Ohio State may be number one in football, but is second to the University of Texas in enrollment numbers. OSU enrolled 48,511 students compared to the 48,917 enrolled in Texas’s Austin campus in Autumn 1998.The enrollment of freshmen did increase 4 percent this past year, and the class had an average of 24.2 ACT score compared with a 23.9 ACT score in 1997. But National Merit Scholars decreased by 30 percent, from 103 students in 1997 to 72 students in 1998.The number of high school valedictorians increased from 181 in 1997 to 186 students in 1998.”We’ve been aggressively recruiting students,” said James Mager, assistant vice-president of enrollment management admissions. “It’s been a plan for the university to increase the academic profile of our students.”Despite increased enrollment, minority student numbers vary. Black and American Indian student enrollment is down. American Indian students decreased from 23 students in 1997 to 17 students in 1998. Only 554 black students are enrolled in 1998, compared to 575 students enrolled in 1997.Hispanic student enrollment increased from 114 in 1997 to 136 in 1998, and Asian American enrollment increased from 321 in 1997 to 338 in 1998.”One of our goals is to increase minority representation,” Mager said. He said it is disappointing that not all minority numbers increased, but the numbers tend to fluctuate from year to another.