Big Blue Nation Linkapalooza: Basking in the Afterglow of Victory Edition

Appreciate link, good read, new perspective. Confirmation of what should have been obvious: UK made its choice in middle of last century and will have to live with the consequences. I do expect that sports economics (read: football becoming the overriding factor in reorganization) will eventually force the University to rethink its priorities.

I was just about to make a fan post when I checked and found your comment.

If UK athletics had the benefit of keeping the $85 million it earns annually, it would have the same revenue resources to develop facilities and field teams as LSU. But cut out $20 million to fund University programs and operations and you put UK Athletics in the same revenue category as, say, Virginia. And, when you when you lump on top of that the fact of the Trustee’s refusal to allow UK Athletics access to bonding and you put our programs on the same financial footing as Vanderbilt. (ESPN Reference Article)

And that’s not the end of the ‘PROBLEM’ by a long shot. You have individuals on the faculty and other constituency groups constantly railing against athletics keeping even as much as they do, e.g. the political science professor Ernie Yanarella who made the fuss last April in the University Senate wanting to take up to another $9 million from UK Athletics for the University’s general fund – for faculty raises. (Tipton Article)

And finally, it is only because the UK Athletics Association has been able to fend off such demands over the years that things haven’t gotten much worse. They were able to because the UKAA is quasi-independent from Trustee budget oversight, reporting directly to the President of the University. Tragically, that independence is coming to an end.

Until now, the UKAA had control of spending on program budgets and such items as coach salaries, construction programs and other athletics specific activity. But, when President Todd gave Mitch Barnhart that new 10-year contract and big raise, without telling anybody before hand just as he went out the door, it pissed a large group of the trustees off. Now, the Trustees are using the chance presented by bringing in a new University President without a strong athletics background (or interest, imo) to take away the UKAA’s independence by putting them under a 5-trustee oversight committee. (Herald Leader Article)

Putting a politically sensitive group like the trustees in charge of such a large heretofore off-limits UK Athletics budget is a temptation I don’t think they will be able to resist. Mark my words, I think this financial situation is fated to get Significantly Worse!