Don't listen to Notre Dame's athletic director; the Irish will always have football

[dales5050]

Pretty bold post by a guy I have never heard of before.

While I have always felt the financial numbers for ND have a lot to do with the success of the football program....the reality is with Scott Malpass and the almost $10B he gets to play with Notre Dame does not need football at all for financial numbers today.

Also, the dig against Swarbrick needing to start saving is a sign that this guy has no idea who JS is or what power he holds. He could be making a lot more money elsewhere if he wanted to. Just like Malpass. These guys are at ND because of ND.

Interesting but somewhat fictional read. Content so you don't have to link......


Don't listen to Notre Dame's athletic director; the Irish will always have football

Can you imagine it? Here’s Notre Dame football, doing what is Right and Best For The Sanctity of The Game, dropping down to a newly formed league, playing only Northwestern and maybe the Ivy League schools and the military academies and, oh, probably Vanderbilt, too.

Michigan and USC and Florida State are off on their own, paying their best college football players a salary, destroying the Harmony of College Athletics forever. Their games are saturated in commercialism, the players are no longer Student-Athletes, the alums look on in shame thinking about the Purity of What Used To Be.

This is the future apparently envisioned by Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick. He sees the Irish embracing an All-Rudy model — only those who have the heart to truly love Notre Dame! — if a time comes when college football players at the sports’ highest level become entitled to even a small slice of the millions upon millions in revenue they generate.

He will have no part in that dystopia, he says. Touchdown Jesus will not be made to preside over such horrors.

Here’s Swarbrick’s full quote, as reported by USA TODAY’s Steve Berkowitz after a meeting of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics yesterday:

“Notre Dame’s just not prepared to participate in any model where the athlete isn’t a student first and foremost — that’s the hallmark for us. If the entire model were to move toward athletes as employees, we’d head in a different direction. Our president has been clear about that. I’m not articulating a unique position.”​

Berkowitz also reported yesterday that Swarbrick made $1.3 million from Notre Dame last year.

He should probably sock some of that away, though, if he honestly plans to remove the Fighting Irish from the top level of college football. The tide pushing for paying players — those in the big money-making sports of football and men’s basketball — continues to swell. If Notre Dame opts out and therefore can no longer recruit the best players, a lot of this is going to go away.

There will be no more $15 million-per-year contract from NBC to televise games. The Fighting Irish will still have plenty of legacy fans, and will continue to attract new Catholic fans, but the numbers will surely dwindle. Some donors will still give at the same levels, for a time.

But eventually it will all dry up. Because as much as Notre Dame fans want to think they’re different and so is the school, they aren’t and it isn’t. The point has always been to beat the best teams in the country in football, on the field.

The rest of the stuff at Notre Dame — or any of the dozens of other schools that clamber up to the moral high ground — is all background music meant to push those that fuel the machine through losing seasons. It’s a lot easier to write that donation check after a 5-7 year — or after players are investigated for academic fraud, or after going on probation, or after a student is killed while taping practice in unsafe conditions, or after seeing your school accused of covering up sexual assaults by football players — if you can convince yourself that all the money you spend goes toward some noble, gold-flecked cause.

Even when, in reality, it’s going toward the hope of raucous Saturdays leading to football in January.

The majority of fans — even those that went to the school — aren’t all that interested in whether the QB is a good student. There was a time when people thought of professional players as everymen representing the city they played for, but that’s long since changed and we’re OK with it. The local QB is a far-off multi-millionaire you’ll never truly know. And that’s fine. He’s a gladiator.

It will be no different when the best college football players start to get paid and stop having to pretend to be students. As long as the alums can continue to return to campus to watch the best football outside of the NFL, they will.

Swarbrick knows this. He’s a smart guy. He’s trying to slow the push toward paying players, and for obvious reasons. It will force a vast and significant change to the way his and every other department is run.

When that time comes, though, Notre Dame will be there, playing at the highest level, pushing for championships, doing what it needs to do, just as it always has.

Then Swarbrick — or whoever is in the job then — won’t have to convince himself that the team’s gladiators, those five-star prospects who’ve worked every day for a shot at pro football, are students first and foremost.

 

[Black Irish]

I don't think that the writing is on the wall for college players getting paid in the near future, like this article asserts. I don't see most big time football schools being in a big rush to divvy up their football lucre with 18 year old 5 stars. They will just continue to find ways to add value to the proposition of playing for their school. They can try the good way, like ND and Stanford, "get the degree and have a long term plan." Or the bad way "all the girls and crab legs you want and don't worry about your grades." Or just whatever way the schools can manage, be it good, bad, or somewhere in between.. That CFB financial pie doesn't get bigger because you start paying players. So the powers that be are not rushing to give any more slices away then they have to.

 

[ulukinatme]

Or the bad way "all the girls legs and crabs you want and don't worry about your grades."

FIFY

 

[MNIrishman]

It's not up to Swarbrick. I talked to Fr. John about this possibility last month and learned that the entire university administration is united here.

 

[pumpdog20]

If ND drops football (or drops it down), the university isn't going to be as revered as it is now. Sure, some of you will have a fancy degree, but that is only in the eye of the hiring manager.

Right now, the ND degree is special because of it's alumni base, and to a small account it's football fan base. Without football, the alumni base might stay the same, but some of you can ask answer the question, why did you attend ND. Was it because you're catholic, it's football tradition, or it's academics. I'm willing to bet that if you were honest with yourself, without the football team, and if you're not catholic, there's a high probability you would have chose somewhere else. Unless you're from the area, are your family are alumni.

Not keeping football with the big boys is a bad move.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Pretty bold post by a guy I have never heard of before.

Do you have a link? I'm curious who this piece of work is.

Because as much as Notre Dame fans want to think they’re different and so is the school, they aren’t and it isn’t.

Right. This guy clearly understands ND. What are the odds that he graduated from BC, NW or USC?

The rest of the stuff at Notre Dame — or any of the dozens of other schools that clamber up to the moral high ground — is all background music meant to push those that fuel the machine through losing seasons. It’s a lot easier to write that donation check after a 5-7 year — or after players are investigated for academic fraud, or after going on probation, or after a student is killed while taping practice in unsafe conditions, or after seeing your school accused of covering up sexual assaults by football players — if you can convince yourself that all the money you spend goes toward some noble, gold-flecked cause.

What a cynical as$hole. I have no illusions that ND is the perfect "City on a Hill", but it's a helluva lot more noble and special than this clown asserts.

If ND drops football (or drops it down), the university isn't going to be as revered as it is now. Sure, some of you will have a fancy degree, but that is only in the eye of the hiring manager.

Right now, the ND degree is special because of it's alumni base, and to a small account it's football fan base. Without football, the alumni base might stay the same, but some of you can ask answer the question, why did you attend ND. Was it because you're catholic, it's football tradition, or it's academics. I'm willing to bet that if you were honest with yourself, without the football team, and if you're not catholic, there's a high probability you would have chose somewhere else. Unless you're from the area, are your family are alumni.

Not keeping football with the big boys is a bad move.

Swarbrick has made it clear that no one at ND wants to form a separate league for real student-athletes. Competing at the highest level for national championships is a huge part of our tradition, and it would be a tremendous loss if we have to give that up.

That said, things are trending toward deregulation in CFB, which will lead to an inevitable arms race of funding. Here's a Swarbrick quote from a recent article on this topic:

“Most athletic budgets are somewhere around the 3-8 percent range” of the total university budget, according to Swarbrick. “The Stanfords of the world are not going to allow that 4 percent business unit [to] take them places they don't want to be.”

Similarly, if remaining competitive against the football factories requires ND to devote an ever-increasing portion of its budget to the Athletic Department, they simply aren't going to do it. Not because of some stubborn refusal to pay their athletes, but because allowing the Athletic Department to outgrow its importance relative to the University's educational mission would fatally compromise the integrity of the institution. We're all familiar with the shady unethical bullsh!t that occurs at football factories; and despite what the cynical as$hole above claims, ND really is different because that stuff doesn't slide in South Bend. But we could become like that if maintaining top-flight competitiveness requires selling out on our values. And that, gratefully, is a step too far for Swarbrick, Jenkins and the BoT.

As for the argument that "ND would be nothing without football," there's some truth to it, but it puts the cart before the horse. ND rose to national prominence in part because we fielded an elite football team, but mostly because there were millions of oppressed immigrant Catholics in this country who were tired of getting pushed around by their WASPy superiors. It was ND's working-class, Catholic character that so many identified with. So I'd argue that, while football is important, ND's identity as the premier Catholic university in this country is far more integral to its identity. And that's what Swarbrick is stating he will go to the mat in order to the protect.

 

[GowerND11]

Do you have a link? I'm curious who this piece of work is.



Right. This guy clearly understands ND. What are the odds that he graduated from BC, NW or USC?



What a cynical as$hole. I have no illusions that ND is the perfect "City on a Hill", but it's a helluva lot more noble and special than this clown asserts.



Swarbrick has made it clear that no one at ND wants to form a separate league for real student-athletes. Competing at the highest level for national championships is a huge part of our tradition, and it would be a tremendous loss if we have to give that up.

That said, things are trending toward deregulation in CFB, which will lead to an inevitable arms race of funding. Here's a Swarbrick quote from a recent article on this topic:



Similarly, if remaining competitive against the football factories requires ND to devote an ever-increasing portion of its budget to the Athletic Department, they simply aren't going to do it. Not because of some stubborn refusal to pay their athletes, but because allowing the Athletic Department to outgrow its importance relative to the University's educational mission would fatally compromise the integrity of the institution. We're all familiar with the shady unethical bullsh!t that occurs at football factories; and despite what the cynical as$hole above claims, ND really is different because that stuff doesn't slide in South Bend. But we could become like that if maintaining top-flight competitiveness requires selling out on our values. And that, gratefully, is a step too far for Swarbrick, Jenkins and the BoT.

As for the argument that "ND would be nothing without football," there's some truth to it, but it puts the cart before the horse. ND rose to national prominence in part because we fielded an elite football team, but mostly because there were millions of oppressed immigrant Catholics in this country who were tired of getting pushed around by their WASPy superiors. It was ND's working-class, Catholic character that so many identified with. So I'd argue that, while football is important, ND's identity as the premier Catholic university in this country is far more integral to its identity. And that's what Swarbrick is stating he will go to the mat in order to the protect.

 

[dales5050]

Do you have a link? I'm curious who this piece of work is.

Don’t listen to Notre Dame’s athletic director; the Irish will always have football | For The Win

Right. This guy clearly understands ND. What are the odds that he graduated from BC, NW or USC?

He went to Penn State. Says a lot.

What a cynical as$hole. I have no illusions that ND is the perfect "City on a Hill", but it's a helluva lot more noble and special than this clown asserts.

Echo - he went to State Penn.

Swarbrick has made it clear that no one at ND wants to form a separate league for real student-athletes. Competing at the highest level for national championships is a huge part of our tradition, and it would be a tremendous loss if we have to give that up.

That said, things are trending toward deregulation in CFB, which will lead to an inevitable arms race of funding. Here's a Swarbrick quote from a recent article on this topic:

Similarly, if remaining competitive against the football factories requires ND to devote an ever-increasing portion of its budget to the Athletic Department, they simply aren't going to do it. Not because of some stubborn refusal to pay their athletes, but because allowing the Athletic Department to outgrow its importance relative to the University's educational mission would fatally compromise the integrity of the institution. We're all familiar with the shady unethical bullsh!t that occurs at football factories; and despite what the cynical as$hole above claims, ND really is different because that stuff doesn't slide in South Bend. But we could become like that if maintaining top-flight competitiveness requires selling out on our values. And that, gratefully, is a step too far for Swarbrick, Jenkins and the BoT.

I agree 100%. I think there is some spin to this and some truth.

I think at some point the 'players' are going to win the union but they are going to be sad when they figure out the employers are not going to play ball. There might be 4-10 schools that go along with it but you can't really call yourself a National Champion in a 10 team league.

At the end of the day, I think people Swarbrick are 10 steps ahead of everyone else. ND is lucky to have him and ND will find itself in the winning position.

As for the argument that "ND would be nothing without football," there's some truth to it, but it puts the cart before the horse. ND rose to national prominence in part because we fielded an elite football team, but mostly because there were millions of oppressed immigrant Catholics in this country who were tired of getting pushed around by their WASPy superiors. It was ND's working-class, Catholic character that so many identified with. So I'd argue that, while football is important, ND's identity as the premier Catholic university in this country is far more integral to its identity. And that's what Swarbrick is stating he will go to the mat in order to the protect.

True but there are multiple Catholic Universities in the US but there is only one Notre Dame.

Not sure on the specifics but at one point the City of Buffalo was like 80% Catholic yet it wasn't Niagara University or Canisius College that got the 'I'm Catholic so that's my school' support. It was Notre Dame and I honestly think that was because of Football.

At least that's my experience in growing up as an Irish Catholic in Western New York.

 

[Irish Storm]

If and when that happens, most Irish fans will have to adopt another team to root for. It's not like the majority of Irish fans actually went to ND. Alumni account for probably 10 percent at best but try to act like us 90 percent subway fans don't matter.

Well if this happens, the Alumni can enjoy having a Belmont in Nashville type fan base because that's what ND will become - Belmont. Heck, maybe that's what ND wants anyway.

 

[Anchorman]

If and when that happens, most Irish fans will have to adopt another team to root for. It's not like the majority of Irish fans actually went to ND. Alumni account for probably 10 percent at best but try to act like us 90 percent subway fans don't matter.

Well if this happens, the Alumni can enjoy having a Belmont in Nashville type fan base because that's what ND will become - Belmont. Heck, maybe that's what ND wants anyway.

More like a Georgetown. Jenkins, etc. enjoy the athletics, but make no mistake--they couldn't care less about their direction if it comes at the expense of the academic mission and its integrity.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Not sure on the specifics but at one point the City of Buffalo was like 80% Catholic yet it wasn't Niagara University or Canisius College that got the 'I'm Catholic so that's my school' support. It was Notre Dame and I honestly think that was because of Football.

No doubt. ND rose to national prominence because it was a highly visible symbol of Catholic excellence in a very WASPy country. Our football team was a huge part of that "excellence". But ND's Catholic character was at least as important. Otherwise we'd have just been another small midwestern school with a football program. With the way things are developing, ND may soon have to choose between its Catholic values and top-flight football. Let's hope it never comes to that.

If and when that happens, most Irish fans will have to adopt another team to root for. It's not like the majority of Irish fans actually went to ND. Alumni account for probably 10 percent at best but try to act like us 90 percent subway fans don't matter.

Who said the subway fans don't count? As I mentioned above, few (if any) would view ND opting out of top-flight football as anything but a tragedy. And I would not blame any subway fan who chose to root for a different team if that happened. But it's especially important for such fans to understand that: (1) CFB is trending toward deregulation; (2) which will require teams to spend a lot more money to remain competitive; and (3) that's not something ND's current leadership is willing to do. So, in the interest of ND football, I guess we should all be lobbying against this semi-pro bullsh!t everyone is pushing recently.

Well if this happens, the Alumni can enjoy having a Belmont in Nashville type fan base because that's what ND will become - Belmont. Heck, maybe that's what ND wants anyway.

That is definitely not the case.

 

[zelezo vlk]

There are many subway fans who have connections to ND and would still root for the boys to be kicking ass on the football field. The opponents would just change from Bama Southern Cal and Meat Chicken to the Ivies.

 

[wizards8507]

As for the argument that "ND would be nothing without football," there's some truth to it, but it puts the cart before the horse. ND rose to national prominence in part because we fielded an elite football team, but mostly because there were millions of oppressed immigrant Catholics in this country who were tired of getting pushed around by their WASPy superiors. It was ND's working-class, Catholic character that so many identified with. So I'd argue that, while football is important, ND's identity as the premier Catholic university in this country is far more integral to its identity. And that's what Swarbrick is stating he will go to the mat in order to the protect.

To add: Notre Dame rising to prominence based on football is irrelevant to the question of whether is needs football to stay prominent in 2015. Slavery was a driving force of America's early economic development, but we've been just fine without it over the last 150 years.

 

[wizards8507]

Who said the subway fans don't count?

They're pretty far down on the priority list. If forced to choose, the administration will (and should) do what's in the best interest of the students first and foremost, followed by the alumni, faculty, and staff in some order. Football fans are important but not at the expense of those other groups.

(1) CFB is trending toward deregulation; (2) which will require teams to spend a lot more money to remain competitive;

I'm not so sure about that. I think we're in a bit of a "mutually assured destruction" situation. Even once the NCAA is out of the way, the Alabamas and Oregons of the world are going to be in somewhat of a staring contest, not wanting to blink first and actually PAY the athletes. NCAA or no NCAA, I fully expect collusion on the part of the top programs who don't want to get in a bidding war with one another. Plus, everyone answers to someone at some point. The NDs and the "real schools" of the world need to speak to their own self-imposed standards and priorities, while the public land-grant universities will eventually start to anger the all-mighty taxpayer.

 

[irishfan]

There are many subway fans who have connections to ND and would still root for the boys to be kicking ass on the football field. The opponents would just change from Bama Southern Cal and Meat Chicken to the Ivies.

I didn't go to ND. My dad, uncle, and several other family members did, and I started going to games every year starting when I was 7 years old....but I just wont have close to the same enthusiasm if it ever came to ND rolling out MAC-level talent and playing all high academic schools. I know that scenario may be a long shot, but it's a frightening one for me....and I think one that would eventually negatively affect the University in the long run. I really hope ND is willing to "play ball" if it ever comes to football/basketball athletes getting a reasonable and regulated stipend. I don't want it to be complete anarchy (and I'm perfectly fine with the current status quo with the NCAA), but I don't think there is anything wrong with paying the players the equivalent of what a part-time job bring in.

If that were ever to happen, does anyone know what the deal would be in regards to Title IX and other non-profit sports? Would D-1 soccer players earn $0 despite putting in the same hours for example?

 

[Irish Storm]

More like a Georgetown. Jenkins, etc. enjoy the athletics, but make no mistake--they couldn't care less about their direction if it comes at the expense of the academic mission and its integrity.

Like Georgetown....if you took away their marquis basketball program.

 

[Cali_domer]

I didn't go to ND. My dad, uncle, and several other family members did, and I started going to games every year starting when I was 7 years old....but I just wont have close to the same enthusiasm if it ever came to ND rolling out MAC-level talent and playing all high academic schools. I know that scenario may be a long shot, but it's a frightening one for me....and I think one that would eventually negatively affect the University in the long run. I really hope ND is willing to "play ball" if it ever comes to football/basketball athletes getting a reasonable and regulated stipend. I don't want it to be complete anarchy (and I'm perfectly fine with the current status quo with the NCAA), but I don't think there is anything wrong with paying the players the equivalent of what a part-time job bring in.

If that were ever to happen, does anyone know what the deal would be in regards to Title IX and other non-profit sports? Would D-1 soccer players earn $0 despite putting in the same hours for example?

Stipend we will pay, unionized employees not so much.

 

[kmoose]

I think we're in a bit of a "mutually assured destruction" situation. Even once the NCAA is out of the way, the Alabamas and Oregons of the world are going to be in somewhat of a staring contest, not wanting to blink first and actually PAY the athletes. NCAA or no NCAA..

You are obviously not that familiar with Oregon. The Athletic Department at Oregon is largely subsidized by one Phil Knight, CEO of Nike. And he is a businessman that has no compunction with spending millions of dollars if he thinks he will receive a quality return on those dollars. And being the media darling of College Football is considered a quality return, in Oregon. They will bend any rule, and spend any amount of money, to get to the point and to stay there.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

I'm not so sure about that. I think we're in a bit of a "mutually assured destruction" situation. Even once the NCAA is out of the way, the Alabamas and Oregons of the world are going to be in somewhat of a staring contest, not wanting to blink first and actually PAY the athletes. NCAA or no NCAA, I fully expect collusion on the part of the top programs who don't want to get in a bidding war with one another. Plus, everyone answers to someone at some point. The NDs and the "real schools" of the world need to speak to their own self-imposed standards and priorities, while the public land-grant universities will eventually start to anger the all-mighty taxpayer.

I hope you're right, but as for the bolded, the trend is obvious. Look at what has happened with coaching salaries and facility upgrades over the last decade. Perhaps taxpayers will eventually get tired of subsidizing CFB, but they haven't wised up to NFL owners fleecing them into paying for new stadiums yet, so I'm not hopeful.

 

[MNIrishman]

I hope you're right, but as for the bolded, the trend is obvious. Look at what has happened with coaching salaries and facility upgrades over the last decade. Perhaps taxpayers will eventually get tired of subsidizing CFB, but they haven't wised up to NFL owners fleecing them into paying for new stadiums yet, so I'm not hopeful.

They have. Politicians in MN worked like hell to avoid a referendum for that exact reason. The stadium was and is extremely unpopular.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

They have. Politicians in MN worked like hell to avoid a referendum for that exact reason. The stadium was and is extremely unpopular.

And good on them. But my understanding is that in this (and in many other commendable ways), Minnesota is an outlier.

 

[phgreek]

It's not up to Swarbrick. I talked to Fr. John about this possibility last month and learned that the entire university administration is united here.

Precisely what I suspected. They'd be right to take the reigns here, as this issue is one you have exactly one opportunity to decide who you'll be. It is a defining moment, and those institutions who do not seriously consider the implications may quickly find themselves in a world they did not intend.

 

[Redbar]

People love to pick on attorneys and with good reason in many cases, but I have found that reporters/journalists are a formidable rival to the title of being cynical vultures. Just reading the excerpts in the OP, makes me wonder how someone becomes so jaded and certain about things they clearly have no actual knowledge of. Poor guy is trying to sell us on the beauty of win at all costs while demonizing and essentially calling those who try to uphold another model disingenuous liars. It takes a certain type of prick.

 

[dshans]

... but they haven't wised up to NFL owners fleecing them into paying for new stadiums yet, so I'm not hopeful.

They have. Politicians in MN worked like hell to avoid a referendum for that exact reason. The stadium was and is extremely unpopular.

NFL, NHL, NBA, MLS, et cetera et cetera owners continue to find work-arounds to hang a hefty bag of the cost of these playgrounds around the necks of local taxpayers. Public monies expended for a state land grant college with 40,000 or so students (with no real skin in the game) is a different matter.

As I remember (faulty I'm sure) the open-air Metropolitan stadium, as a as a community facility and inducement [The Minneapolis Millers minor league baseball team played at Met Stadium from 1956 to 1960. The Minnesota Twins and the Minnesota Vikings then played at the "Met" from 1961 to 1981. The North American Soccer League soccer team Minnesota Kicks also played there from 1976 to 1981] at an initial cost of 8.5 million (73.7 in 2015 dollars) it was an absolute bargain compared to the 1 BILLION (now 1.7 Billion and without a doubt climbing) price tag to replace the $55 Million Metrodome.

The initial deal has Zygi Wolf on the hook for something like $476 mil. The rest is an albatross weighing heavily primarily on the residents of a core area of dead center Minneapolis. I am among the many unfortunate sons.

The state legislature (from both sides of the aisle) and the Democratic Governor side-stepped, then back stepped to trample and over-ride a City Charter Amendment (with an 85% approval) to require a referendum to authorize anything more than $50,000 dollars in public funds for and private sports facility.
I am now paying higher property, sales and entertainment (read: dining and drinking) taxes to help pay the likes of Adrian Peterson.

Minneapolis, a designated small market, now has state-of-the-art (currently – who knows how long that will last) NBA, CFB, NFL, MLB and soon at a venue-near-you MSL facility. All greatly on the backs of residents with apparently no say in the matter.

 

[Irish YJ]

If only taxes were limited to roads, defense, edumacation, and exploration....

 

[irishtrain]

I didn't go to ND. My dad, uncle, and several other family members did, and I started going to games every year starting when I was 7 years old....but I just wont have close to the same enthusiasm if it ever came to ND rolling out MAC-level talent and playing all high academic schools. I know that scenario may be a long shot, but it's a frightening one for me....and I think one that would eventually negatively affect the University in the long run. I really hope ND is willing to "play ball" if it ever comes to football/basketball athletes getting a reasonable and regulated stipend. I don't want it to be complete anarchy (and I'm perfectly fine with the current status quo with the NCAA), but I don't think there is anything wrong with paying the players the equivalent of what a part-time job bring in.

If that were ever to happen, does anyone know what the deal would be in regards to Title IX and other non-profit sports? Would D-1 soccer players earn $0 despite putting in the same hours for example?

As long as they're on TV I'll be watching-in many ways I like what I hear.

 

[Black Irish]

You are obviously not that familiar with Oregon. The Athletic Department at Oregon is largely subsidized by one Phil Knight, CEO of Nike. And he is a businessman that has no compunction with spending millions of dollars if he thinks he will receive a quality return on those dollars. And being the media darling of College Football is considered a quality return, in Oregon. They will bend any rule, and spend any amount of money, to get to the point and to stay there.

Yeesh, I hope (and I believe) that Oregon is an exception here. The last thing we need is for paying student-athletes to have the side effect of top football schools needing uber-rich patrons to help fund their bidding wars for talent. Money already talks plenty in CFB, if this is what paying the players will lead to, ugh.

 

[dales5050]

Like Georgetown....if you took away their marquis basketball program.

They are not the same.

The original point I made was that Notre Dame no longer needs a 'money source' like Football to move the school forward on its academic mission. This was not the case 40 years ago but it is the case today.

The current endowment is just under $10B. There are about 15 schools with endowments hovering around $10B and above. Harvard has one that's about $35B. Yale, Stanford and Princeton are north of $20B. Georgetown has an endowment around $1.5B.

Put it another way. Malpass and his team provided an AMAZING 19.7% return in 2014 and has averaged a return of 11% over the last 10 years.

Even if you factor just a 5% return for the next 10 years, you're looking at the endowment getting to $16.2B. At 10% it's 25.9B.

At 5% over 10 years...that's at least $628M a year. The NBC contract means or NCAA payouts mean nothing when you compare the two. Notre Dame would have THE best athletic facilities for club sports and be well on their way to becoming a scholarship only university for every student in about 20 years.

 

[RDU Irish]

They are not the same.

The original point I made was that Notre Dame no longer needs a 'money source' like Football to move the school forward on its academic mission. This was not the case 40 years ago but it is the case today.

The current endowment is just under $10B. There are about 15 schools with endowments hovering around $10B and above. Harvard has one that's about $35B. Yale, Stanford and Princeton are north of $20B. Georgetown has an endowment around $1.5B.

Put it another way. Malpass and his team provided an AMAZING 19.7% return in 2014 and has averaged a return of 11% over the last 10 years.

Even if you factor just a 5% return for the next 10 years, you're looking at the endowment getting to $16.2B. At 10% it's 25.9B.

At 5% over 10 years...that's at least $628M a year. The NBC contract means or NCAA payouts mean nothing when you compare the two. Notre Dame would have THE best athletic facilities for club sports and be well on their way to becoming a scholarship only university for every student in about 20 years.

Malpass will go down in history as one of the best things ever to happen to Notre Dame. He can largely be thanked for the 100% coverage of "need based" scholarships (with the remaining credit going to the donors and fund raisers who filled his tank with gas).

5% of the endowment is earmarked for spending each year - that is $500 million per year currently. That is $50k per student, you can see why all need based aid is covered these days and they can't stop building new shit. It would be commendable if they would stop applying grants after federal aid is exhausted. Max it out at $15k a year versus $23k currently would be meaningful jab at the federal student loan mess people are facing.

 

[wizards8507]

Like Georgetown....if you took away their marquis basketball program.

Since dshans is slow on the trigger today... you mean marquee, as in "leading" or "preeminent." "Marquis" is a French title of nobility ranking above Count but below Duke.