COLUMBIA, Mo. _ When the novel coronavirus shut down college sports in mid-March, it didn't just affect the on-field product.
Athletic departments across the country were left to grapple with financial uncertainties because of the COVID-19 pandemic _ and Missouri was no exception.
Missouri's athletic department cut $16.5 million from its operating budget for the 2020 fiscal year, which spans July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020. MU athletic director Jim Sterk and his staff trimmed the budget through layoffs, furloughs and salary reductions.
"A lot of thought, a lot of meetings," Sterk said. "Both within our immediate staff, but then also across campus with President (Mun) Choi and Rhonda Gibler, the CFO of the institution. We kind of collectively came towards that and with the results that we had."
Many athletic department employees will see a salary reduction from July 1 through Sept. 30 through a tiered system. All employees making less than $60,000 annually are unaffected, but those earning $60,000-$99,999 will bear a 7.5% decrease. Anyone making more than $100,000 per year will have a 10% reduction during that time.
Sterk and five prominent MU head coaches had already elected to take 10% salary reductions in April. Those coaches include football's Eliah Drinkwitz, men's basketball's Cuonzo Martin, women's basketball's Robin Pingeton, baseball's Steve Bieser and wrestling's Brian Smith.
Could the coronavirus' most devastating financial impact be a lost football season? Projections indicate that a lost season this fall would cost about $4 billion, according to Patrick Rishe, director of sports business at Washington University in St. Louis. While it appears that the season is moving toward an on-time start, there are still a number of logistical factors to sort out.
"You're still talking about ticket revenue and the associated game-day spending," Rishe said. "You're talking about potentially anywhere between 25-35% of typical revenue you're generating from your football program. That's not a small percentage."
Whether college football teams will have fans in the stands, or play at all, is one of the biggest questions still on the table. Sterk said school officials are waiting to make a final decision with health officials about whether fans will be allowed to attend, but if they are, capacity could range anywhere from 50% to full for some games.
In MU's 2019 fiscal year _ the most recent available data, which includes financials from the 2018 football season _ football-ticket sales alone brought in $9,573,361. Overall football revenue came in at $38,471,523, meaning nearly a quarter of Mizzou's total football revenue came from ticket sales.
"That'll depend on the health officials as we get information," Sterk said of stadium capacity. "That'll depend on the fans. We're going to do a good job of education of what we're going to keep it at a healthy place."
While the money-maker in SEC football is TV-broadcast rights, ticket sales are still a significant source of school revenue. Fewer fans in attendance would mean concessions sales would also take a hit.
Sterk said Mizzou has actually seen more season-ticket renewals this year over last. If changes to the fall season prevent some of those fans from using their tickets in 2020, Sterk said, MU will either refund those tickets or credit the deposits paid on them toward future games.
But not playing at all in 2020, especially with the excitement around having a new head coach in Eliah Drinkwitz, would be a blow on multiple levels.
"We have good momentum," Sterk said. "It's upsetting we can't take full advantage of it, or we haven't been able to, with the COVID challenge."
Mizzou faltered during a five-game losing streak and 6-6 season in 2019, leading to the ouster of former coach Barry Odom. Sterk has said he felt Odom had lost momentum, especially after the completion of the stadium's new south end zone facility.
Drinkwitz, hired from Appalachian State in December, is looking to establish a new culture and winning program in Columbia. He's regarded as a young, up-and-coming offensive coaching guru, and he has already excelled on the recruiting trail, working to fulfill an early pledge to keep in-state talent at Mizzou.
While athletic departments reconsider their respective budgets, Rishe said some positives could come from the pandemic. A movement toward more regional scheduling and fewer long-distance road trips _ specifically for non-revenue sports _ might stick in the long-term.
Coaching contracts could also be revisited, especially the large buyout clauses that have become standard. When Sterk fired Odom, the former coach walked away with a $2.85 million buyout. Martin couldn't be fired without cause until May 2021, but his buyout would start at $6 million.
Rishe said technology may be the next frontier for change _ and this could be especially true for Mizzou if fans aren't allowed at games. Production and entertainment value would skyrocket, Rishe said. Making the product look slick on TV would be paramount.
"The biggest positive will be what the eventual game day experience looks like in the future," Rishe said. "Technology plays a role. More touchless experiences at a revenue. Research has shown that venues that have gone cashless actually see greater efficiency and more spending, which is a benefit to the athletic department."
