UConn’s first athletic annual report shows spending gap narrowing, highlights successes

The UConn athletic department, which has been undeniably successful in many fields but has run up large spending gaps, highlighted a narrowing of its deficit and expansion of its achievements in an annual report released Wednesday, the first document of its kind from the university.

“The department is engaged in an ongoing effort to both increase revenue and implement efficiencies in order to reduce the level of university support needed to operate,” AD David Benedict wrote, in an introductory letter, “allowing athletics to achieve greater long-term fiscal sustainability. To that end, we are pleased to report that athletics was able to reduce the level of university support from last year by nearly $20 million.”

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UConn’s athletic deficit grew to $53 million for fiscal year 2022, in the budget released in January. Most Division I schools, especially those fielding FBS football, operate at a deficit, though generally in the $18-20 million range, and this includes schools with large revenue streams from “power five” conferences.

At UConn, where FBS football operates as an independent, the revenue from the basketball-centric Big East and its independent TV contract is a fraction of what Big Ten schools, for instance, bring in.

However, the move from the American Athletic Conference to the Big East did ease some of the travel expenses and that has begun to show up. UConn spent $82.3 million to operate its athletics program in 2023, which is $7.4 million less than in 2022. Inflating the negative numbers in 2022 was the $13 million payout to former men’s basketball coach Kevin Ollie, who won a contract dispute in arbitration. With that off the books, UConn ran a deficit of about $35 million in 2023, raising $47 million of the $82 million it spent.

The deficit, then, is reduced roughly $18 million from its 2022 level, and $12 million from 2021.

This is in line with goals set forth in 2020, when, during the pandemic, Benedict was tasked with reducing his department’s reliance on the school subsidy by 25 percent, or $10 million, by 2023. UConn’s deficit was $43.5 million in 2020, $47.2 million in 2021, with the added costs, and revenue losses due to the pandemic figured in. It has been $40 million or over since the mid-2010s.

The release of an “annual report,” similar in style to what a corporation might do, could be seen as an effort for the university to get out in front of the annual stories about the budget, which is released in cold, uninterpreted numbers each January. The annual report stressed the money that the athletic department sends back to the school, or to other state agencies and businesses.

“Approximately $16 million of overall costs are dollars transferred within the university and to other state agencies such as tuition and housing payments for student-athletes and rental fees at (Rentschler Field) and XL Center,” the report says.

For example, UConn spends $7.5 million to play its home games off campus. This became a point of contention earlier this year when there was news of state cuts to UConn funding, and President Radenka Maric talking off keeping UConn sporting events, men’s and women’s basketball and men’s hockey, on campus.

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The new football season began Thursday night with a game against NC State at Rentschler Field, where roughly 35,000 tickets have been sold. The annual report asserts that UConn’s athletic events generated $150 million in statewide economic output. Visiting a recent football practice, Gov. Ned Lamont said UConn did not have worry about its athletic budget’s sustainability.

“We’re here to support UConn,” Lamont said on Aug. 8. “They don’t have to worry about that (the athletic deficit). If they get into a conference and it brings in more revenue, God bless ’em. … We have women’s professional basketball, we don’t really have big professional teams like other states, UConn is our team. That’s our state team. We cheer for our state team, that’s important. They did us proud in basketball last year, they’ll do us proud in football. I love what’s going on here.”

Of the $82.3 UConn’s athletic department spent, the largest share was on scholarships, full or partial, or financial aid for 466 student-athletes, money athletics sends back to the university.

Meanwhile, UConn’s athletic payroll in 2023 was $36.7 million, up $1.3 million from 2022, a figure that will likely go up in 2024 with men’s basketball coach Dan Hurley signing a new, six-year, $32.1 million contract following the national championship.

The athletic budget picture could change dramatically if UConn were to join one of the shrinking number of power five conferences. The Big 12’s recent expansion bypassed UConn in favor of schools from the crumbling Pac 12. The ACC appears in the market to add teams, but reports have indicated the remaining Pac 12 teams are at the front of the line.

Much of the annual report highlighted UConn achievements, which are uniquely broad based. It was one of only eight schools to have NCAA tournament teams in men’s and women’s basketball, baseball and a bowl-bound football team in 2023. UConn was the only school to have first-round draft picks in the WNBA, NBA and NHL. Huskies teams won eight Big East championships, and reached the national rankings in seven different sports.

In the classroom, 67.4 percent of UConn’s athletes carried a 3.0 GPA or higher, including 52 with 4.0. UConn’s graduation success rate, the number of student athletes entering in 2016 earning degrees, was at 94 percent. There are 50 enrolled in graduate programs. UConn’s most recent Academic Progress Rate was 985, well above NCAA standards to avoid any penalties.

“UConn’s investments in Athletics reflect the unique strength that an athletic program can have in building global awareness for our institution, generating alumni and donor support,” wrote Benedict, who took over at UConn in 2016. “… Interest among prospective students, and raising the overall profile of the university nationally and globally.”