A recent study by the Knights Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics revealed that nearly every president from the 95 universities with the top competitive NCAA athletic programs felt that the money spent on these programs was excessive — though they felt powerless to make a change.
According to the report, these presidents felt powerless for fear of losing their jobs, as well as responsible for the school’s potential loss in money from alumni donations, ticket and merchandise sales.
Many of the presidents feel that the salaries of coaches are out of hand and that their universities care for their athletics programs at the expense of academics.
According to research from the Equity in Athletics Data Analysis Cutting Tool, provided by the Office of Postsecondary Education of the U.S. Department of Education, Binghamton University’s athletic program costs $12,622,504. Out of that, $1,559,632 is allocated to the men’s basketball team annually.
BU’s numbers are comparable to other SUNY Division I sports programs.
State University of New York at Albany had average athletic expenses of $14,202,538. Specifically, Albany’s basketball program was $1,341,228 in expenses.
Lee McElroy, the University at Albany’s athletic director, supports the amount of funds allocated to their athletic department.
“UAlbany Athletics must operate with the funds provided to conduct a successful program,” McElroy said. “The current economic crisis demands that we work closely with the University as we move forward with our program.”
Although SUNY at Buffalo has a football team, their athletic expenses are still comparable to BU’s. The average cost of their program is $19,074,882, with the men’s basketball program receiving $1,123,736.
As for private schools in New York, the money allocated to athletic funds varies significantly.
Syracuse University had an athletic program fund of $52,050,104; its basketball program costs $7,784,244.
Cornell University, by contrast, has funds close to the SUNY schools with a total athletic program of $17,794,181. Their basketball program, which features a competitive team, is allocated even less than BU’s, with $821,897.
BU’s Interim Athletic Director Jim Norris said that the athletic department works with the money it is given.
“No one, in any program, would not want more money,” he added.
When asked if the recent clean-out of the basketball program would hurt ticket sales or fan support, Norris stated that ticket sales have shot up 26 percent this year and that the Bearcat faithfuls have led Binghamton University to have the highest consecutive attendance long before the program was successful.
As far as recruiting goes, Norris believes this will also not be affected because student-athletes can see that Binghamton University is one of the most selective universities in the country, has great athletic facilities and a tremendous fan base.
This study, although not directly related to the athletic department at BU, was done at a pivotal time for the University. Early last month, President Lois DeFleur called for a complete review of the athletic department, including the men’s basketball program from which six players were removed.
The review, which is now under SUNY’s jurisdiction, comes one year after the men’s basketball team earned the title of America East champions.