Sorry about the off topic post, but I stumbled upon this article and quite frankly it staggers me.
When I think of Tennessee's athletic dept, I think of no shortage of boosters and people willing to give them cash. I would have never imagined they were in this dire of circumstances.
Oh btw, they still haven't payed Derek Dooley nor his staff their buyout.
http://tracking.si.com/2013/01/28/tennessee-athletic-department-is-200-million-in-debt/?sct=uk_t2_a6
I find it hard to believe Tennessee is going to become a powerhouse in the SEC anytime soon. With Vandebilt making strides, that is only going to make recruiting even in state talent harder for the Vols that would have been an automatic lock to Tenn. in the past.
Hard to believe this is the same school where Peyton Manning played. The same school that beat us in the Cotton Bowl in the late 90s. It's a shame.
I think you mean Citrus bowl fwiw.
Whoops. Yes, Citrus. Brain fart.
They need to send an SOS to Peyton and Papa John.
Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
Well on top of that you look at ohio state and how they have handled 36 varsity sports whilst staying in the "black" so to speak. granted I remember back when tickets were like 50 bucks and it was reasonable but still you would never think tennessee would be that much in debt.
Lane Kiffin leaving his path of destruction......
Maybe Tenn should join the B1G hahahahaha. The Nashville and Memphis markets have to be decent sized. Not sure about their AAU affiliation.
It's interesting to me because this 'win at all costs' attitude that is so prevelent in the SEC is actually killing their programs. People wonder when/how the SEC will be unthrowned. I think it will be sooner rather then later and it has nothing to do with the onfield product, it has more to do with money.
The economy is already starting to catch up to College Football, as evident by the drop in attendence nationwide. Conferences like the SEC have a really strong talent base and for the time being their finances seem to be in order (Mostly....). However, if a program like Tennessee, which is a long time member of the SEC (Therefore is receiving the full portion of money they get from their TV deal.), is struggling to make ends meet with all the money they are getting, is this race to the top of CFB really worth it for these instituitions?
OSU doesn't dip into any school money as the athletic department is self sustaining (Even OSU is raising ticket prices this year, to bridge the financial gap, and we just went 12-0!), but soon, athletic departments are going to have to do that, just to survive.
At what point does this win at all costs attitude become more detrimental then benficial? When do the negative effects of major college football on these *Academic* institutions, become not worth it anymore?
I've read articles where a lot of powerful people around College Football (Like Nick Saban) want to seperate the 'haves' from the 'have nots' in college football so the product isn't so watered down. While that is a win for the fans and the onfield prodcut, isnt' it possible the real winners of that scheme are the 'have nots'? They get out of an unsustainable situation, with their finances in check and choose to compete at a different/lower level, leaving the big boys to bankrupt themselves...
Anyways, just some random thoughts.
Go Bucks!
It's interesting that the article hints that football is the root cause of the overwhelming deficit, but I wonder if any of the other sports at Tennessee even come close to sniffing a profit? (Think mens hoops, baseball, girls basketball, etc.)
Sounds like someone in the athletic department needs to take some finance classes at their own university. LOL!
It starts with poor management. There are serious flaws in UT's strategic planning. Costly renovations and capital improvement projects are big contributors too.
But buyouts of that magnitude indicate poor hires
Read this article too, it is good too.
http://aol.sportingnews.com/ncaa-football/story/2013-01-28/tennessee-athletics-department-debt-200-million-sec-derek-dooley-dave-hart
Sounds like someone from the fed. gov't. is in charge down there.
Tennessee athletics on the brink of failing financially - pretty shocking stuff actually. You would never think of them as a school with that serious a situation....whoa!
The world is full of kings & queens who'll blind your eyes & steal your dreams - it's heaven & hell - Ronnie James Dio.
With no donor cash, even the players will have to become volunteers.
Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
If Peyton Manning could have just given them what they wanted from him (National Title) they wouldn't be in this situation. I blame Peyton Manning and his inability to beat the Gators.
JT
This is an example of how easy it is to trip and fall. There are dozens of factors that affect the financial health of athletic departments, some controllable and others not. Athletic directors are the equivalent of COOs of mid-sized companies, managing multimillion dollar budgets. The leadership must have vision, good judgment in hiring (one of UTs downfalls), and high-level management skills. With football as the primary economic engine, you cannot make mistakes in that area, and the turmoil in that department has led to the major part of UTs struggles.
One of my college floormates is a long-time high-level assistant at Tennessee, so I root for his team, but other than that have not strong opinions for or against the school. But there are lessons to be learned from this for other universities.