[robwwilliams]

Spurious. Football coaches are not paid by overhead dollars. but mainly by alumni that like football wins.

No, when a major for-profit company outsources research they pay way more than a 50% “markup”. Unless they go to a research university: then they pay much less, and just like the federal government they are getting a fine deal.

Yes, some rich foundations (Gates, Ellison etc) exploit the situation and do not pay full overhead costs: They are essentially mooching on the research institutions and the federal government.

[cudgy]

So you don’t think that some of the money that gets sent to athletic directors to build fancy stadiums and pay for multimillion dollar coaches would’ve gone possibly to research facilities if those athletic departments didn’t exist?

[robwwilliams]

No, I do not. Most health science centers do not have football teams ;-). I am at UTHSC in Memphis and I can assure you we do not send money to support the Vols in Knoxville. Worlds apart.

[icameron]

Athletic programs are a net profit center at many D1 football schools.

[cudgy]

Really? Then why do they charge students athletic fees? Why do stadiums and athletic centers receive government grants and subsidies?

Here is a huge list of donations from various groups to an athletic endowment at the University of Alabama. Much of this money could have and would have been donated to schools directly for research and academic purposes instead the athletic foundations.

Alabama is one of the most successful Division 1 football programs in the nation. If these programs are so profitable, why do they need so much money for these endowments? And why all the money from governments and grants? Doesn’t add up.

https://crimsontidefoundation.org/ways-to-support/Endowments...

[wredcoll]

> Here is a huge list of donations from various groups to an athletic endowment at the University of Alabama. Much of this money could have and would have been donated to schools directly for research and academic purposes instead the athletic foundations.

Uh, what? Why would that happen, exactly?

[cudgy]

Uh … basic deduction and simple set theory.

Because donations are made for tax purposes and virtue signaling … someone is going to get this money. Many of the donors are alumni and will donate money to the school. It was already targeted to the university athletic departments. It’s not a big stretch for it to be donated to another university department that has a direct academic role.

[HDThoreaun]

> someone is going to get this money

One of the options is “the donors kids” here. Donating money never leads to more savings than it costs, people donate because they support what they’re donating too. Sports boosters care about sports, not academics.

[ls612]

The places paying their football coaches big bucks have football programs that are net revenue generating.