More than a year after Rutgers joined the Big Ten, the "oldest and perhaps the wealthiest conference in college sports, it is difficult to find someone who thinks that it or the conference did not make the right decision," according to Marc Tracy of the N.Y. TIMES. Big Ten President Network Mark Silverman said that Rutgers' location in the N.Y. television market "may help the Big Ten negotiate a blockbuster new television deal in the next year," and has already "helped the Big Ten Network." The network "added eight million subscribers in the New York metropolitan area in the past year." It also experienced a 20% YOY rise in advertising revenue -- "more than twice what would have been expected without conference growth." The change has "been a money loser so far for Rutgers," which at $36.3M last year had the "largest subsidy to its athletic department of virtually any public college" in D-I. But the school in a few years will "begin receiving a full member’s cut of the Big Ten’s exploding media revenue." The road has "not been without bumps." Athletic department budget shortfalls in the two academic years leading up to '14 totaled more than $83M combined. A university financial plan has predicted that Rutgers will "continue to run substantial deficits for several years, in part because ... for its first six years of membership it will receive smaller conference payouts than longstanding members." Rutgers CFO Janine Purcaro said that figure is about $9-10M a year. Rutgers will fully vest as a Big Ten member in '22, and will then "start receiving a conference and NCAA payout" estimated at $35.5M a year. That figure is "conservative," as the Big Ten is "set to sign a new deal for national broadcast rights next year, which, combined with continued growth at the Big Ten Network, is expected to establish annual payouts" exceeding $40M for each program (N.Y. TIMES, 10/24).
BREAKING GROUND: In Newark, Keith Sargeant noted Rutgers on Saturday broke ground on a $3.3M indoor facility "set to be built for the baseball and softball programs." The 22,500-square-feet structure will be "named for the school's legendary former baseball coach, Fred Hill." Rutgers AD Julie Hermann "took centerstage during a groundbreaking ceremony to highlight what will be the first privately financed practice facility built on the Rutgers campus since the Indoor Practice bubble 30 years ago." Hermann: "Our donors stepped up and underwrote this whole thing. And that's an important message based on everything we have to get done in the next 5-to-10 years" (Newark STAR-LEDGER, 10/25).
