3 ms·

Gotta pay for those basketball and football programs somehow. (Yes, SOME athletics programs are net positive - most are not)

mgav 7y ago
I didn't realize that. Do you have a source for this, please?
- vidanay 7y ago
  This article is a few years old, but I don't think the situation has changed radically. http://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/news/athletics-departments-make-more-they-spend-still-minority http://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/news/athlet...
- notyourwork 7y ago
  It depends on the school which means maybe some schools should not have sports teams? How crazy is it to think that a school should be focused on education and not go into debt to finance extracurriculars. Big brand name schools that are regularly competing at top level in sports are usually seeing huge financial surplus due to sports.
deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
krn1p4n1c 7y ago
Big sports inside universities are usually structured as a separate corporation for maximum tax effect.
czinck 7y ago
Your source says "athletic departments", not football or basketball programs, which is an important distinction. Football and basketball are the only money-makers (I think hockey or baseball make money at a few schools), and all of the other sports drag down the athletic departments budget. That's also ignoring that FBS is basically advertising. There's been a steady increase in applications (and subsequently an increase in average GPA and similar numbers) at University of Alabama under Nick Saban, and I know I would have been less likely to go to Virginia Tech if it wasn't for their football program drawing me in when I was in middle/high school.
- JackFr 7y ago
  A couple of other examples: Jim Calhoun and Geno Auriemma did more to take the University of Connecticut to national prominence than 100 deans. And Auriemma did it by excellence in a non-revenue sport. While Mark Few at Gonzaga made the NCAA tournament 20 years in a row, this small Jesuit school in Spokane doubled the number of applicants, increased the proportion of students from outside Washington, increased incoming student test scores and dramatically grew the endowment.
- rwmurrayVT 7y ago
  Slightly off-topic, but the recent performance of VT's football program has been depressing. I'd hate to see things sway over to UVlame. :(
- snapetom 7y ago
  Boston College received triple their number of average applications the year after Doug Flutie threw his Hail Mary.

mgav 7y ago

I didn't realize that. Do you have a source for this, please?

vidanay 7y ago
This article is a few years old, but I don't think the situation has changed radically. http://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/news/athletics-departments-make-more-they-spend-still-minority http://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/news/athlet...
notyourwork 7y ago
It depends on the school which means maybe some schools should not have sports teams? How crazy is it to think that a school should be focused on education and not go into debt to finance extracurriculars. Big brand name schools that are regularly competing at top level in sports are usually seeing huge financial surplus due to sports.

deleted 7y ago

[deleted]

krn1p4n1c 7y ago

Big sports inside universities are usually structured as a separate corporation for maximum tax effect.

czinck 7y ago

Your source says "athletic departments", not football or basketball programs, which is an important distinction. Football and basketball are the only money-makers (I think hockey or baseball make money at a few schools), and all of the other sports drag down the athletic departments budget. That's also ignoring that FBS is basically advertising. There's been a steady increase in applications (and subsequently an increase in average GPA and similar numbers) at University of Alabama under Nick Saban, and I know I would have been less likely to go to Virginia Tech if it wasn't for their football program drawing me in when I was in middle/high school.

JackFr 7y ago
A couple of other examples: Jim Calhoun and Geno Auriemma did more to take the University of Connecticut to national prominence than 100 deans. And Auriemma did it by excellence in a non-revenue sport. While Mark Few at Gonzaga made the NCAA tournament 20 years in a row, this small Jesuit school in Spokane doubled the number of applicants, increased the proportion of students from outside Washington, increased incoming student test scores and dramatically grew the endowment.
rwmurrayVT 7y ago
Slightly off-topic, but the recent performance of VT's football program has been depressing. I'd hate to see things sway over to UVlame. :(
snapetom 7y ago
Boston College received triple their number of average applications the year after Doug Flutie threw his Hail Mary.