Football ticket sales have helped give the Cougars a boost over the past three yearsGETTY IMAGES
Washington State Univ. has "set in motion a plan to help the school’s athletic department balance its budget and eventually climb out of a cumulative deficit" that is projected to reach $84.9M by the end of FY '23, according to a front-page piece by Theo Lawson of Spokane SPOKESMAN-REVIEW. The budget strategy, contingent on "media-rights fees, record donations to the Cougar Athletic Fund, improved ticket sales, corporate sponsorships and a spike in student fees, will be presented" to the WSU BOR at a retreat in Woodinville from next Thursday-Friday. WSU will ask that the BOR to approve the school’s '18-19 athletics budget, "approve the plan for reducing the operating deficit in future years and allow necessary transfers to cover the deficit balance at the end" of FY '18. Once WSU "manages to balance the budget, it will shift its focus to building reserves, repaying central reserves and working to eliminate the total athletic department debt." WSU AD Pat Chun said, “We are not here to make excuses. We take our fiscal responsibilities with the utmost seriousness. We are constantly on the search to increase revenues and manage our expenses.” WSU’s strategy is "dependent on increasing revenue" by 27% by FY '23. WSU is also "anticipating a noticeable boost in revenue generated from media rights," which currently account for $19.6M of the annual revenue. That number "could rise" to $25.2M by the end of FY '23. The Pac-12 Networks’ media-rights deal extends through the '23-24 school year (Spokane SPOKESMAN-REVIEW, 6/1).
WAITING GAME: In Washington, Dale Grummert notes WSU "foresees its overall deficit in athletics increasing" by another $17M during the next four years before it "finally begins to shrink" in '23. The long-term budget plan "comes in response to a new Washington state law that requires public universities with debt issues to develop deficit-reduction plans and get them approved by their governing boards, which also must OK any expenditures or budget transfers exceeding $250,000." Football ticket sales "have risen as the Cougars have piled up more wins on the field the past three years, but the relatively small capacity of Martin Stadium places limits on that revenue." In terms of gate receipts, Chun said that the men's and women's basketball teams "offer the largest room for growth" (LMTRIBUNE.com, 6/1).
