Athletic Department Projects Balanced Budget in FY '24
6/15/2023 4:45:00 PM | General
The University of Michigan Athletic Department reported a slight operating budget surplus for the fiscal year 2023, as presented by Warde Manuel, the Donald R. Shepherd Director of Athletics, on Thursday (June 15) to the Board of Regents.
For the current fiscal year, the athletic department projects a slight operating surplus of $0.2 million based on operating revenues of $215.1 million and operating expenses of $214.9 million. Revenues increased notably in spectator admissions due to the number of home football games, while expenses increased significantly in certain areas due to inflation.
Looking ahead to the 2023-2024 operating budget, the athletic department projects a slight decrease in total operating revenues and total operating expenses due to various factors.
Elements of the new budget are as follows:
• Spectator admissions revenues are projected to decrease by $8.7 million due to a decrease in home football games, from an eight-game schedule in 2022 to a seven-game home schedule in 2023, and combined with a commitment to maintain current admission ticket pricing.
• A projected increase in Big Ten Conference distributions will not fully offset that revenue decrease. Those are projected to increase by $5.2 million, primarily due to an increase in television revenues.
• In fiscal year 2023, inflation has contributed significantly to the growth in expenses. Increases of 15 percent or more have impacted large expense-line items such as team travel, recruiting and student-athlete meals. These increased costs are carried forward into the fiscal year 2024 budget.
• Included in operating expenses is a $1.0 million transfer to a deferred maintenance fund. The deferred maintenance fund is used to provide for major repair and rehabilitation projects for athletic facilities. The Athletic Department expects to continue setting aside additional funds for this purpose in future years.
As part of the presentation to the board, Manuel also shared some of the department's top achievements on and off the field.
Michigan had another strong year, with nearly 500 (491) student-athletes earning Academic All-Big Ten Conference compared to 507 in the previous year, 499 in the year prior, and 405 in the 2019-20 academic year. Overall, nearly 700Â (695) of approximately 950 student-athletes earned a grade-point average of 3.0 or better during the academic year.
Through June 2, 44 student-athletes earned All-America honors during the year. In addition, Michigan had 116 student-athletes earn All-Big Ten honors, with 35 student-athletes winning individual conference championships after 24 earned titles the previous season.
Michigan set a single-season and Big Ten member record with 13 team conference championships, again leading all Big Ten Conference schools in that category. U-M also won 13 team championships during the 2021-22 season, although one came from outside Big Ten conference play. The Wolverines entered the spring season in sixth place in the LEARFIELD Directors' Cup standings thanks to 13 top-20 national finishes.
