Football is Big Business at this Big East School
By Neil Frandsen
Sporting events have become a staple of American life. A day doesn't go by without a report on the "Play of the Day" or latest controversy affecting someone's favorite game. ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, Brighthouse 47, Fox Sports Networks...the list of sports coverage goes on and on. Sport is so prevalent that the public can't get enough of it.
For example, look at the growth of the business of football. The most well known entity is the National Football League who is now looking to take their brand worldwide. In 1987, Arena Football opened in major markets to fill the void in the spring which then spun off Arena2 Football in smaller markets. Now there is a spin-off of a spin-off known as the American Indoor Football Association in even smaller markets. The Tallahassee Titans are a charter member in this inaugural year.
But it all began at 3pm on November 6th in 1869 when Rutgers played Princeton in a "football" game using modified rules from rugby. Detailed accounts of the game don't mention total ticket sales, concession stand revenues or marketing budgets. As for uniforms, the 50 players distinguished themselves from the 100 spectators who stood around the field by donning scarlet-colored scarves which they converted into turbans. Rutgers won this first ever "game" 6 to 4.
One hundred and twenty eight years later, The University of South Florida Bulls played their first football game and things have definitely changed. "Our Athletic Budget for 2007-2008 is right at $30 Million," states Jim Louk, Assistant Athletic Director at the University of South Florida. "Football is the highest profile sport out of the seventeen programs that are hosted at the University and the one with the highest revenue impact".
Unlike their professional brethren, sports at the collegiate level does not focus completely on maximizing the profit generated by the individual sports team. They must balance out the academics with the athletics in accordance with National Collegiate Athletic Association rules. And with Title IX, the athletic department must make sure there are proportionate equal opportunities for male and female athletes across all the sports. Yet sporting events, especially football, can generate prestige, academic exposure, and positive cash flow for the University.
Jim Louk should know as he has seen the growth at USF since the 1980's. "The current revenue steam for the Athletic Department comes from different places", explains Louk. "Major Gifts, Ticket Sales, Corporate Marketing, Student Fees, Big East TV and Bowl Games. If it is a BCS bowl game, it could mean millions for the University."
When asked what percentage comes from which source Louk replied, "It varies from season to season and there are so many intangibles. Is the team playing well? If it is, there is more interest which may mean greater opportunity for Alumni gifts. Are well known teams such as Louisville or West Virginia playing in Tampa? That can increase ticket sales. Increased ticket sales means increased corporate interest", Louk continues. "Is Student enrollment up or down as that determines the student fees. We've got to project all of this in February prior to the new school year."
The budget specifically related to football in 2006 was $7.1 Million or roughly twenty-eight percent of the overall Athletic Department's budget for that school year. This covers coaches, support staff, and so much more that the fan doesn't even consider. Just for away games, budgeted items include Air charters (well over $100,000), bus transportation ($50,000+) , housing (over $100,000), meals for the athletes and coaches (over $90,000) etc. Home game expenses include leasing Raymond James Stadium and the logistics surrounding each date. In addition, there are other behind the scenes expenses such as media relations, photo/video production, sports medicine supplies, police escorts, water, and, of course, football equipment.
Joining the Big East two years ago was a huge step in the growth of USF both academically and athletically. When the Big East looked at the accomplishments of USF in Conference USA (C-USA), they had to have noticed that the most number of Conference Championship titles across all sports was held by the University. Head Football Coach Jim Leavitt thinks there may have been an additional factor. In a documentary produced by the University about the first ten years of USF Football, Leavitt observed that USF was undefeated against Big East schools when they were courting each other. Louk agrees and adds, "We've always been ahead of the competitive curve".
Back when USF Football was getting off the ground, they did so in an unusual way by raising $5 Million from contributors before they ever took the field. The budget for that first year was between $2 Million and $3 Million. Coach Leavitt remarked about all the little things that had to be thought through like who gets towels, where are the clothes washed, who gathers the clothes to be washed, etc, etc, etc. In the very first public scrimmage, he was more concerned about if the field was lined correctly than what the score would be. And on the inaugural game in 1997, a last minute expense was incurred when the team realized they didn't have a kicking tee. (One was purchased at a local sporting goods store and rushed to the field in time for the kickoff).
USF Football started out as an I-AA independent, joined Conference USA eight years later and is now in the Big East. No other college football team has gone from I-AA status to a major conference this quickly. Staying ahead of the competitive curve has always benefited them with their growth. While waiting to join C-USA in football, Leavitt built the program with C-USA in mind. In 2002, after being told the football team would have to wait one more year to enter C-USA, the Bulls dominated and won against the four C-USA teams they played in the regular season. Looking ahead towards the future, a new Athletic building was built to house all the functions of the Athletic Department. This investment was one that paid off when the Big East took a hard look at USF and noticed their commitment to athletics.
Many feel that the exposure of being in the Big East would mean a huge increase in revenue. But there are greater increases in expenditures as well. "Look at the location of the Big East schools when we joined," Louk explains. "The closest school at that time was Georgetown.Georgetown in Washington D.C. Gone are the days of a 45 minute flight or hopping on the bus. Now take that increased cost of getting the students to the other universities and multiply it over seventeen sports!"
When asked what other financial challenges confront the school by being in the Big East, the Assistant A.D. took a breath and stated, "Facilities. We've been challenged by our Athletic Director (Doug Woolard) to have the best Athletic Department in the Big East. This building (the two year old Athletic Center) is first class. We have a first class facility for our football in Raymond James. We now have to take a look at our Baseball and Softball fields". As for the Sun Dome, plans are being drawn up for renovations and Louk describes how it is a juggling act dependent on the revenue stream. "Major Gifts sometimes determines the course of action", Louk explained. "We recently had a gift to help with the building of a practice field for the football team. Our master footprint places that practice field where our softball field is currently located. So we have to focus on generating revenue to build a new softball field adjacent to the existing baseball field."
Since football is the highest profile sport, it does the most to generate interest and revenue that goes to the bottom line of the Athletic Department to benefit all sports. The challenges facing continued growth according to Louk are:
- Putting people into the existing seats
- Gaining a foothold in the oversaturated sports market of Tampa Bay
- An ongoing battle to get the story out about the Bulls success
- Get more a more regional focus for USF Football
"When I first came here," reminisces Louk, "the only competition I had was the beach. There was no Lightning, no Devil Rays, the Buccaneers were only pulling 20,000 at the time. The Sun Dome was three years old. But now look at the Tampa Bay ADI (Area of Dominant Influence). Look at all the opportunities we're up against".
"But I can see we are gaining ground" he continues. "All the peripherals are starting to explode. You can find Bulls merchandise readily around the market. We're seeing season ticket holders from Bradenton and Sarasota. We've opened the parking lots two hours earlier as the demand for tailgating has increased. I'm waiting for the day when someone comes to me and says 'I used to come to games with my Dad and now I'm continuing the tradition with my family'."
And USF looks forward to having a tradition of playing in Bowl games. Television has a huge impact on the bottom line especially when a team is involved in a bowl game. In the past two years, the team was invited to the Meineke Car Care Bowl and the PapaJohns.com Bowl. The bowl payout for PapaJohns.com was $800,000. The Big East payout for participating in the Meineke Car Care Bowl was even greater. And, by being part of the Big East, USF participates in revenue sharing from televised NCAA events. According to John Gerdes from the Sports Information Department, "our revenue from the NCAA and the Big East Conference, which includes television money was $3.785 million."
An intangible benefit directly related to the athletic program with the media exposure provided by football is the exposure USF receives outside the Tampa Bay area. Prior to joining the Big East, a prospective student may have thought of Gainesville or Tallahassee when thinking of going to school in Florida. Now a student from the densely populated NorthEast corridor who has lived in the shadow of Villanova, St. Johns, UConn, Syracuse and the like is more familiar with the name University of South Florida. Being the only Florida University with a major conference presence in the New York & Philadelphia media markets gives USF a distinct regional advantage when recruiting students and student athletes. This exposure can do nothing but help raise the awareness of the University of South Florida.
Being a relatively "new" school as Universities go with a relatively "new" football team, the Athletic department has methodically worked to keep the brand in front of the public and do what it takes to create a first class quality program. Staying ahead of the competitive curve has been a successful strategy that the Bulls football team has lived by for the past decade. In a market interested in the game scores of the two larger universities north of Tampa, USF has held its own and grown. How can you take that to the next level? "Win the BCS Bowl Championship!," exclaims Louk. "Then you'll see this program explode."
On October 18th of this year, the Bulls will travel to New Jersey and play a game against a Rutgers team with over 130 years of history in football. And without the benefit of a century of tradition, the young University of South Florida will continue to do what it takes to stay ahead of the competitive curve and continue to gain market share for the Green and Gold.
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