Boise State University athletics department officials reported a looming budget deficit of up to $18 million at Thursday’s State Board of Education meeting.
According to Boise Dev, athletics director Jeramiah Dickey cited two main sources for the deficit: revenue sharing and the school’s move to the Pac-12. However, he was quick to note that the university’s reserve funds would be sufficient to cover the deficit.
Last fiscal year the Broncos only faced a $2 million deficit, aided by a concert hosted at Albertsons Stadium and a massive budget surplus from two years ago.
“We are falling behind,” said Dickey, noting that last year Boise State spent $10 million in revenue sharing with athletes, and if the school wants to compete with other top programs, that budget item is expected to increase significantly. Even if Boise State incrementally increases its revenue sharing, it still won’t come close to the $22 million cap established by the NCAA.
The school’s financial woes are also attributed to a recently settled a lawsuit with the Mountain West Conference for an undisclosed sum after the conference sued the Broncos and four other schools for moving to the Pac-12. Reporting by the San Diego Union-Tribune suggests that each university paid $10 million, which would line up with the increase in Boise State athletics department’s operating expenses.
Despite Dickey’s note that the university could cover the deficit with reserve funds, like many other DI programs have done, the State Board executive director pushed back, noting that the athletics budget is not a “structural deficit at the broader university.”
“In the short term, we are looking at how we increase revenues with that type of activity,” said Stacy Pearson, Boise State’s interim chief financial officer. “But in the longer term, to keep up with this, we’ll have to identify other areas of revenues as well as expenses, including the ongoing support of our foundation and donors.”
Boise State is scheduling additional concerts at Albertsons Stadium in 2027 to combat the budget deficit and recently hosted a Banana Ball event with the Savannah Bananas.
