Quote:
Originally Posted by wade moore
I've looked this up because of some arguments folks were making about Villanova.
There are actually not very many FBS programs that "pay for themselves". There is a site out there that gives specific numbers for each school ( NCAA Financial Reports Database | IndyStar.com ) , but teams in non-BCS conferences generally are not "paying for themselves".
For instance.
Miami of Ohio, in the MAC, 4.5 mil in revenue (with 2.5 mil being student fees), 4.5 mil operating costs. (they seem to have something setup, probably the fees, to break even here)
So, they break even.
Eastern Michigan, in the MAC, 3.1 mil revenue (with 1.2 mil being student fees), 4.3 mil operating costs.
I could go on and on, but the idea that for most FBS schools, football pays for their other sports is just a big time misconception. |
OK, I'll amend my statement - I'd bet that at most (if not all) BCS conference schools, football turns a profit. Just a quick check of that list, and all the Pac-10 schools turn a profit, ranging from ~$2M for WSU to ~$13 for Washington.
It's a valid point though - a school looking to move up from FCS into a non-BCS conference is probably going to lose money. The money disparity between the BCS conferences and the others is likely growing exponentially with the recent TV deals we're seeing.