BCS Windfall Set For Academic Development
Pete Sampson
The success of Charlie Weis will help cut down his view.
When Weis walks onto the balcony attached to his office inside the new Guglielmino Center, the Notre Dame head coach enjoys an elevated perspective of campus, the Golden Dome and the Basilica. By next fall he'll also have a view of the Jordan Hall of Science, a 201,782-square-foot, state of the art research building just west of the Guglielmino Center that's under construction and scheduled to be completed next year.
Much of the more than $14 million Notre Dame earns from its Fiesta Bowl appearance on Jan. 2 against Ohio State will go toward the completion of the science center as well as funding student scholarships and adding to the University's library system.
"We're, of course, pleased that our team has competed at such a high level this year and is being rewarded with this bowl opportunity, but we're also very grateful that the funds from our participation will go to address such important needs for the academic mission of the University," said Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. in statement.
Jenkins admitted that for much of the past seven years the economy has kept the non-salary portions of Notre Dame's budget flat. But the $14.5 million payout from the Bowl Championship Series, the final year Notre Dame can grab an entire share under the current BCS agreement, gives the University a boon of flexibility.
"These funds from the BCS are being made available at a very opportune time," he said.
Under next year's BCS agreement Notre Dame will receive only $4.5 million, the share currently devoted to a conference's second participant such as Ohio State, when the Irish earn an invite to the Fiesta, Sugar, Orange or Rose bowls. In seasons Notre Dame doesn't qualify for the BCS, the University will receive a $1.3 million check plus what revenue it receives from its secondary bowl trip.
Notre Dame agreed to the new BCS contract late last year. The new deal runs through the 2010 bowl season.
According to the University, bowl revenue has produced more than $69 million for Notre Dame in the past quarter century, with those funds, combined the NBC contract, supporting more than 2,000 scholarships.
Notre Dame final's eight-figure windfall from the BCS could have gone to pay off part of Weis' new 10-year contract, which will reportedly pay him between $3-4 million annually, but as was the case the last time the Irish trekked to the Fiesta Bowl after the 2000 season, the revenue will go to the University's academic development.
Even if that cuts down on the head coach's view.
Pete Sampson
The success of Charlie Weis will help cut down his view.
When Weis walks onto the balcony attached to his office inside the new Guglielmino Center, the Notre Dame head coach enjoys an elevated perspective of campus, the Golden Dome and the Basilica. By next fall he'll also have a view of the Jordan Hall of Science, a 201,782-square-foot, state of the art research building just west of the Guglielmino Center that's under construction and scheduled to be completed next year.
Much of the more than $14 million Notre Dame earns from its Fiesta Bowl appearance on Jan. 2 against Ohio State will go toward the completion of the science center as well as funding student scholarships and adding to the University's library system.
"We're, of course, pleased that our team has competed at such a high level this year and is being rewarded with this bowl opportunity, but we're also very grateful that the funds from our participation will go to address such important needs for the academic mission of the University," said Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. in statement.
Jenkins admitted that for much of the past seven years the economy has kept the non-salary portions of Notre Dame's budget flat. But the $14.5 million payout from the Bowl Championship Series, the final year Notre Dame can grab an entire share under the current BCS agreement, gives the University a boon of flexibility.
"These funds from the BCS are being made available at a very opportune time," he said.
Under next year's BCS agreement Notre Dame will receive only $4.5 million, the share currently devoted to a conference's second participant such as Ohio State, when the Irish earn an invite to the Fiesta, Sugar, Orange or Rose bowls. In seasons Notre Dame doesn't qualify for the BCS, the University will receive a $1.3 million check plus what revenue it receives from its secondary bowl trip.
Notre Dame agreed to the new BCS contract late last year. The new deal runs through the 2010 bowl season.
According to the University, bowl revenue has produced more than $69 million for Notre Dame in the past quarter century, with those funds, combined the NBC contract, supporting more than 2,000 scholarships.
Notre Dame final's eight-figure windfall from the BCS could have gone to pay off part of Weis' new 10-year contract, which will reportedly pay him between $3-4 million annually, but as was the case the last time the Irish trekked to the Fiesta Bowl after the 2000 season, the revenue will go to the University's academic development.
Even if that cuts down on the head coach's view.