fwiw, excerpts from al.com:
...Realizing that additional full cost-of-attendance costs were right around the corner, Chris Massaro knew he needed to bolster his financial coffers.
Best way to do it? A $1.5 million check from the University of Alabama.
"We scheduled Alabama as an additional guarantee game in anticipation of the expenses this year to give us another year to buffer ourselves not knowing what all the autonomy legislation might bring for us," the Middle Tennessee State athletic director said. "The revenue generation for Group of 5 conferences is a critical piece for us." .....
...MTSU, a member of Conference USA, isn't affected by the Power 5's measure, but is still expected to offer cost of attendance to student-athletes. Smaller conferences like C-USA, the Sun Belt and Mid-American Conference have all vowed to offer the mandate in order to remain competitive options for top student-athletes. Schools in these conferences don't benefit from major television rights deals like the SEC or Big Ten, forcing them to find alternative revenue sources.
Big payout games are the easiest way for smaller schools to jump-start their bank accounts.
There are, of course, other benefits to playing Alabama. Massaro guarantees his school good publicity and television time when playing the SEC school. It's also an easy road trip for Blue Raiders fans over to Tuscaloosa.....
This post was edited on 1/21 3:47 PM by SpaceRaider
Why Middle Tennessee needs to play Alabama
...Realizing that additional full cost-of-attendance costs were right around the corner, Chris Massaro knew he needed to bolster his financial coffers.
Best way to do it? A $1.5 million check from the University of Alabama.
"We scheduled Alabama as an additional guarantee game in anticipation of the expenses this year to give us another year to buffer ourselves not knowing what all the autonomy legislation might bring for us," the Middle Tennessee State athletic director said. "The revenue generation for Group of 5 conferences is a critical piece for us." .....
...MTSU, a member of Conference USA, isn't affected by the Power 5's measure, but is still expected to offer cost of attendance to student-athletes. Smaller conferences like C-USA, the Sun Belt and Mid-American Conference have all vowed to offer the mandate in order to remain competitive options for top student-athletes. Schools in these conferences don't benefit from major television rights deals like the SEC or Big Ten, forcing them to find alternative revenue sources.
Big payout games are the easiest way for smaller schools to jump-start their bank accounts.
There are, of course, other benefits to playing Alabama. Massaro guarantees his school good publicity and television time when playing the SEC school. It's also an easy road trip for Blue Raiders fans over to Tuscaloosa.....
This post was edited on 1/21 3:47 PM by SpaceRaider
Why Middle Tennessee needs to play Alabama
