http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/article/20120511/SPORTS0403/305110006?odyssey=mod|mostcom
ASU can’t make that jump.
I’m sorry to be the bearer of reality, but it’s true. The school doesn’t have the financial support required to compete with even the lowliest of the FBS bottom-dwellers.
That’s not speculation or opinion. It’s a cold, hard fact.
In 2010, according to numbers ASU reported to the NCAA, the school spent just more than $9 million to operate its entire athletic department. That’s a paltry figure in the world of major college athletics. Texas spent more on just team travel and equipment.
But the biggest reason isn’t the total amount spent, it’s the number in the “contributions†category that tells the story.
“Contributions†is the sum total of all financial donations from big-money boosters who give to the athletic programs. Your Bobby Lowders. Your Paul Bryants. The guys who park in the nice donor spots right by the stadium on Saturdays and entertain in a luxury suite during the game. The guys who buy blocks of basketball tickets and never attend a game.
At the University of Alabama, those guys forked over more than $33 million in donations in 2010. Auburn’s boosters contributed $29 million. Troy’s gave $2.25 million. And UAB’s handed out more than $3 million.
And ASU? $109,506.
Nick Saban has that much in his couch cushions.
Of ASU’s athletic department operating budget, more than 72 percent (in excess of $6.5 million) was funded by the institution itself. Contributions and ticket sales accounted for less than 10 percent of department’s revenue.
You can’t compete at the FBS level with those numbers. And the reality is, they’re not going to improve.
Again, I base this statement on facts.
ASU’s attendance for football — the largest revenue-producing sport at the school — has remained rather steady over the past decade. For six of those 10 years, it has averaged from just more than 11,000 fans to just more than 12,000. There was a spike to more than 15,000 in 2008, and in 2009, a strange dip to about 6,000.
Total it all up, do a little long division, carry the one and you get: An average of about 11,500 fans per year attending ASU football games. That doesn’t cut it.
ASU can’t make that jump.
I’m sorry to be the bearer of reality, but it’s true. The school doesn’t have the financial support required to compete with even the lowliest of the FBS bottom-dwellers.
That’s not speculation or opinion. It’s a cold, hard fact.
In 2010, according to numbers ASU reported to the NCAA, the school spent just more than $9 million to operate its entire athletic department. That’s a paltry figure in the world of major college athletics. Texas spent more on just team travel and equipment.
But the biggest reason isn’t the total amount spent, it’s the number in the “contributions†category that tells the story.
“Contributions†is the sum total of all financial donations from big-money boosters who give to the athletic programs. Your Bobby Lowders. Your Paul Bryants. The guys who park in the nice donor spots right by the stadium on Saturdays and entertain in a luxury suite during the game. The guys who buy blocks of basketball tickets and never attend a game.
At the University of Alabama, those guys forked over more than $33 million in donations in 2010. Auburn’s boosters contributed $29 million. Troy’s gave $2.25 million. And UAB’s handed out more than $3 million.
And ASU? $109,506.
Nick Saban has that much in his couch cushions.
Of ASU’s athletic department operating budget, more than 72 percent (in excess of $6.5 million) was funded by the institution itself. Contributions and ticket sales accounted for less than 10 percent of department’s revenue.
You can’t compete at the FBS level with those numbers. And the reality is, they’re not going to improve.
Again, I base this statement on facts.
ASU’s attendance for football — the largest revenue-producing sport at the school — has remained rather steady over the past decade. For six of those 10 years, it has averaged from just more than 11,000 fans to just more than 12,000. There was a spike to more than 15,000 in 2008, and in 2009, a strange dip to about 6,000.
Total it all up, do a little long division, carry the one and you get: An average of about 11,500 fans per year attending ASU football games. That doesn’t cut it.
