UConn - Sports Elimination

[ArmyVet]

There's no doubt UConn administration has made mistakes in the past (I would argue they were necessary and required gambles); however, the have, essentially, become the first FBS program to admit they could not earn a P5 invitation (where many more should), while prioritizing its student-athletes and their experiences. UConn, and especially Benedict, should be praised and highlighted, not ridiculed like Forde seemingly has.

This feels like a seminal moment for college sports (not just UCONN). The table below is from 2018 so, even if the latest numbers are a little different, the picture it paints is the same. Texas A&M's athletic department made $47M with no revenue from student fees or university funds...UCONN's athletic department was subsidized to the tune of $39M and still lost money. Georgia made $44M and regularly transfers money back to the university. A&M and Georgia were the extreme...but schools like UCONN and many of their former conference mates (Cincy, Memphis, UCF, Houston) are not playing the same game as the top 20 schools on this list. They are generating 40+% of athletic revenues from non-athletic sources and that's just not fiscally sustainable nor fiscally responsible, IMO (and i LOVE college sports).

https://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/finances/

There's a proverbial line in the sand at about #50 after which the allocation increases dramatically. How are those athletic departments going to survive without massive cuts?

[Savannah Jay]

There's no doubt UConn administration has made mistakes in the past (I would argue they were necessary and required gambles); however, the have, essentially, become the first FBS program to admit they could not earn a P5 invitation (where many more should), while prioritizing its student-athletes and their experiences. UConn, and especially Benedict, should be praised and highlighted, not ridiculed like Forde seemingly has.

This feels like a seminal moment for college sports (not just UCONN). The table below is from 2018 so, even if the latest numbers are a little different, the picture it paints is the same. Texas A&M's athletic department made $47M with no revenue from student fees or university funds...UCONN's athletic department was subsidized to the tune of $39M and still lost money. Georgia made $44M and regularly transfers money back to the university. A&M and Georgia were the extreme...but schools like UCONN and many of their former conference mates (Cincy, Memphis, UCF, Houston) are not playing the same game as the top 20 schools on this list. They are generating 40+% of athletic revenues from non-athletic sources and that's just not fiscally sustainable nor fiscally responsible, IMO (and i LOVE college sports).

https://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/finances/

There are some brutal allocation figures in there. UCONN. CIncinnati.

I simply find it hard to believe that UC is going to be able to continue at its present level of commitment to football, given the amount of noise some of its student body is making about the use of fees and cuts made in academic areas in an attempt to keep up the facade.

I know you have some special "love" for Cincy but, IMO, any school that's not in one of the 5 big football conferences needs to seriously reevaluate what value FBS football brings to the equation. If we're being honest, there are some of the power 5 schools that should probably do the same but won't because of the conference football dollars.

It just seems like there's a big education bubble about to burst where some schools have become grossly overpriced/overvalued and COVID is forcing the issue. If you strip it down a little, there are students taking out loans to get degrees at these schools that are subsidizing football...which means the student loans at subsidized schools are partly paying for football not professors, or labs, or internships, or anything else education-wise. It's simply to pay for football.

[Xudash]

This feels like a seminal moment for college sports (not just UCONN). The table below is from 2018 so, even if the latest numbers are a little different, the picture it paints is the same. Texas A&M's athletic department made $47M with no revenue from student fees or university funds...UCONN's athletic department was subsidized to the tune of $39M and still lost money. Georgia made $44M and regularly transfers money back to the university. A&M and Georgia were the extreme...but schools like UCONN and many of their former conference mates (Cincy, Memphis, UCF, Houston) are not playing the same game as the top 20 schools on this list. They are generating 40+% of athletic revenues from non-athletic sources and that's just not fiscally sustainable nor fiscally responsible, IMO (and i LOVE college sports).

https://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/finances/

There are some brutal allocation figures in there. UCONN. CIncinnati.

I simply find it hard to believe that UC is going to be able to continue at its present level of commitment to football, given the amount of noise some of its student body is making about the use of fees and cuts made in academic areas in an attempt to keep up the facade.[/quote]

I know you have some special "love" for Cincy but, IMO, any school that's not in one of the 5 big football conferences needs to seriously reevaluate what value FBS football brings to the equation. If we're being honest, there are some of the power 5 schools that should probably do the same but won't because of the conference football dollars.

It just seems like there's a big education bubble about to burst where some schools have become grossly overpriced/overvalued and COVID is forcing the issue. If you strip it down a little, there are students taking out loans to get degrees at these schools that are subsidizing football...which means the student loans at subsidized schools are partly paying for football not professors, or labs, or internships, or anything else education-wise. It's simply to pay for football.[/quote]

I agree with you. I don’t wish UC ill will as an institution. The “accounting observations” are what they are - obvious.

Let’s also consider the notion of conference realignment from here - COVID-19 more than likely hurts the chances for schools like UC, UCF and Houston to be called up to the P5.