CR Gazette: ISU AD facing potential $147M deficit by 2031 with direct to player payments

[Freebird]

People tailgated there for years (decades?) before, and probably at a higher density. RV tailgating was also a thing though obviously not with the amenities they enjoy now. No argument that the RV park has unlocked some additional revenue via higher donation requirements, but none of those changes/improvements required a bridge to be built. They could have crossed University Blvd just as us regular schmucks did for years.

And some rich guys decided they didn’t want to do that and donated money to build a ******* bridge. I still don’t get all the whining in this thread about a ******* landmark that cost the AD basically nothing. JFC

 

[CapnCy]

In my family it would go to scholly or building. To me ISU is way more than athletics.

Same, no question. Maybe a building or something.

I do really hope that in the next few years through corporate stuff, leveraging deals for true NIL through Learfield, etc they can get this figured out and get away from having to "beg/guilt" fans into footing the bill. Sure, increase prices here and there is ok, but jaw dropping to think a family could give a couple hundred a month in donations and probably would be funding a back up special teams players dozen plays they get in seems like a lot to ask of fans

 

[nfrine]

And some rich guys decided they didn’t want to do that and donated money to build a ******* bridge. I still don’t get all the whining in this thread about a ******* landmark that cost the AD basically nothing. JFC

This is CF. Someone could have beautiful women in bikinis handing out sides of beef and someone would bit*h.

 

[Jeffrey Scott]

My Iowa fan coworker expressed “concern” over this today. I was asked if Cytown was not going to happen.

I pointed out that Iowa has actual athletic debt which Iowa State does not. And the Hilton renovations have been off the table since 2020.

I'm going to use this with my hok buddies who wish all kinds of ill will toward ISU.

 

[Heathrow06]

Cytown was built primarily to fund the upkeep and renovations on CY Stephens, Scheman and Hilton if I recall correctly. It remains to be seen if any of it will eventually flow into the athletic dept for all the other crazy stuff. For those in the know, feel free to correct me or add on.

Yes it’s in the contract with the city. The athletic dept agreed that any profits first have to go to renovations of Iowa State Center. CY Stephens alone will cost $25 mil to update.

 

[ClubCy]

I already don’t care as much.

It’s a pro sport now.

I used to care about ISU football more than the Packers…. but now find myself caring more about the Packers.

Obviously I respect everyone’s opinions and you can like what you like but…..

People seriously care less about ISU sports because players get paid now?

 

[isucy86]

I agree but they aren't mutually exclusive. The #1 threat to the university is the athletic situation right now. The AD is the driver of marketing, brand, etc. of the university.

I agree with that statement, but universities have let that happen. Maybe athletics historically have been the best marketing tool for universities to attract students and get alumni back on campus. But with the House Settlement will Athletics be cost effective for schools like Iowa State as a marketing tool?

Maybe it's time for ISU powers to be to bring back VEISHEA and similar events.

I tend to agree with Notre Dame's former AD Jack Swarbrick who predicted 3 or 4 years ago that P5 would split into two divisions:

1. A professional divsion (Pay + NIL & maybe school optional)
2. A traditional student athlete model (Scholarship + NIL)

He didn't think it was a foregone conclusion that all blue blood football schools would choose option 1.

 

[StPaulCyclone]

I agree with that statement, but universities have let that happen. Maybe athletics historically have been the best marketing tool for universities to attract students and get alumni back on campus. But with the House Settlement will Athletics be cost effective for schools like Iowa State as a marketing tool?

Maybe it's time for ISU powers to be to bring back VEISHEA and similar events.

I tend to agree with Notre Dame's former AD Jack Swarbrick who predicted 3 or 4 years ago that P5 would split into two divisions:

1. A professional divsion (Pay + NIL & maybe school optional)
2. A traditional student athlete model (Scholarship + NIL)

He didn't think it was a foregone conclusion that all blue blood football schools would choose option 1.

The AD impact goes beyond marketing; the resulting economic impact for the university and the city of Ames is enormous. The university and city have skin in the game, whether they want to admit it or act to protect it is another matter. Hell, there is a state impact to from money spent to tax revenue. I hope all the stakeholders will come together to help navigate this situation.

 

[WooBadger18]

Obviously I respect everyone’s opinions and you can like what you like but…..

People seriously care less about ISU sports because players get paid now?

Kind of.

Part of it isn’t related to NIL/paying players at all. Part of the reason I have less interest is due to conference realignment, rule changes for more commercials, not longer being a kid, etc.

But a good chunk of it is. College sports are appealing for me because they aren’t pro. They are representing the students who they attend classes with/the alumni. With stuff like NIL/current transfer rules there doesn’t feel like that same connection for me; they feel more like mercenaries, and at that point, why watch college sports when pro sports have a better product?

The red lines for me are selling off the program or not requiring them to be students. At that point, what/who are they really representing? But even if they don’t get that far, I may end up completely losing interest. Who knows

 

[acoustimac]

Iowa's situation.

 

[FarmerCy1]

The AD impact goes beyond marketing; the resulting economic impact for the university and the city of Ames is enormous. The university and city have skin in the game, whether they want to admit it or act to protect it is another matter. Hell, there is a state impact to from money spent to tax revenue. I hope all the stakeholders will come together to help navigate this situation.

It’s not just Ames/ the university that have a dog in the hunt. It’s the entire DSM region, between flights for out of towners, hotels and rental cars. It’s why Blum and CW were pushing so hard in podcasts earlier this year for the legislature to step in and do something before the **** hits the fan

 

[Remo Gaggi]

And it will be happening across the nation. Some athletic departments will have less difficult decisions because of financial resources but there are going to be a lot of sports going away. Especially on the men's side.

Maybe more schools will wind up dropping men’s sports and those athletes will then play organized club sports like the baseball team does.

 

[BCClone]

My Iowa fan coworker expressed “concern” over this today. I was asked if Cytown was not going to happen.

I pointed out that Iowa has actual athletic debt which Iowa State does not. And the Hilton renovations have been off the table since 2020.

Ok, did we get a chunk of money? I’ve read the debt free statement a few times but per the report from a couple years ago, we had around 100MM of debt.

Edit, I checked and the 6/30/22 statement is last I could find and page 40 said 114.4MM of debt the athletic department had then.

 

[1UNI2ISU]

It’s not just Ames/ the university that have a dog in the hunt. It’s the entire DSM region, between flights for out of towners, hotels and rental cars. It’s why Blum and CW were pushing so hard in podcasts earlier this year for the legislature to step in and do something before the **** hits the fan

I know I said this upthread but it's the same argument and that UNI and the Cedar Valley have made to the legislature and BOR for years and it absolutely does not sway them. There have been several projects, both athletic related and non-athletic related, that would have created significant investment in the community and the university and it's been met with crickets or just flat out resentment.

Hell, UNI asked for $3M for the Dome renovation from the state and it didn't even make it out of committee and that's with a building that had a well documented $25M annual economic impact. The legislature isn't here to help the universities in any aspect.

 

[CascadeClone]

This is CF. Someone could have beautiful women in bikinis handing out sides of beef and someone would bit*h.

I only wanted the steaks, not the ribs. Why should I have to carry those around? The rib money could have been put into parking lot repair.

Also the bikinis were the wrong color red, should have been cardinal.

 

[jbhtexas]

Completely agree. The BOR or the State needs to step up. Giving handouts goes against my belief system but this predicament is making me question a lot. Cyclone Athletics and the City of Ames means a whole hell of a lot to me as I am sure it does for all of us. If that means saving college sports and ISU by having sports betting taxes fund the AD, so be it.

So basically we are going to tax "somebody", and take that tax money to pay people to play college sports to entertain us. All good I guess as long as that somebody isn't you.

 

[CascadeClone]

Obviously I respect everyone’s opinions and you can like what you like but…..

People seriously care less about ISU sports because players get paid now?

Not because they get paid per se, but because there is less attachment due to the "free agency" -- which is caused by the NIL stuff.

I was a die-hard basketball guy forever. Played in hs (not well), listened to the radio broadcasts (miss you Pete) before every game was televised, and once they were, I would tape/dvr them and often rewatch. Had season tix for 10+ years while my kids were at ISU and lived some of the highest highs (Naz vs OSU! OU 22 pt comeback!) and lowest lows (Prohm, Covid).

I love the guys the past few years, BUT... used to be you had a core of 4 year guys and a few 2 year transfers. Now it's the opposite. And it does reduce my level of interest. Hard to get as attached when half the new guys will not play or will be gone in a year. Fandom has a LOT to do with emotion, and a lot of the emotion is getting taken out of it.

I can probably name most of the Pittsburgh Pirates starting lineup from the early to mid-80s. But probably only 2 or 3 guys from the past decade. And I am MUCH less of a fan because of it - I can't remember the last time I watched baseball on TV.

 

[BCClone]

So basically we are going to tax "somebody", and take that tax money to pay people to play college sports to entertain us. All good I guess as long as that somebody isn't you.

More like, we are going to tax/fee a group of people to pay another group so they can promote us to produce more revenue so we can pay that group even more.

 

[isucy86]

So basically we are going to tax "somebody", and take that tax money to pay people to play college sports to entertain us. All good I guess as long as that somebody isn't you.

Sports betting taxes are paid voluntarily. The lottery is a tax and people choose to play or not. Casino gambling is taxed. Many cities have a higher tax on hotels and travel to fund professional sport facilities.

If people are willing to support paying athletes, they they should have no issue on "taxed entertainment" related to sport.

 

[Cyched]

This is CF. Someone could have beautiful women in bikinis handing out sides of beef and someone would bit*h.

Where