To 19? WTF?
Without subsidies, athletics departments at 19 of the 119 schools in Division I-A (now known as the Football Bowl Subdivision) made money in fiscal 2006 — up from 18 in '05 and '06 — and 16 did so over the three-year period.With all the emphasis on money and football, and the fact that you (almost?) never hear about programs folding for financial reasons, this sounds like some fuzzy accounting to me.
The report showed that for the 67 I-A football programs that showed a program-generated surplus in fiscal year 2006, the average surplus was nearly $8.8 million, while among the 52 programs that showed a deficit, the average deficit was a little more than $2.5 million.I'm simply not buying that only 19 football programs make money. With an increasing lineup of bowl games, an ever expanding lineup of televised games, and a D1a list that is actually growing, something has to be off here.
The report also showed that for the 19 I-A athletic departments that showed a surplus in fiscal 2006, the average surplus was nearly $4.3 million, while among the 99 departments that showed a deficit that year, the average deficit was a little more than $8.9 million.
Both gaps have grown since fiscal 2004.
For the study, athletics-generated revenues were defined as those from sources such as ticket sales, conference revenue sharing and donations. School-allocated revenues were those from sources such as student fees and direct and indirect institutional support, including utilities and maintenance.What is the difference between "athletics-generated" and "school-allocated" revenues? Regardless, it doesn't sound like this is taking into account the large boost home games give to the local economy, the way success on the football field can impact the number (and thus quality) of applicants, or, and this I don't get, TV revenue?!?!
Penn State is typically one of the top 15 most profitable programs, netting roughly $26 million a year.
