Five Takes – Settling into FSU’s new financial reality

The writing has been on the proverbial wall for a few years. Florida State athletics is mired in a financial bear market with no end in sight.

Even before the coronavirus pandemic, the Seminoles were struggling to make ends meet -- with Seminole Boosters being forced to liquidate assets to shore up the budget. And while the financials for the 2019-20 academic year have not yet been released, the projected losses for that year are expected to be worse.

This is largely due to another disappointing football season and the cancellation of spring sports. Making matters worse, the ACC continues to produce far less revenue than several other Power 5 conferences. And with limited or no fans in the stands this coming football season due to concerns about the virus, FSU’s coffers will almost certainly be in the red for 2020-21.

* Schoffel: Before COVID, wild spending already put college sports in peril

During a recent Board of Trustees meeting, it was reported that FSU could face estimated athletic department losses of $27 million for the fall and spring semesters the coming year. That is on top of $4 million in estimated losses due to 2020 spring sports cancellations.

How can Seminole athletics survive this uncertain future? Here are some thoughts on FSU’s new financial reality and what the long-term ramifications could be for football and athletics overall.

Acceptance is the final stage of grief, and Florida State’s administration, the Seminole Boosters and fans need to quickly move past denial, anger, bargaining and depression.

Denial: Some fans are still convinced that the ever-growing financial disparity between FSU and its closest competitors isn’t a big deal. The main argument I hear is that Florida State has thrived for decades despite not having the same resources compared to schools like Florida and Georgia, and that the current downturn is no different. The problem with that logic is the differences between these schools is no longer a few hundred thousand dollars, or even a couple million. In addition to having stronger donor bases, these programs are now receiving tens of millions more than ACC schools in conference distributions. During the most recently reported cycle, the average SEC team received over $16 million more than ACC schools, and the Big 10 schools got $28 million more. In addition to hiring and maintaining top-notch coaching staffs, this additional revenue is being used to build state-of-the-art football complexes and amass huge support staffs. These expensive additions make a huge difference when it comes to recruiting and building elite football programs.