On one hand, I really like local Davis pics. That said, as our program grows, it may be to our advantage to represent Sacramento.
We have the potential to be the show in Sac. We already have a great reputation academically, now we can combine that w the competitive bball team for the Sac/NorCal area. This can bring in local fans and hype for good basketball and significantly help w local recruiting. Could work to our advantage to think big. Iron is hot w making the NIT and NCAA in 2 of the last 3 seasons. We have so much potential and IMO are in the process of tapping into it. Just my 2 cents
What about the water tower near Mrak? It the vineyards near Mondavi? There are so many better shots than Sacramento. The small town feel of Davis is what draws a lot of people to campus. Sac isn't a draw, the city of Davis, as quirky as it is, is more of a draw.
I'm not so sure about the town being the biggest initial draw. Some people outside of Norcal actually do think Davis is in the middle of nowhere. Additionally I don't have the numbers but I suspect that the share of our applicant pool coming from cities will grow due to economic and population trends.
I think it's more of a "come for the connections and prestige; stay for the wonderful town" thing. There might be some merit to portraying UCD as a hip, connected campus near an up-and-coming city and letting students fall in love with the town when they visit or enroll.