation Intelligence to cut through the noise and deliver game day information directly to students’ phones. Since then, texting has become the go-to channel for promoting:

Senior days
Giveaways
Student buses to tournaments
Last-minute logistics

By using visual, concise messages, the Athletics Marketing team found students were not only seeing messages—they were acting on them. They said,

“It’s all about reducing friction. If we can get the message to them instantly, with a clear visual, we know they’re more likely to see it and show up.”

Real-Time Impact on Events

One of the biggest benefits has been the speed of communication, particularly during high-stakes tournament play:

“When our basketball team went to the CAA tournament, we were able to send a single text with all the info about student buses, how to watch, and where to be. It made it much faster to get information out compared to our CAA emails.”

What previously took hours via email now takes minutes—especially valuable when logistics shift quickly.

More Student Buzz, Less Lift

Beyond logistics, texting helped Towson build excitement. Seeing themselves featured in messages resonated with student-athletes and the broader student community:

“One of our lacrosse seniors saw himself in a graphic we texted out and thought it was the coolest thing. He’s a chill guy, so when he said that, we knew it mattered.”

Interns have also noted that texting helps clarify event details—something email didn’t always accomplish. And the time-saving benefit for the marketing team? Significant.

“[Mongoose is] just easier. We can build and send something ourselves in a few minutes instead of waiting on email templates or design.”

Why Mongoose Made a Difference

Speed & Flexibility: No formatting hoops, just fast, clean outreach.
Direct to Phone: Avoids crowded inboxes and overlooked posters.
Visual Impact: Graphics help texts stand out.
Unexpected Engagement: Even one-way texts earn excited replies.

What’s Next?

Towson’s Athletics Marketing team is exploring more ways to bring personality and visuals into texts, possibly even tapping into mascot-driven messaging in the future. But for now, the focus remains clear: make it easier for students to feel connected, show up, and cheer loud.

“Mongoose Text is a good way to connect. Posters get ignored. Emails get deleted. But a text goes right to their phone—and that makes all the difference.”