Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Why College Sports Are Broke

Greed and need to compete ruin many programs

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Jun 29, 2012 3:20 PM CDT

(Newser) – College athletic programs across the country are slashing sports and running up debts like teenagers with their first credit cards. Of the 227 public universities in Division I, just 22 turned a profit last year. Why? Because the drive to compete in theoretical cash cow sports like football and basketball drove many to invest in pricey stadiums and coaching staffs—investments that pay off only for the most successful and popular schools, the Washington Post reports.

"Quite frankly, I think we’ve gotten ourselves in a terrible situation with intercollegiate athletics," says the chancellor of the University System of Maryland. This weekend, Maryland will cut seven of its 27 varsity teams to deal with a $4.7 million deficit. Yet schools say they can't cut their big-ticket football and basketball expenditures, because they're the only programs with the cache to bring big donations. "Unilateral disarmament is nothing that will fly," an ex-Penn State official says.
Empty student seating looms in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium as LSU and Mississippi play out the fourth quarter of their NCAA college football game in Oxford, Miss., Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011.
Empty student seating looms in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium as LSU and Mississippi play out the fourth quarter of their NCAA college football game in Oxford, Miss., Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011.   (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rows and rows of empty seats are seen during a first-round NCAA tournament women's basketball game in Bridgeport, Conn., Saturday, March 17, 2012.
Rows and rows of empty seats are seen during a first-round NCAA tournament women's basketball game in Bridgeport, Conn., Saturday, March 17, 2012.   (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)
Empty seats are shown during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game between Georgia Tech and Alabama A&M at the Gwinnett Arena in Duluth, Ga., Monday, Dec. 19, 2011.
Empty seats are shown during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game between Georgia Tech and Alabama A&M at the Gwinnett Arena in Duluth, Ga., Monday, Dec. 19, 2011.   (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
My TakeCLICK BELOW TO VOTE
28%
12%
19%
4%
3%
34%
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 17 comments
passinthru1
Jun 30, 2012 10:08 AM CDT
The last person I'm going to take advice about running a college sports programs from is a guy from Penn State.
right2dave
Jun 30, 2012 7:29 AM CDT
I thought you attended college to get an education. At many schools the sports have become more important.
Twiny
Jun 30, 2012 12:14 AM CDT
Somewhere along the line, these alleged schools have lost sight of what they are there for. None of these places were established because the public wanted a football or basketball program. They were established as places of higher learning. "Schools say they can't cut their big-ticket football and basketball expenditures, because they're the only programs with the cache to bring big donations." I can't tell you how sad that statement makes me. Schools that are in debt because of their sports programs should fire all their Trustees and the President of the school too, since they have obviously failed to do what they were there to do, educate students. They should shut down all their sports programs, fire the high priced coaches and their staff, and concentrate on doing what they were put there to do, educating students. But they won't. They'll stagger along, borrowing money and wringing every last dime they can out of the students dumb enough to apply there until they either go bust or they pass a miracle and start turning a profit with their sports. Either way, education will suffer because the jackasses out there like a good football team more than they do a good school. And people wonder why America is falling behind the rest of the world.

 
NCAA • college sports • public universities

 
NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   World History Project   |   POPSUGAR Tech   |   Business Insider   |   HuffPost Entertainment   |   NewsOne