Reflection paragraph on sources

When doing my research I felt there was a great deal of credible web sited I used. Although it was hard searching for them, once I was able to dig into it, I found great sites. One of the best was ncaa.org because it was the most credible, coming from the official NCAA, and it gave me a lot of good numbers and facts. This web site was also the most trustworthy because I knew since it was “ncaa.org” I could trust it and other web sites I went to gave me links to it as well. Overall, most of the web sites were not bias, but one I found, sports.espn.go.com, was bias saying that they believed ncaa athletes should be payed for their performances.  

Reflection paragraph on process

While doing my research on athletic funding at universities, I found the easiest thing was locating pictures. There was a great deal of pictures, charts, and graphs showing the revenue, expenses, and profit of the athletic programs. Another thing I found easy was writing about my subject. I feel this was easy for me because I already had some background information and there was a lot of good info on web sites I found. Some of the harder things were actually doing the research and finding, in writing, how the colleges distributed the money and made a profit. If I were to do this again I think I would change my question from “How does athletics at a university affect academics?” to “How much does colleges spend and make with their athletic programs?”

Works Cited

Gillum, Jack, Jodi Upton, and Steve Berkowitz. "Amid funding crisis, college athletics soak up subsidies, fees." USAtoday.com 15 Jam. 2010: n. pag. Web. 10 Nov 2010. .

Gilmore, Rod. "College football players deserve pay for play." sports.espn.go.com 17 Jan 2007: n. pag. Web. 16 Nov 2010.
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Isidore, Chris. "College Sports' Fuzzy Math." Money.cnn.com 10 Nov. 2006: n. pag. Web. 11 Nov 2010. http://money.cnn.com/2006/11/10/commentary/sportsbiz/index.htm.

Press, Associated. "NCAA report: Economy cuts into sports." sports.espn.go.com 23 Aug. 2010: n. pag. Web. 16 Nov 2010. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5490686

"Athletics Subsidy." desertnews.com. Web. 9 Nov 2010. .

"Expenses by Team." statefansnation.com. Web. 10 Nov 2010. .

“Financial Statements.” Statefansnation.com. Web. 15 Nov 2010. http://www.statefansnation.com/index.php/archives/2010/06/09/nc-state-is-nations-fifth-most-profitable-hoops-program/.

"Mens Basketball Expenses and Revenue." Statefansnation.com. Web. 11 Nov 2010. .

Wordle #2 based on topic key terms.

Reflection paragraph on findings

During my research on how universities fund athletics and what is their relationship to academics I found a great deal of interesting facts. One of the most surprising to me was that NC State spent a grand total of $45,782,463 on their men and women athletics. I had no idea colleges spent so much on athletics, that’s why this fact was the most interesting. Another interesting one was that Ohio State University profits more than $11,000,000 on their basketball program each year! That is a lot of money that can go towards helping the university in so many ways. One question I still have is exactly how much money goes into the academics because I found that they do put money back in to the academics, but I never got a clear answer. I also want to know why the players do not get paid, because they are the ones winning games and bringing in that profit. After doing the research I feel that the system the NCAA has in place now is good controlling the money, but they need to limit the amount coaches get paid, the amount put into new facilities, add money to the academics, and start paying the college athletes.

Finding paragraph 3

Athletic programs at big time universities make huge amounts of money which help the other athletic expenses and the college as a whole. Although some of the money is going into academics, a huge percentage of it is going to less important things. The money is going to coach’s’ salaries, which are ridiculously high, and state of the art facilities. "Since the NCAA won't let schools pay players, a huge amount of this money goes to coaches and facilities. NFL teams have elaborate stadiums with sky boxes and expensive training facilities. Well, so do the colleges. They've jumped into the arms race by dropping big cash on these facilities." (Gilmore) This causes a great deal of controversy because some people want that money to go back into the university’s academic programs, but others argue that it should stay in the athletics to help build them. In 2009, Coastal Carolina University had a total of more than $17,000,000 putt into their sport programs. Some expenses they had were $5,139,330 in athletic student aids, $1,204,000 in travel expenses, and $292,000 in game expenses.

Finding paragraph 2

Colleges put so much into making their athletics strong that you would think it’s ridiculous; but with all the students, media, endorsements, and other revenue schemes they usually make a profit. Ohio State University is the nations best in terms of profit margin with an outstanding profit of more than $11,000,000. Ohio State’s annual basketball revenue is more than $16,000,000 with their expenses being a little about $4,000,000. This means their profit margin in more than 70%. No wonder they do so much to help their athletic programs. But not all basketball programs make a profit. For example, in the ’08-09 season, Duke University brought in just under $12 million, but with their expenses being just under $14 million they have actually lost money. The athletics also have to add in the cost of the scholarships. NC State spends about 3.1 million only on men sports and an additional two million on women sports. Even though colleges can make a huge profit from their sports, they also have a great deal of expenses they have to account for. 

Finding paragraph 1

Athletics are an enormous part of the college atmosphere, but with the struggling economy, academic programs, and faculty salaries it’s hard to for the university to fund them. Big time athletic programs can put up to $45,000,000 in all their athletic programs; including men’s, women’s, coach’s salary, and travel expenses. "More than $800 million in student fees and university subsidies are propping up athletic programs at the nation's top sports colleges, including hundreds of millions in the richest conferences" (Gillum) which means that the students are having to pay extra student fees and higher tuition rates for the college sports; but from study’s I have seen, students are willing to pay that extra money. On the other hand, some people want the government to help fund athletics at universities, but why should the government help out if the athletics are just going to raise the coaches’ salaries and build new facilities? "The ultimate goal is to have the athletics department running on its own, but students here love big-time athletics ... and they are willing and eager to help athletics as much as possible." (Gillum)

Quote, paraphrase, and citation #5

"The research was done by accounting professor Dan Fulks of Transylvania University, a Division III school in Lexington, Ky. It shows the median amount paid by the 120 FBS schools to support campus athletics grew in one year from about $8 million to more than $10 million."

 

I chose this quote because it shows how the economy has made college athletics take a hit and how now the universities have to contribute more money. I am ambivalent about this because, for one, I do not think universities should take out of their budget to help pay huge bucks for a coach, but I do know that the economy has hurt the athletic profit, so i understand. 

This article was about how athletic programs have taken a hit from the economy. It also spoke about how universities are having to contribute more because of this loss. 

Press, Associated. "NCAA report: Economy cuts into sports." sports.espn.go.com 23 Aug. 2010: n. pag. Web. 16 Nov 2010. <http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5490686>.

 

Quote, paraphrase, and citation #4

"Since the NCAA won't let schools pay players, a huge amount of this money goes to coaches and facilities. NFL teams have elaborate stadiums with sky boxes and expensive training facilities. Well, so do the colleges. They've jumped into the arms race by dropping big cash on these facilities."

I chose this quote because it shows that even though these big sport programs are making huge amounts of money most of the money is not even going back into the university, it is going to coaches salaries, facilities, and travel expenses for the team. I feel antipathy that a portion of the money does deserve to go back into the university to help with the academic programs.

This article was about where money goes from college sports. It stated that a huge portion is going to giving coaches huge salaries, and making there facility state of the art. This report feels that the NCAA needs to start paying these robust college athletes for their participation, and although this is not my topic, I agree.

Gilmore, Rod. "College football players deserve pay for play." sports.espn.go.com 17 Jan 2007: n. pag. Web. 16 Nov 2010. <http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=gilmore_rod&id=2733624>.

Graph/chart/map and citation

I chose this chart because it shows how much schools can profit off of athletics and help the university in a whole. Now this is a list of the top basketball programs, so of course not every school profits this much, but if these schools can make this much money then so can all the other schools.

"

 

Financial Statements." statefansnation.com. Web. 15 Nov 2010. <http://www.statefansnation.com/index.php/archives/2010/06/09/nc-state-is-nations-fifth-most-profitable-hoops-program/>.

Photo, caption, and citation #3

I chose this picture because it shows the expenses and revenues of 12 of the biggest basketball universities, but it also shows how much each university is profiting. You see all schools are making a profit except for one. You also see Boston College, BC, is not making anything and not losing anything.

   "Mens Basketball Expenses and Revenue." Statefansnation.com. Web. 11 Nov 2010. <http://www.statefansnation.com/index.php/archives/2010/07/29/financing-college-sports-part-3/>.

Quote, paraphrase, and citation #3

"Why should the federal government subsidize the athletic activities of educational institutions when that subsidy is being used to help pay for escalating coaches' salaries, costly chartered travel and state of the art athletic facilities?"
- Bill Thomas

I chose this quote because it shows his perspective on the situation, and how he does not think the federal government should subsidize athletic activities for universities if they are just going to use it on not useful things; I agree with him. 

This article was about how college sports are now closely resembling professional sports with all the money that is spent and how they use it. Also, how universities are doing every thing to gain money. For example, trying to add another game and getting more marketing deals with tv.
Isidore, Chris. "College Sports' Fuzzy Math." Money.cnn.com 10 Nov. 2006: n. pag. Web. 11 Nov 2010. <http://money.cnn.com/2006/11/10/commentary/sportsbiz/index.htm.>

Quote, paraphrase, and citation #2

"More than $800 million in student fees and university subsidies are propping up athletic programs at the nation's top sports colleges, including hundreds of millions in the richest conferences"

I chose this quote because it is telling that more than $800 million dollars from student fees and subsidies go into helping the sports programs. The students pay extra for the sports and i feel if they, the students, want to go to a college with a big sports program then yes, they should pay more.

This article was also about how much subsidies and money go into the athletic programs at universities and how schools have been putting me money into their athletic programs in recent times. It also said how people at the university, other than sports, have been taking cuts to pay for the athletics. For example, staff salaries are decreasing, financial aid is lowering, and student tuition is on the rise.

Gillum, Jack, Jodi Upton, and Steve Berkowitz. "Amid funding crisis, college athletics soak up subsidies, fees." USAtoday.com 15 Jam. 2010: n. pag. Web. 10 Nov 2010. <http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2010-01-13-ncaa-athletics-funding-analysis_N.htm>.

Photo, caption, and citation #2

I chose this picture because it shows the expenses by NC State athletics and how high it is. The grand total for every team men and women was $45,782,463! Imagine how much the academic parts of the school could do with that.

"Expenses by Team." statefansnation.com. Web. 10 Nov 2010. <http://www.statefansnation.com/index.php/archives/2010/07/19/financing-college-sports-part-two/>.

Quote, paraphrase, and citation #1

"The ultimate goal is to have the athletics department running on its own, but students here love big-time athletics ... and they are willing and eager to help athletics as much as possible."

I chose this quote by Tim Lolli because it shows that college students are willing to help pay for athletics which means their tuition rates are higher. Although universities main goal is to get athletics paying for itself, when students will help pay and have a higher tuition rate to pay for it the university will take that money.

This article was about how much subsidies and money go into the athletic programs at universities and how schools have been putting me money into their athletic programs in recent times. It also said how people at the university, other than sports, have been taking cuts to pay for the athletics. For example, staff salaries are decreasing, financial aid is lowering, and student tuition is on the rise.

Gillum, Jack, Jodi Upton, and Steve Berkowitz. "Amid funding crisis, college athletics soak up subsidies, fees." Usatoday.com 15 Jan. 2010: n. pag. Web. 9 Nov 2010. <http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2010-01-13-ncaa-athletics-funding-analysis_N.htm.> 

Photo, caption, and citation #1

I chose this picture because it shows that since '04 universities in Utah, students athletic subsidy has risen dramatically. Only one school has dropped and that was a community college with little sports.

      "Athletics Subsidy." desertnews.com. Web. 9 Nov 2010. <http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700051047/Utah-colleges-spending-more-on-sports-even-as-state-education-funding-drops.html>.

Preliminary links and descriptions

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/connect/public/ncaa/answers/nine+points+to+consider_one

This link shows where the money that the NCAA makes from the television media and other media agreements goes. This was created by The National Collegiate Athletic Association in 2010. This is useful to my topic because it shows me where all the media sponsors money goes and how it helps the University's with their programs.

http://www.newsrecord.org/nation-world/colleges-where-the-money-goes-1.2339269

This link also shows where all the money the schools and universities get and how they manage their money to be sure they have enough for their sports programs. It was created by Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus on September 22, 2010. This is useful to me because it gives a better, more detailed look into how each university spends their money they get from tuition and all.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6994702

This link shows an opinion of a well credited sports speaker that gives facts, as well as his opinions on the issue. It was written by Frank Deford in 2007. This is useful to me in my paper because the facts and statistics are helpful and its good to have a opinion from him.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2004-02-18-athletic-spending-cover_x.htm

This link shows that not every school has enough money to provide for their sports programs so they are wondering what should happen and how they can cut back on some of their spending. This was written by MaryJo Sylwester and Tom Witosky in 2004. This is useful for my topic because it is showing the struggling schools sports programs and how they are managing to cut back and limit their spending on sports.

Wordle #1 based on one useful site

Animoto based on search questions

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

What I want to know about my topic

There are many things i want to know about my topic, which is why i picked it. It is a very debatable issue whether college sports should be funded more or less. One thing i want to know is how much does a university profit from the sport teams. This i feel is the most important peice of information i can gain from doing this research paper. There is a big debate on whether schools take money out of acedmic learning to pay for the sports, but if the sport teams are atleast making a profit then that means they are gaining and not hurting acedmic money or anything. I also want to know how much money does a regular college spend each year on their sport teams. This is important because it is not good if the college is spending a huge amount on their teams and not helping ith academics. This topic allows me to ask and answer many questions because there are so many differnet ways of looking at it.

What i already know about my topic

Some things i already know about my topic question, "To what level should collegiate sports be funded? What is their relationship to academics?", are that universitys think it is really important to have succsful sport programs and they are willing to go the extra and pay more to get it. I know that good college coaches are getting more of a pay raise now than they have ever before because the university wants to do whatever to keep the school winning. I know that many faculty of big sport programs are taking a cut to make up for money that has gone to sports. Schools charge a fee which help pay only for sport programs and then they also do fundraising, donations, money they make off of ticket sales, and a small amount of NCAA revenues to pay for the remaining costs. Teams have hurt from the struggling economy, but schools have taken money out of academic budgeting to help pay for the loss revenue. But, also with the truggling economy, schools have postponed rebuilding of new areana's and not going all out like they have been.

The story behind my topic choice

College sports are a huge part of the college atmosphere but where do they get the money for all the things that go into having a great team? And should the school be more financially helpful to sports programs?

For example, when a university gets a new stadium or uniforms, who pays for that? Is it taken out of the academic funding? Those are two tough and debatable questions to answer. There are many reasons why i chose the question "To what level should collegiate sports be funded? What is their relationship to academics?" to research. For one, i grew up watching and playing all kinds of sports and i have always been extremely fascinated with how the college systems are operated and set up. This question can go yes, college sports should be funded because they bring in revenue and publicity, or no, because the school should worry about their academics first. When you think of college sports you think of screaming college students, big pep rallies, and huge games that are talked about all week, but nobody ever really thinks about how all this is funded. It's by the college.

To me, college sports should be funded but after all the academics are taking care of because that is the biggest thing at the college. In the end, I want to have a better, lucid idea of where the money comes from to pay for all the athletic programs at universitys and i have chose this because i love sports, business and money is facinating to me, and some people complain about academics not having funding but sports does, so i want to determine if thats true.