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Topic: "Saved people's jobs"
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Bobcat1996
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Posted: 5/17/2020 7:22 PM
In 2018, with his school facing the possibility of cutting staff to make up a huge shortfall in state funding, Northern Illinois athletic director Sean Frazier added a football game at Florida State to the Huskies’ schedule.

The road trip came with a $1.6 million payout to NIU.

“Florida State, essentially, saved people's jobs,” Frazier said.

Guarantee games, or buy games, are essential to many athletic departments that field Division I football teams but have far smaller budgets than those at Power Five schools.
This season, 39 major college football schools have scheduled a total of 49 buy games worth an estimated $65 million. If coronavirus disruptions cause Power Five teams to play more or only conference games, it could leave huge holes in the athletic budgets of schools already stretched thin.

The largest payout for a one-game deal with no return this season reportedly is $1.9 million by Auburn to Massachusetts. UMass, an independent, has a $10 million budget for football. The Auburn game scheduled for Nov. 14 offsets much of the expenses for the rest of the Minutemen’s schedule, athletic director Ryan Bamford said.

“If we lose that and we're playing 11 other games, then it's a major impact,” he said.

The pandemic has made everything about the coming college football season uncertain. There are some promising signs as states lift restrictions meant to curb the spread of the virus. University presidents are sending hopeful messages to students about plans to have campuses up and running in the fall. All plans are tentative these days.
Bobcat1996
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Posted: 5/17/2020 7:31 PM
Almost $2 million UMASS gets to play at Auburn this season and $1.6 million NI got a few years ago to travel to Tallahassee. The money that the MAC teams and Group of Five schools make to play these larger schools is very important. One would think Ohio's former AD would have negotiated slightly better deals to help pay the bills.
BillyTheCat
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Posted: 5/17/2020 9:50 PM
Bobcat1996 wrote:expand_more
Almost $2 million UMASS gets to play at Auburn this season and $1.6 million NI got a few years ago to travel to Tallahassee. The money that the MAC teams and Group of Five schools make to play these larger schools is very important. One would think Ohio's former AD would have negotiated slightly better deals to help pay the bills.
Former AD isn’t the one who negotiated football contracts or scheduled games.
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Posted: 5/18/2020 8:11 AM
I have a feeling Frank had most of the power on selecting non-conference games and he was inclined to only schedule opponents against whom we could make a respectable showing. Boy, was that performance at Pitt a disappointment...

That said, we need to schedule more big-money games. Just a fact of life today.
Wish we could get a big payday from OSU - minimal cost, etc.
Bobcat1996
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Posted: 5/18/2020 9:12 AM
The former AD is the one who signed off on these contracts as he was responsible for the entire athletics program. He may have delegated this duty to an assistant, but he should have known the dollar amount of every contract. For example, he had to know that football would be receiving only about $650,000 for the Purdue game a few seasons ago, because basketball was getting a return home game from them. Ark. State received $1 million for a game at Va. Tech in 2011. That was nine years ago. Troy is making $1.4 million for traveling to Knoxville this season. Akron made at least $1.2 million for its win over Northwestern two seasons ago and $1.3 million for playing at South Carolina. Kent made $1.9 million for the game at Auburn last season and $1.5 million from Arizona State. Middle Tennessee earned $1.55 million for the game at Iowa last year. The list is endless of the group of five schools getting paid. Could be that those schools had a person who knew how to negotiate deals?
BillyTheCat
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Posted: 5/18/2020 9:42 AM
Bobcat1996 wrote:expand_more
The former AD is the one who signed off on these contracts as he was responsible for the entire athletics program. He may have delegated this duty to an assistant, but he should have known the dollar amount of every contract. For example, he had to know that football would be receiving only about $650,000 for the Purdue game a few seasons ago, because basketball was getting a return home game from them. Ark. State received $1 million for a game at Va. Tech in 2011. That was nine years ago. Troy is making $1.4 million for traveling to Knoxville this season. Akron made at least $1.2 million for its win over Northwestern two seasons ago and $1.3 million for playing at South Carolina. Kent made $1.9 million for the game at Auburn last season and $1.5 million from Arizona State. Middle Tennessee earned $1.55 million for the game at Iowa last year. The list is endless of the group of five schools getting paid. Could be that those schools had a person who knew how to negotiate deals?
Some battles he just wasn’t going to fight. I don’t disagree, the buck should stop at the top. But sometimes you don’t see the full dynamics.
OUcats82
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Posted: 5/18/2020 10:08 AM
I was watching a Clemson game against I believe Wofford on TV and one of the commentators mentioned that there is some kind of arrangement between Clemson and all of the South Carolina FCS schools (Citadel, Furman, SC State, Wofford etc.) for the Tigers to rotate playing them at home for a payout to help support their programs and fill out Clemson's schedule.

Was a passing comment so I don't know how valid it is but I thought that was a nice setup if really the case.

I think at one time tOSU had some kind of rotating set up with the MAC but don't know if that had any financial arrangements or if that was done by a team by team/year by year basis.
Ohio-The State University

UpSan Bobcat
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Posted: 5/18/2020 10:57 AM
Bobcat1996 wrote:expand_more
For example, he had to know that football would be receiving only about $650,000 for the Purdue game a few seasons ago, because basketball was getting a return home game from them.
Most of us were thrilled with that, though, and wanted more similar setups so we could get more exciting basketbal games at home. (People also wondered why we couldn't get better teams to come to Peden.) It's hard to blame anyone for something most people viewed as a positive at the time. I'm sure we wish we had gotten more money now, but no one was considering that then.
Deciduous Forest Cat
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Posted: 5/18/2020 11:44 AM
UpSan Bobcat wrote:expand_more
For example, he had to know that football would be receiving only about $650,000 for the Purdue game a few seasons ago, because basketball was getting a return home game from them.
Most of us were thrilled with that, though, and wanted more similar setups so we could get more exciting basketbal games at home. (People also wondered why we couldn't get better teams to come to Peden.) It's hard to blame anyone for something most people viewed as a positive at the time. I'm sure we wish we had gotten more money now, but no one was considering that then.
Basketball attendance has tanked so bad in the last few years. Student enthusiasm is nil. Even in December, an opponent like Purdue should have meant 7-9k in the arena. We didn't even have 3. We'd always been considered more of a basketball school, so it's surprising that fb has sustained better in recent years of declining attendance/interest everywhere. that said, football has been more successful.
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Posted: 5/18/2020 12:01 PM
BBall decline largely a function of Christian being a di#@head and Saul P being in over his head.
Alan Swank
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Posted: 5/18/2020 12:02 PM
Deciduous Forest Cat wrote:expand_more
For example, he had to know that football would be receiving only about $650,000 for the Purdue game a few seasons ago, because basketball was getting a return home game from them.
Most of us were thrilled with that, though, and wanted more similar setups so we could get more exciting basketbal games at home. (People also wondered why we couldn't get better teams to come to Peden.) It's hard to blame anyone for something most people viewed as a positive at the time. I'm sure we wish we had gotten more money now, but no one was considering that then.
Basketball attendance has tanked so bad in the last few years. Student enthusiasm is nil. Even in December, an opponent like Purdue should have meant 7-9k in the arena. We didn't even have 3. We'd always been considered more of a basketball school, so it's surprising that fb has sustained better in recent years of declining attendance/interest everywhere. that said, football has been more successful.
Agreed but Purdue was a bad night. Students were gone and high school basketball is played on Tuesday night. On any given Tuesday night, there are more people in high school gyms watching their local teams play TVC ball than in the Convo.
Buckeye to Bobcat
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Posted: 5/18/2020 2:08 PM
Can I dig up the old thread where Solich had his 8 win strategy? Funny how that comes back to bite us because of it.....

I kept saying it and will say it now, anyone knowing you're turning down a million in the name of a home-and-home with Texas State knew that chicken would come home to roost at some point. Sure, COVID accelerated that, but at the end of the day that extra million a year sure would be a nice protector right about.....now
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Posted: 5/18/2020 2:12 PM
Unfortunately, money games will be harder to come by as the "P" conferences add in-conference games and will want to play more OOC games vs other "P"s to boost their resumes for playoff reasons. Except for coaches who have sentimental reasons for playing a G5 team, such as Nick Saban with Kent, it'll increasingly become a seller's market.
We will get by.
We will get by.
We will get by.
We will survive.

71 BOBCAT
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Posted: 5/18/2020 7:37 PM
Have our bowl game victories these past 3 years added income for the program?






GO BOBCATS
Alan Swank
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Posted: 5/18/2020 10:12 PM
71 BOBCAT wrote:expand_more
Have our bowl game victories these past 3 years added income for the program?






GO BOBCATS
Not sure but this is a great site to compare OU to the MAC and D1. Very neat graphs.

http://cafidatabase.knightcommission.org/fbs/mac/ohio-uni...
Last Edited: 5/18/2020 10:18:31 PM by Alan Swank
BillyTheCat
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Posted: 5/19/2020 6:50 AM
Alan Swank wrote:expand_more
Have our bowl game victories these past 3 years added income for the program?






GO BOBCATS
Not sure but this is a great site to compare OU to the MAC and D1. Very neat graphs.

http://cafidatabase.knightcommission.org/fbs/mac/ohio-uni...
Notice that our “related debt” was amazingly consistent this century up until 2017? Things get a little tougher when upper administration doesn’t absorb debt
ou79
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Posted: 5/19/2020 10:50 AM
Good catch BTC, I too noticed that figure. This is probably a stupid question but what exactly is our "related debt" as listed in that graph? In 2018 it was listed as $13,377,846, whereas in 2016 it was $5,497,772 and in 2013 it was listed as $2,853,396. My other question is what exactly is "total annual debt service, leases and rental fees on athletic facilities" as listed in that graph? In 2013 whatever it was amount to about -0-. By 2018 that number had climbed to well north of $2,000,000. Again, please pardon my ignorance but what facilities are we renting, leasing or otherwise paying on some mortgage or bonds? Again all of this relates to only athletics.
Buckeye to Bobcat
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Posted: 5/19/2020 11:28 AM
ou79 wrote:expand_more
Good catch BTC, I too noticed that figure. This is probably a stupid question but what exactly is our "related debt" as listed in that graph? In 2018 it was listed as $13,377,846, whereas in 2016 it was $5,497,772 and in 2013 it was listed as $2,853,396. My other question is what exactly is "total annual debt service, leases and rental fees on athletic facilities" as listed in that graph? In 2013 whatever it was amount to about -0-. By 2018 that number had climbed to well north of $2,000,000. Again, please pardon my ignorance but what facilities are we renting, leasing or otherwise paying on some mortgage or bonds? Again all of this relates to only athletics.
Well we do have to rent Walter Fieldhouse every time we use that.....so welcome to university bureaucracy right there.....
BillyTheCat
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Posted: 5/19/2020 11:41 AM
Buckeye to Bobcat wrote:expand_more
Good catch BTC, I too noticed that figure. This is probably a stupid question but what exactly is our "related debt" as listed in that graph? In 2018 it was listed as $13,377,846, whereas in 2016 it was $5,497,772 and in 2013 it was listed as $2,853,396. My other question is what exactly is "total annual debt service, leases and rental fees on athletic facilities" as listed in that graph? In 2013 whatever it was amount to about -0-. By 2018 that number had climbed to well north of $2,000,000. Again, please pardon my ignorance but what facilities are we renting, leasing or otherwise paying on some mortgage or bonds? Again all of this relates to only athletics.
Well we do have to rent Walter Fieldhouse every time we use that.....so welcome to university bureaucracy right there.....
And Grover
ou79
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Posted: 5/19/2020 11:58 AM
Even though Walter Fieldhouse was built through donations and was ostensibly supposed to be for the football team to have an IPF? Yes, welcome to university bureaucracy. Sad we have to pay for both Walter and Grover.
OUcats82
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Posted: 5/19/2020 2:08 PM
ou79 wrote:expand_more
Even though Walter Fieldhouse was built through donations and was ostensibly supposed to be for the football team to have an IPF? Yes, welcome to university bureaucracy. Sad we have to pay for both Walter and Grover.
Well forgive my ignorance here, but if athletics has to use student fees to help cover operating costs, how much of that money goes towards those kinds of costs-paying the university to rent/use athletic-based facilities?

Or is the income/expense for the department arranged where certain funds are restricted to pay for certain expenses?

Student fees don't subsidize athletics only for a portion of those fees to come back to another university income source a la facility rentals?
Ohio-The State University

ou79
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Posted: 5/19/2020 3:04 PM
A similar argument can be made for all of the scholarships the athletic department pays for out of the athletic budget. Where does all of that scholarship money go? To the University of course. If you reduce athletic scholarships you also reduce the income the University gets from those scholarships. According to Alan's previously posted graph, in 2018 financial aid for student athletes at Ohio amounted to something a little north of $8,400,000. Where is that aid money going? Into the University coffers. When you add in the $2,000,000+ listed above for renting Walter/Grover, these two figures show that in 2018 at least $10,500,000 was paid out of the athletic budget to the University. Actually, you could also add in all the salaries paid to coaches and staff and the amount that the University gets from the athletic budget takes another dramatic leap.
Last Edited: 5/19/2020 3:21:44 PM by ou79
rpbobcat
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Posted: 5/19/2020 3:34 PM
ou79 wrote:expand_more
Sad we have to pay for both Walter and Grover.
I don't understand Grover.

That was converted to Classrooms and meeting Rooms.
OUcats82
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Posted: 5/19/2020 5:27 PM
rpbobcat wrote:expand_more
Sad we have to pay for both Walter and Grover.
I don't understand Grover.

That was converted to Classrooms and meeting Rooms.
Perhaps he meant Ping?
Ohio-The State University

BillyTheCat
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Posted: 5/19/2020 6:15 PM
OUcats82 wrote:expand_more
Even though Walter Fieldhouse was built through donations and was ostensibly supposed to be for the football team to have an IPF? Yes, welcome to university bureaucracy. Sad we have to pay for both Walter and Grover.
Well forgive my ignorance here, but if athletics has to use student fees to help cover operating costs, how much of that money goes towards those kinds of costs-paying the university to rent/use athletic-based facilities?

Or is the income/expense for the department arranged where certain funds are restricted to pay for certain expenses?

Student fees don't subsidize athletics only for a portion of those fees to come back to another university income source a la facility rentals?
Ping and Walter are not considered Athletics facilities. Ping especially is a campus rec building and Walter is managed and scheduled by campus rec. in fact Campus Rec uses Walter more than Athletics.
Last Edited: 5/19/2020 6:18:13 PM by BillyTheCat
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