As we end the near of this football bowl season, here are four links on facilities in college sports.
Being like Boise: the Nevada Wolfpack look to emulate the success of the Blue Field Boise State Broncos. To do that, they need “support, deep pockets, and improved facilities”.
Speaking of Boise State, the Broncs are also in the facility upgrade mode and are emulating the NFL’s Packers by selling a type of stock – a stock that does not “receive any dividends” and which “doesn’t appreciate” to raise some of the necessary funds. The “purchase” is also tax deductible. To me it sounds more like creative fund raising than a real stock sale. A rose by any other name…
The Wiz of Odds links to an ESPN Outside the Lines video on Rutgers football and its facility upgrades.
Mark Yost writes about facility building on major universities. You can’t invest in players because of the salary cap/price ceiling imposed by the NCAA. So you invest in coaches and facilities.
By the way, Mark Yost’s most recent book entitled “Varsity Green: A Behind the Scenes Look at Culture and Corruption in College Athletics” is slated for release shortly. I reviewed an early draft of Mark’s book last spring and found it well-written, provocative, and very interesting. After I received the manuscript last year, I was going to wait for a couple of weeks before reviewing it. But I began skimming it while giving a test and immediately became riveted. I finished the review within a few days. The first chapter about the attitude that some in athletic departments hold about student athletes says it all: “The Entertainment Product.” Recommended.
