NCAA officials get paid millions; Big Ten Commissioner made 20 million
The NCAA gives a student athlete a free education, but a student athlete risks a life time of injuries for a degree, while the people overtop of the action get millions of dollars.
We already know coaches get paid millions and millions of dollars, but USA Today Sports obtained the NCAA’s new federal tax return and it was interesting.
NCAA president Mark Emmert made more than $1.9 million in compensation during 2015. Of course, that’s nothing compared to Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany, who is due $20 million in bonuses.
Here’s a statement by Minnesota president Eric Kaler, chair of the Big Ten council of Presidents and Chancellors to USA Today.
“Commissioner Delany has provided invaluable leadership for Big Ten member institutions while delivering first-in-class performance during a time of great transformation in college athletics. He has not only successfully balanced the missions of academic achievement, student-athlete development and athletic success, he has successfully developed the resources necessary to strategically position the conference for success well into the future. His compensation is market-competitive, based on an independent third-party analysis, and reflects the value and impact of his leadership.”
Ten other NCAA executives made at least $415,000. It sounds like players should be getting paid to me. Here is another piece from the USA Today:
- Outside legal costs of nearly $33.5 million. That’s about $1.5 million more than the NCAA had estimated when it released its financial statement in March. The NCAA has now reported a combined total of $72.4 million in legal costs on its past three tax returns.
- Advertising and promotion spending of $13.7 million — up from $6.3 million in 2015 and $1.2 million in 2014. In a statement, Osburn said of these increased expenses: “To further support student-athletes and the membership, the Board of Governors approved the Pathway to Opportunity initiative, which is a framework for decisions and communications focused on the NCAA’s core values of academics, wellbeing and fairness.” The campaign includes a variety of written, video and social media content.
- Lobbying expenses of $410,000 — down from $560,000 in 2015, but still well ahead of the $155,000 in 2014 and $160,000 in 2013.
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