Trends in college athletics finances report by NCAA (2019)

[Mr. Cook]

I've known for sometime that this report is generated by the NCAA -- roughly on an annual basis. To the casual fan, it should be apparent that the business of being in the athletics business is not too different than any other industry sector. Therefore, one could argue that having a "good product and/or service" is paramount for success. However, the definition of "good product or service" - while subjective amongnst fans - is pretty well-outlined in these 84 slides.

https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/research/Finances/2020RES_D1-RevExp_Report.pdf

Although it is pre-pandemic, the following are insightful by the 351 D-1 schools that reported data:

• Only 11% of revenues come from ticket sales (36% from institution and government support)
• 19% of expenses go to coach compensation (#1 expense)
• The median FBS school is 72% self-sufficient

The word "autonomy" is used within many of these slides. "Autonomy" is defined as the 2014 NCAA decision that allowed the Power 5 conferences (SEC, ACC, Big10, Pac12, and Big12) to establish their own rules regarding student scholarships, recruitment, and staffing, among other concerns.

In 2018-19, the Top 20 earners in revenues were:

1. University of Texas: $223,879,781
2. Texas A&M University: $212,748,002
3. Ohio State University: $210,548,239
4. University of Michigan: $197,820,410
5. University of Georgia: $174,042,482
6. Penn State University: $164,529,326
7. University of Alabama: $164,090,889
8. University of Oklahoma: $163,126,695
9. University of Florida: $159,706,937
10. Louisiana State University: $157,787,782
11. University of Wisconsin: $157,660,107
12. Florida State University: $152,757,883
13. Auburn University: $152,455,416
14. University of Iowa: $151,976,026
15. University of Kentucky: $150,435,842
16. University of Tennessee: $143,765,903
17. University of South Carolina: $140,695,659
18. Michigan State University: $140,010,865
19. University of Louisville: $139,955,824
20. University of Arkansas: $137,497,788
...
30. Mississippi State: $112,273,809

34. Ole Miss: $108,442,428

 

[PooPopsBaldHead]

Thank you for not including Texas A&M as part of the SEC. 17ing Dutch ruddering perverts.

 

[PirateDawg]

Wow, with the addition of Texas and Oklahoma the SEC will have 12 of the top 20.

 

[Seinfeld]

Thanks, this stuff fascinates me. Between the sheer amount of money involved, the distribution of wealth, and the fact that this multi-billion dollar industry somehow resides in a not-for-profit world, it has always intrigued me.

It sucks to see the gap between MSU as the big boys, but kinda impressive at the same time to be #30 in spite of our limited alumni base and footprint. I’m sure it comes down to SEC affiliation that’s driving that

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Great snapshot of what the business was like here.

This makes me wonder what the reports for the following years show and how they compare.

 

[Mr. Cook]

Thank you for not including Texas A&M as part of the SEC. 17ing Dutch ruddering perverts.

Will edit it for those with thin skins

 

[T-TownDawgg]

Interesting. While coaches are the biggest expense, in that list, I count 10-12 schools that would upgrade a coach in a heartbeat.

1,2, and 18 have underachieved.

8,9,10,12,13,16,17,20,30 all had coaching changes since.

A reckoning with these ridiculous contracts is way overdue.

That said, Nick Saban is the only human coaching a football team who is a bargain.

 

[Maroonthirteen]

I like this site for that information.

https://cafidatabase.knightcommission.org/

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Thanks!

 

[Seinfeld]

I don’t necessarily disagree that the $ amounts seem ludicrous, but I think there are valid arguments as to whether they’re truly ridiculous or not.

Winning drives money, and college athletics have shown more than any other entity that a head coaching change can literally change fortunes for a university overnight. Booster pocketbooks, recruiting, ticket sales, licensing, TV…. all of it. Plenty of schools have been burned at one time or another, no doubt, but they wouldn’t keep handing out these contracts over and over again if the numbers didn’t make sense

 

[UncleChuck]

Good Site - I pulled %change for Rev & Exp for the conference from 2015 to 2020:

<google-sheets-html-origin style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">

School	Revenue	Expense
Auburn	23%	18%
LSU	16%	30%
MSU	46%	56%
TAMU	-13%	46%
BAMA	27%	31%
Tenn	11%	24%
Ark	8%	28%
Florida	19%	12%
Georgia	54%	43%
Kentucky	25%	27%
Ole Miss	21%	37%
Mizzou	21%	37%
S. Carolina	18%	25%

<colgroup><col style="width: 100px"><col width="100"><col width="100"></colgroup><tbody>
</tbody>

</google-sheets-html-origin>
We jumped from $75M in revenue to $109M. Law of diminishing gains would argue that we have been helped my additional conference money more than anyone. We also had to spend money to make money, it would appear.

Also, these are 2020 numbers - so there has to be some covid variance in there. But TAMU making $25M less than in 2015 seems odd. Can that be correct?

 

[DoggieDaddy13]

The affiliation is a big part of it, but, when you look at we are in Mississippi and the economic environment we have to operate in, we are obviously doing a lot of things well (well enough) --- in spite of the complaining from SPSers.

 

[Cow College]

Good Site - I pulled %change for Rev & Exp for the conference from 2015 to 2020:

<google-sheets-html-origin style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">

School	Revenue	Expense
Auburn	23%	18%
LSU	16%	30%
MSU	46%	56%
TAMU	-13%	46%
BAMA	27%	31%
Tenn	11%	24%
Ark	8%	28%
Florida	19%	12%
Georgia	54%	43%
Kentucky	25%	27%
Ole Miss	21%	37%
Mizzou	21%	37%
S. Carolina	18%	25%

<tbody>
</tbody>

</google-sheets-html-origin>
We jumped from $75M in revenue to $109M. Law of diminishing gains would argue that we have been helped my additional conference money more than anyone. We also had to spend money to make money, it would appear.

Also, these are 2020 numbers - so there has to be some covid variance in there. But TAMU making $25M less than in 2015 seems odd. Can that be correct?

I think the TExas A&M numbers are off beause they were doing their stadium campaing in 2015 and was by far the biggest number that year in college football but was a one off for them.

 

[dawgstudent]

Outside of winning nothing sells tickets like hope.

 

[rumsearch]

If State and Mississippi were one school, we’d be number 2 on the list.

nm.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

So apropos We would be Number 2 **

 

[Mr. Cook]

Not bad....good visuals. Private institutions info is not included

 

[Mr. Cook]

Interesting quote from a higher education op-ed piece reagrding coaches salaries:
"Aside from paying Blanchard’s annual salary many times over, here’s a few other things that $95 million would cover at LSU or Michigan State:

• LSU could pay for 111 assistant-professor salaries every year for 10 years, according to its posted average pay for an assistant professor in the 2018-19 academic year.
• Michigan State could pay off the student loans of 3,000 graduates, assuming those graduates had about $31,700 in loans at graduation, which the Lansing State Journal reported was the average for those who took out loans, as of the 2017-18 academic year.
• LSU could give all of its graduate assistants a $50,000 bonus.
• Michigan State could pay for well over a third of East Lansing’s residents to attend Lansing Community College for a year.
• LSU could buy a chicken-finger sandwich combo from a Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers in Baton Rouge for every resident of Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi."

 

[Mr. Cook]

Didn't Rick Cleveland once write a piece on this drawing a comparison to Nebraska many years ago?