The Univ. of Minnesota athletics department "will lose at least" $10M in revenue because of the coronavirus pandemic, and up to $75M "if games are canceled through the fall," according to Megan Ryan of the Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE. Minnesota's Board of Regents in yesterday's meeting "based the estimates on potential losses from ticket revenue, NCAA tournament and TV distributions, donations from boosters and other previously expected revenue." An athletics department spokesperson said that AD Mark Coyle and several other Minnesota coaches and senior athletics administrators "already have agreed to voluntary pay cuts of an unknown percentage." In the "'best-case' scenario, which accounts for athletics cancellations through spring but resuming to normal in the summer, the athletics department could lose" $10M. The "'moderate' outlook, a scenario where games resume in the fall with no fans in attendance," projects the school could lose $30M. The "'severe' scenario would occur if there were no games played through the fall, including home football games." Indications within Minnesota's athletics department are that "more coaches would be open to voluntary pay cuts, especially if it is a way to avoid cutting programs" (Minnesota STAR TRIBUNE, 4/8). In St. Paul, Andy Greder notes Minnesota's athletics spending was $129M in '18-19, so the "severe case" would be a 58% decrease in what the school spent in the last athletics year (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 4/8).
