Miami's football program was shut down for close to three weeks due to a COVID-19 outbreakGetty Images
Univ. of Miami AD Blake James said school officials "don't know yet" how much money the athletic department lost this year due to the pandemic, but it has "without a doubt" been a financial hit for the school, according to Susan Miller Degnan of the MIAMI HERALD. James said, "Anyone who went to a game and saw the amount of tickets that went unsold clearly understands that there were challenges we faced financially as a program." He added UM has "taken a number of steps as a department to cut expenses and put us in the best position possible." James: "But, yes, this has had a significant financial impact on us and I'm sure at the end of the fiscal year it will be something that has created definitely a financial hardship." However, James said the school has "taken a lot of great steps and we have great leadership in support of the institution and we'll come out of this and be ready to go for 2021." Some football coaches and assistants had bad cases of COVID-19, and James said it is "not a surprise to anyone that we were shut down for close to three weeks." James: "It definitely impacted our football program and our athletic program and those are things I guess I'd say we've come through the best that we can but it's the reality of living in a pandemic and living with this virus" (MIAMI HERALD, 12/28).
