Writer David Hale of ESPN penned a lengthy and somewhat gloomy economic outlook for college football’s Group of 5. The story was filled with details about how even the best G5 teams have to squeeze nickels where they can.
My first instinct after reading that was that USF doesn’t seem to have many of the problems other non-Power 4 athletic programs face. The university has invested heavily in athletics, with 21 varsity sports – including beach volleyball and a women’s lacrosse team that will participate in its first season starting in February.
The Lee Roy Selmon Athletics Center will undergo a major renovation and upgrades at the Corbett Soccer Stadium and the Muma Basketball Center lobby, player lounges, and locker rooms.
This isn’t the look of a struggling athletic program.
However, there are some basic realities USF will face going forward.
Last March, USA Today published a list of revenues and expenses for 232 athletic programs from the 2022 fiscal year. USF was 63rd overall with $56.1 million in revenue, second in the AAC to the $62.1 million Memphis brought in.
For comparison, Ohio State ranked first with $251.6 million, and in the 12-team football playoff world, that gap is likely to widen.
There’s no guarantee that the Power-4 conferences plan on expanding any time soon, which could put a squeeze on smaller conferences. There is grumbling among some power conference members about the requirement that reserves a G5 spot in the expanded playoffs.
Multiple Power 4 athletic directors told ESPN that the industry was leaving money on the table by handing a playoff spot to a program unlikely to draw viewership or even play a competitive game.
It didn’t help that G5 playoff representative Boise State was soundly beaten 31-14 by Penn State in a quarterfinal matchup.
American Athletic Conference Commissioner Tim Pernetti has aggressively sought new revenue streams for member teams. He has floated sewing advertisements on player uniforms and selling the AAC naming rights. He has also tried to build momentum for a separate G5 playoff, but interest in that seems lukewarm.
USF clearly has aspirations to join one of the power conferences, but that pathway hasn’t opened yet. Many around the Bulls assumed FSU and Clemson would leave the Atlantic Coast Conference, opening a place at the big-boy table. However, there’s no guarantee Florida State will find a new home, which means things are at a standstill now.
USF has much to offer a new conference – market size, academic prestige, top-shelf facilities, etc. But with college athletics in flux now and the rich schools wanting even more of the pie, all USF can do is keep building while waiting to see what happens next.