$300,000 Mistake

If the UT athletics department really does pay more than $300,000 to an assistant coach it hired six months ago, the move is beyond absurd and further illustrates the fantasy world college sports officials still reside in.

A few years ago I had a conversation with a UT official about media hotels during the NCAA tournament. The hotels are often pre-arranged sites located close to the event. They offer a convenient location-- and often it's used for pre-event press conferences, especially during bowl games. It eliminates the complication of finding rooms during a busy and often stressful work week, and the media really did appreciate the NCAA's help.  At least until the bill arrived.

The hotels were often high-end places that drained a prudent business budget in a matter of days. The NCAA apparently thought, because they loved the 5-star routine, the media did too.  Believe me, I did. But our bosses didn't. 

To their credit, the NCAA now tries to give the media a choice of hotels-- fitting even the tightest budget concerns.  The way things are going-- newspaper and television reporters will soon be asked by our companies-- to consider using a tent.  No joke.  A number of years ago, I saw one station take a motorhome to a bowl game.

Here's the point. The NCAA is still living in a dream world. Cash flows in, and cash flows out-- rapidly. It's common for a college football team to earn $5 million (or whatever) for playing in a bowl game. Nice revenue stream-- that usually doesn't go far. 

College athletic departments treat bowl games as parties. After paying expenses for boosters and families-- most of that earned money is gone.

THAT, my friends, doesn't fly in the real business world. The NCAA is starting to recognize the realities of the current economy-- but not totally-- which is why UT is about to admit a $300,000 mistake.