Bobinski said cancellation of the annual Pudue Day of Giving will hurt the school's bottom lineGETTY IMAGES
Purdue AD Mike Bobinski said his department will "end this year, at worst, level and potentially produce a minor surplus," despite receiving less money due to the cancellation of the NCAA Tournament, according to Mike Carmin of the Lafayette JOURNAL & COURIER. FY '20-21 that begins July 1 "could be a completely different story because of the unknowns surrounding whether the college football season will be played in its entirety or not at all." Before this fiscal year, the athletic department had received $4.1M in distributions tied to the NCAA Tournament from '15-16 through '18-19. Bobinski said the cancellation of the school-wide Purdue Day of Giving also will "impact the bottom line." Carmin noted along with continued donations, what is "helping Purdue manage the current fiscal year is the cancellation of spring sports and the expenses of travel, meals and hosting events during the next two months." The uncertainty of the college football season has "forced athletic departments to build future financial models predicting the worst-case scenarios." Purdue's revenue stream was "already tight since it's scheduled to play six home games this season instead of the normal seven." Meanwhile, some schools like Iowa State and Louisville have "already instituted pay cuts based on the current financial landscape but Bobinski hasn't broached that topic since the department remains in a good position through June" (Lafayette JOURNAL & COURIER, 4/11).
