All Arizona State athletes on full scholarship will "receive $2,000-$2,500 more in 2015-16 to cover the full cost of attendance,” according to Jeff Metcalfe of the ARIZONA REPUBLIC. The gap between ASU cost of attendance in ‘14-15 in a full scholarship “was $2,497 for those living on campus and $1,873 for those living off campus.” Cost of attendance for ASU in ‘15-16 is “$27,260, in-state student living on campus; $25,702, in-state living off campus; $42,240, out-of-state living on campus; $40,682, out-of-state living off campus.” ASU athletes on equivalency or partial scholarship will “receive that portion of a cost of attendance stipend.” ASU athletes “receive cash-in-lieu checks several times each semester that will include the additional money to cover full cost of attendance” (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 6/16).
FOR THE MASS-ES: In Massachusetts, Matt Vautour noted UMass "will cover the increased cost of attendance of its basketball teams" for the '15-16 season, "like the rest of the Atlantic 10." Which other UMass athletes will receive the added benefit based on the NCAA's rule change "is still being determined." The difference between what UMass scholarships covered under the old rules vs. the new ones is "approximately $1,600 per full scholarship." New UMass AD Ryan Bamford said that the approximate cost for the entire athletic department would be "about $475,000 per year" (DAILY HAMPSHIRE GAZETTE, 6/17). In Virginia, Mark Berman wrote, “Add Radford to the list of colleges that will be spending more money on scholarships." Big South schools "voted last week to require members to increase men’s and women’s basketball scholarships to cover the full cost of attendance.” The move will “cost the Radford athletic department an extra $90,000 per school year, beginning with the upcoming school year.” Radford athletes “will get an extra $3,500 per school year” (ROANOKE TIMES, 6/18).
GRAB THE TIGER BY THE TAIL: In Alabama, James Crepea wrote Auburn Exec Dir of Student Financial Services Mike Reynolds “is now more meaningful than ever” to AU football coach Gus Malzahn and fans of the school’s teams. Reynolds is “in charge of calculating the school's cost of attendance, which at $5,586 for every two semesters over and above the school's tuition & fees and room & board ranks second-highest in the nation as of last year.” Reynolds is “concerned financial aid officials at schools with lower cost of attendance figures will now feel pressure, perceived or otherwise, to raise their estimations to better accommodate their athletic departments, but believes he has nothing to be concerned about at Auburn.” Multiple members of Malzahn's staff said that cost of attendance “hasn't come up much on the recruiting trail so far, even during in-home visits last January, but now that it's set to start they'll be emphasizing it moving forward.” AU running backs coach Tim Horton said, “It's good for us. That plays well into our hands.” Defensive line coach Rodney Garner “wants to make sure players understand how to manage the money they’ll now be receiving.” He said, “We got to make sure we’re educating the kids. Some of these kids now make more money than their parents” (MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER, 6/18).
GRIN AND BEAR IT: In Maine, Pete Warner wrote at the Univ. of Maine, the “calculated cost-of-attendance number after scholarship expenses is $2,400.” It is “unlikely the athletic department would be able to provide those funds any time soon.” UMaine AD Karlton Creech estimated that if about 200 of the school's 400 athletes are "receiving some form of scholarship, it would cost the department” an estimated $480,000 for ‘15-16. He said, “There’s no way, right now, that I have a way of affording that for everybody.” Creech said that the “possible ramifications of the rule were hot topics during recent annual meetings of the Hockey East Association, the America East Conference and the Colonial Athletic Association, in which UMaine competes.” Creech: “It’s going to be a real interesting recruiting dynamic” (BANGOR DAILY NEWS, 6/13).
OUT ON AN ISLAND: A HONOLULU STAR-ADVERTISER editorial stated new Hawaii AD David Matlin and the school’s Board of Regents are “preparing to tackle the fiscal problems by taking what board Chairman Randy Moore calls a ‘deep dive’” into the school’s athletics budget. It is “more like a leap of faith,” given a projected $4M deficit at the end of this month and a 14-year “accumulated net deficit” of $21.4M. UH could “consider dropping a few sports,” but it is “practically an all-or-nothing proposition” (HONOLULU STAR-ADVERTISER, 6/18).
