Money for Nothing

[star2city]

Yahoo: Money for Nothing

More than Kentucky paying $3 million a year, it

[nodakvindy]

Basketball in the economic engine of the NCAA. To essentially give up in that sport would be a suicidal move. Being strong in that sport is what makes you attractive to conferences. I'm very skeptical of lacrosse being any kind of money maker at UND, as travel costs would be considerable, there are virtually no natural rivals, and the timing of the season. The beginning of the season conflicts with hockey and basketball, and then end of the season conflicts with the beginning of spring, when people want to get outside.

More importantly, coaches salaries are rising across all sports. Look at the meteoric rise of hockey coaching salaries in the past 10 years. The same is happening in women's basketball, as BCS schools are now dumping money into the sport. The affect is noticeable, as former small-school powerhouses like Old Dominion and Louisiana Tech are now becoming also-rans.

If it absolutely came to the point of de-emphasizing something, football would be a far more logical choice. FCS is a financial black hole, and garners only minimally more exposure than Division II. Going to the Pioneer League would still keep the sport, but open up a ton of cash from scholarships, and be a boon toward Title IX compliance.

[star2city]

Basketball in the economic engine of the NCAA. To essentially give up in that sport would be a suicidal move. Being strong in that sport is what makes you attractive to conferences. .

It may be the economic engine of the NCAA, but it is not the economic engine of UND athletics. And I say that as a basketball fan. By not having a coaching staff and program that spends $400,000 on a head coach salary plus several hundred more on assistants, like other mid-majors do, UND's chances of long-term success as a program are remote. By your definition, that very well be giving up on a sport and is suicidal. Even if Brian Jones has success, he will be gone just as fast as Miles was if we don't significantly increase his salary. Miles doesn't even go to the dance and he's offered $400,000! UND's option are either spend $600,000 + on men's basketball coaches + assistant salaries within five years, or resign itself to mediocrity. NDSU, SDSU, and USD all face the same issues, and NDSU and USD have major basketball facility issues to deal with. I am confident that UND can more than compete with those schools (or the Big Sky or the MidCon), but am skeptical it can take it to the next level without major subsidies.

I'm very skeptical of lacrosse being any kind of money maker at UND, as travel costs would be considerable, there are virtually no natural rivals, and the timing of the season. The beginning of the season conflicts with hockey and basketball, and then end of the season conflicts with the beginning of spring, when people want to get outside

We'lll just have to agree to disagree. I'm skeptical of men's basketball being any kind of money maker at UND if we have to spend $600 k on coaches salaries. Never mind that the men's basketball season conflicts with hockey and women's basketball.

I'd rather have $3-400 K spent annually on a lacrosse program than on a basketball coaches salary. A more than decent lacrosse coach could be paid $100 k, lacrosse athletes from the western US and Canada would be begging to come to UND, unlike basketball where we'd have to beg them to come here. Lacrosse's cost structure with partial scholarships make it less financially challenging than upgrading men's basketball.

When hockey was first started at UND, travel costs were considerable and more daunting (CC, DU, Minnie, Mich Tech, Mich), most of the participating schools were on the east coast, there was no natural NCC rival, the season conflicted with a more popular basketball team, local interest and athletes were limited, but conveniently there was a local barn to play in. The present circumstances with lacrosse are almost identical, only lacrosse's upside now is even more than hockey's was then IMHO

More importantly, coaches salaries are rising across all sports. Look at the meteoric rise of hockey coaching salaries in the past 10 years.

Hockey increases have hardly been meteoric. They are capped by the limited television revenue.

Tubby Smith (Minnesota): base pay $600,000 + $1.2 million incentives

Don Lucia (Minnesota): base pay $250,000 + incentives (100-150 K est)

Brewster (Minnesota): base pay $400,000 + $600 K incentives

Mason (Minnesota): $2.2 million buyout + $1.4 million deferred comp

Tubby will be making quadruple what the Don makes and Mason, for being dumped, received ten times Lucia

[The Sicatoka]

Tark the Shark taking the NCAA to task for how it does business.

My how times change.