Knight Commission meets on college sports

WASHINGTON — Big time sports aren't a big part of a college budget. Spending more on football doesn't necessarily generate more wins or more football revenues. Investing in a winning football team often doesn't prompt alumni to give more to their university.

Myths were falling as fast as quarterbacks behind a porous offensive line Monday as financial analysts presented the findings of three studies on college football to the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.

The average spending on athletics at a Division 1-A university is only about 3.8 percent of the overall operating budget, for instance, said Peter Orszag, director of Competition Policy Associates, Inc., a consulting firm that prepared a financial study. Most observers believe sports consume a much bigger slice of the pie, he said.

"Even in a program as big as Georgia's, it's only about 4 percent of the total budget," said Michael Adams, president of the University of Georgia and a member of the Knight Commission, which was founded in 1989 to promote reforms and academic values in college sports.

It also confounded some other college football orthodoxy:

— Investing in the football program does not bring windfall profits to a university. Indeed, a $1 increase in football spending brings roughly a $1 increase in football revenue, said Orszag.

— There is no "robust relationship" between increased football spending and winning or between increased winning and increased football revenue, the study found.

— Spending more on college sports doesn't have a measurable effect on the academic quality of an institution.

— Increased spending on sports also does not have a measurable effect on alumni giving or university selectivity.

While some of these findings seem "counter-intuitive," Adams said he thinks the report reflects the financial realities of college athletics.

"We've never been in it to make money, but we're not in it to lose money either," he said. "Luckily Georgia is among the institutions that remain in the black."

Another report showed the average revenues for a Division 1-A athletic program were $29.4 million in 2003, the latest year measured. That was a 17.1 percent increase over 2001. The average expenditures were $27.2 million, a 17.2 percent two-year change. The average net revenues of $2.2 million showed a two-year increase of 16 percent.

In discussions on the state of athletics, Jim Delany, commissioner of the Big 10, warned of potential corruption involving new complexities in recruitment — a process where historically players relied upon advice from parents, high school coaches and college coaches. With more specialization and the popularity of off-season competition, "third parties" are entering the equation — such as "combines" to size-up talent and camp sponsors, scouting services and even athletic shoe manufacturers, said Delany.

Since recruiting is the lifeblood of college athletics, the trend bears watching, he said.

Commissioner Clifton Wharton asked about changes brought about by high-profile head football and basketball coaches switching back and forth between college and professional teams — usually for multi-million dollar salaries. Steve Spurrier, for instance, has gone from the University of Florida to the Washington Redskins and now back to the University of South Carolina.

Colleges have reacted by paying higher salaries to attract and keep top coaches, said Delany. But the mobile, former pro coaches are often "easier to manage" by college administrators than are long-time college coaches, he said.

Coaches Paul "Bear" Bryant of the University of Alabama, Darrell Royal of the University of Texas, and Woody Hayes of Ohio State University became legends in their states. Florida State Coach Bobby Bowden and Penn State Coach Joe Paterno have similar status in their respective states.

These long-time college coaches can become the most powerful force — politically, culturally and socially as well as athletically — in a state and thus hard for a college president to control, said Delany.

For nearly two decades, the Knight Commission has usually been critical of college sports but the tone was different at this meeting. The group has endorsed the hiring of Myles Brand as NCAA president and recent reforms.

The reforms themselves, however, have spawned some problems, the commissioners conceded.

For instance, the new NCAA Academic Progress Rate was passed to promote retention and graduation of student athletes. However, if a top undergraduate athlete drops out to turn professional, his school could be penalized by a loss of scholarships even though the coach has no leverage in keeping him in classes.

Asked if an adjustment is needed, Thomas Hearn, chairman of the Knight Commission and president of Wake Forest University, said, "We want to wait and see what the effects are of the full implementation."

John Swofford, Commissioner of the Atlantic Coast Conference, said athletic officials have not done enough in football and basketball to differentiate between the college and professional models. Both are businesses greatly influenced by television contracts, he conceded. But the college model "is a business being conducted in an educational setting with an educational mission. That's the difference."