I can understand an athlete preferring an urban setting v. rural/Appalachian setting. That's a matter of opinion. But playing in front of the O-Zone and 6,000 fans (sometimes over 10,000) v. playing in front of some of these pathetic crowds in other MAC arenas is a no-brainer.
Being around recruits a lot over the last 2 decades I really don't hear the urban/rural setting as a primary motivating factor. Coaches, facilities, education, campus feel are the top reasons for selecting a school. When visiting a campus most recruits get slapped inthe face that the next 4 years are going to be within the confines of their sport facility and on campus with very little time to venture off campus. . Campuses like Loyola, UIC, Detroit, St Johns, Georgia Tech are not as convenient and nice as some think while places like Auburn, Ohio, UGA, UVA are appealing to others for different reasons but create other problems with travel for families and being away from the conveniences of urban living. One of our New castle IN kids passed up a low D1 and a D2 ride to be at Roosevelt University in Downtown Chicago following one of our Muncie Central guys who loves being at Loyola. Both of them factored location into the equation more than most kids I know.
Talking to many of the Volley parents....they have a love affair going with Athens from the first visit. If you are going to send a female to college....at first sight this is very appealing.. Urban campuses like SLU, Marquette, UW-MIL, Detroit are described as being nightmarish to those parents.