The recent decisions of the NCAA concern me. Where will the money for college atheletes come from and what will not be supported as money moves in this direction?
“The financial hit for athletic departments, especially among power conferences, will be exorbitant. The NCAA will take on a lion’s share of the cost via reserves, insurance and budget cuts, but the schools themselves are still on the hook. According to documents obtained by Yahoo Sports, power-conference schools are expected to fork up as much as $30 million per year over the next 10 years to cover revenue-sharing distribution, back damages and expanded scholarship costs.”
First, it was the transfer portal and NIL and now the decision in the House vs. NCAA court case. I don’t see the present situation in college athletics as beneficial to college athletics or to colleges.
I have always been a fan of college sports. I went to the games even in some cases to watch teams from schools I did not attend or work for. The “work for” part is significant. I also spent 40 years working in higher education and 8 more as a student. Like any academic, I hear the complaints about the high cost of college. Consider this combination of economic stressors for a few minutes. Add the requirements of Title IX and you have a toxic mix of pressures each of which seems oblivious to the conflicting demands.
I worked for most of my career at the University of North Dakota. Collectively the teams of this institution won a few more games than they lost. If anyone outside the region heard of UND sports it would probably be of the dispute over the team name (Fighting Sioux now Fighting Hawks) or the perennial national contending hockey team. For a few years, it also had a great women’s hockey program which was closed down. I think I am correct is noting that 7-9 UND women hockey players played in the last olympic games. As is, college sports simply lose money. New expectations certainly will not improve this situation. It is already difficult to be loyal to a team that has mostly new faces every year. Programs have already been cut to try to stay within the earning potential of existing revenue sources and external mandates. I keep looking for a reason for optimism, but I don’t see anything.