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There’s a massive contradiction playing out in major college sports.
Administrators are worried about money as they prepare to begin sharing revenue with players.
“We have to make challenging financial decisions at Alabama every single year,” Crimson Tide athletic director Greg Byrne said. “So if we have to do that, don’t you think most everybody else does, too?”
Of course. But how, then, do we square those financial concerns with the the fact that Florida, Florida State, USF and UCF are collectively pursuing more than $1 billion on football stadium construction/renovation?
Let’s try to unpack this complex issue.
Why schools are worried about money
The NCAA and major conferences are finalizing a $2.8 billion settlement in the House v. NCAA antitrust lawsuit. To help pay the bill, the NCAA payouts to conferences (and, by extension, schools) will shrink. For American Athletic Conference schools, the annual hit will be about $500,000, according to preliminary figures from Yahoo! Sports. It’s closer to $1 million in the ACC, with the SEC somewhere in the middle.
The House agreement will also let schools share up to $22 million with players as soon as next year. That $22 million has to come from somewhere.
“In this day and age, we need to look at every dollar we’re spending, making sure it’s going to the best purpose possible,” Gators athletic director Scott Stricklin said during last week’s SEC spring meetings.
North Texas and Mississippi have both already decided facilities upgrades aren’t the right immediate purpose.
One argument, as summed up by Arkansas coach Sam Pittman last year: “If you’ve got enough money, they’d be happy living in a tent.”
What about facilities?
Facility updates aren’t just an item on the expense side; they’re on the revenue side, too. Stricklin said the Gators’…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/1-billion-contradiction-florida-college-090000620.html
Author : Tampa Bay Times, St. Petersburg, Fla.
Publish date : 2024-06-07 09:00:00
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