Arkansas finances lag below SEC par

— When it comes to spending and raising money for its athletic department, Arkansas ranks in the lower third of the SEC according to figures in the Razorbacks’ 2009-2010 annual report.

Arkansas’ budget of $60.3 million for last year ranked ninth in the SEC. Tennessee led the way with a budget of more than $100million, while Mississippi State ranked last at about $37 million.

The Razorback Foundation’s annual fund for 2010 is $12,302,965, which also ranks ninth in the SEC. Florida leads the conference at about $30 million.

“We’re always going to outperform our resources,” Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long said Thursday. “We don’t need the $90 million to $100 million [budget] that some of the schools have for their program. But we do need to move close to that mid-range to be able to continue to compete.

“If we don’t we’re going to slide back.”

Arkansas’ budget last year was more than $15 million below the SEC average of $75.7 million, and Long said he’d like to see the Razorbacks raise their budget by about $10 million.

“It’s a moving target because nobody stands still,” Long said. “Everybody’s trying to grow. But I think we need to get in that $70 million range. We need to be working towards that on an annual budget basis.”

This is the second year Arkansas has compiled an athletics report - which is sent to Razorback Foundation members - and the first year it has included information showing how Arkansas compares to its SEC competition in several financial categories.


Get the latest Razorback news and views from Brandon Marcello on The Slophouse blog.

Long said the data was obtained from other SEC schools.

“Last year we shared a little bit of information financially that really hadn’t been shared very openly in the past,” Long said. “There was a great reaction to that from fans and supporters, and they said, ‘Hey, we’d like to see more. We’d like to see how we stack up.’

“So that’s why this year we added that and put in numbers for comparisons about where we stand.”

Long said he believes it’s important for Arkansas fans to see the financial numbers with regard to the SEC.

“As we go out and try and fundraise, there’s a perception that we’ve got lots of revenue and we’ve got all that we need,” he said. “And that’s really not the case. That changes. It’s competitive. A lot of these programs have moved past us over the years.

“I believe that we’ve got to increase our resources if we’re going to continue to compete. It’s clear from our fans that they want us to compete and win, and you’ve got to have the resources to do that.”

Long said he’s confident Arkansas has “room to grow” its revenue, and one possibility figures to be raising the donations for prime seats at football games.

According to figures in Arkansas’ report, the Razorbacks’ minimum donation of $150 for a midfield, lower-level seat is the lowest in the SEC. Alabama has the top donation minimum at $1,300. The next lowest to Arkansas is Vanderbilt at $250.

“There’s got to be some movement there, because that’s where a lot of our operating funds come from ... with our annual fund drive,” Long said.

Arkansas’ budget for last year was $60,338,475. Football got 43 percent of that, followed by women’s sports other than basketball (20 percent), men’s basketball (16 percent), women’s basketball (7 percent), baseball (6 percent) and other men’s sports (8 percent).

Arkansas also reported revenue of $60,338,475 as part of its formula for having a balanced budget.

Arkansas’ approximate breakdown of revenue generated last year included $31 million from ticket sales, $16 million from the SEC distribution, $6 million from sponsorships and licensing, $5 million from contributions, $1.2 million from concessions and $600,000 from miscellaneous sources.

Football accounted for 74.8 percent of the ticket sales revenue, followed by men’s basketball (21 percent) and baseball (3.2 percent).

Total membership in the Razorback Foundation rose slightly, from 10,587 to 10,695, with the annual fund increasing from $11,824,171 to $12,302,965.

Arkansas spent $1.9 million in facility improvements, including adding ribbon video boards to Reynolds Razorback Stadium.

Prime seating

Arkansas has the lowest minimum donation requirement in the SEC for a midfield, lower-level seat, according to information in the UA’s annual athletics report. Here is a rundown: MINIMUM SCHOOL DONATION Alabama ...................................... $1,300 Tennessee.................................... $1,250 Florida.......................................... $1,000 LSU................................................. $950 Ole Miss ......................................... $625 Auburn ........................................... $500 Kentucky......................................... $450 Georgia ........................................... $400 Miss State ...................................... $350 South Carolina ............................... $325 Vanderbilt ....................................... $250 Arkansas ............................. $150

Sports, Pages 19 on 07/30/2010

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