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Full Cost of Attendance Spells Bad News for UK Football

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Lexington's low prices could hurt UK athletics[/B]
Tim Sullivan, @TimSullivan714 6:22 a.m. EDT April 14, 2015

If the University of Kentucky is to remain competitive in recruiting athletes, it may need the merchants of Lexington to raise their prices.

Otherwise, NCAA legislation that allows schools to augment their scholarship packages with a "full cost of attendance" adjustment could create a dollar-based disadvantage in attracting blue-chip prospects to Big Blue Nation.

According to a survey published last week in The Chronicle of Higher Education, the difference between what's already covered and what it actually cost to attend UK last year ($2,284) was by far the lowest figure among Southeastern Conference schools. And while that's welcome news for your average impoverished student, it could be worrisome for coaches obliged to compete for talent with schools able to award larger stipends.

Kentucky athletics spokesman Tony Neely said Monday that the school's most recent calculations would have provided $3,278 in additional aid for in-state athletes on full scholarship in 2014-15; $3,606 for out-of-state athletes -- substantially more than the Chronicle's calculations. Even at that, though, UK's pot-sweetening potential is far outdistanced in the SEC by Tennessee ($5,666) and Auburn ($5,586) and within the state by rival Louisville ($5,202).

Though these numbers are sure to fluctuate before schools can start cutting checks in August, it's hard to keep up with the Joneses when they are in a position to put more cash in a prospect's pocket.

"For anybody to think this won't be a factor in the (recruiting) process next year is being really naïve," Penn State coach James Franklin told USA Today.

It might not make much difference for John Calipari, for Kentucky's basketball brand resonates nationally, but the discrepancy in dollars is bound to create concerns in other programs. Oscar Combs, founder of the UK-centric 'Cats Pause publication, described it Monday as "just a bigger dagger in Kentucky's football heart."


At Louisville, meanwhile, the dagger is pointed at opponents. At $5,202, U of L's cost-of-living adjustment is the highest in the Atlantic Coast Conference and more than twice that of nine league members.

When the NCAA's power conferences gained widespread autonomy in their financial affairs last summer, high priority was assigned to providing additional benefits to athletes. As the highest-revenue programs began conducting business free of the constraints often imposed by the low-budget majority, they showed sensitivity to the perception that they were exploiting labor to enrich management.

Yet in rerouting revenue from ever-more lavish facilities to athletes' bank accounts, a new class system has emerged. Traditional football powers such as Alabama, Ohio State and Southern California have fallen behind conference rivals at the financial aid office, where the "full cost of attendance" is calculated on each campus based on a federal formula.

Though it's easy to imagine Nick Saban and Urban Meyer fuming about getting out-spent for a prize recruit, it's tough to see schools changing calculations they must submit to the federal government simply to mollify some football coaches. Though financial aid officers have some latitude to adjust students' cost of attendance on a case-by-case basis, any variance from the norm must be documented for the U.S. Department of Education.

Hard to see a lot of that happening. Harder to see how the size of stipends won't have a big bearing on recruiting. On that score, it's probably worth noting that Boston College, the only Power 5 conference school to oppose the cost-of-attendance stipend, showed the smallest gap in the Chronicle's survey: $1,400.

Clearly, stipends are not the only consideration in choosing a college. Listed alphabetically, an athlete's critical factors might include academics, career opportunities, coaches, facilities, food, geography and girls.

Still, all other things being equal, there's a lot to be said for cash. And there will be a lot more said about it once the money starts changing hands.

Tim Sullivan can be reached at (502) 582-4650, tsullivan@courier-journal.com or @TimSullivan714.


School, Old Scholarship/New Scholarship (Difference)

ACC

Boston College, $61,622/$63,022 ($1,400)

Clemson, $23,304/$29,164 ($3,608)

Duke, $61,793/$63,999 ($2,206)

Florida State, $17,800/$21,684 ($3,884)

Georgia Tech, $23,028/$24,748 ($1,720)

Louisville, $19,142/$24,344 ($5,202)

Miami, $59,162/$61,942 ($2,780)

North Carolina, $21,884/$24,120 ($2,236)

North Carolina State, $19,938/$22,368 ($2,430)

Notre Dame, $62,825/$64,775 ($1,950)

Pittsburgh, $29,024/$32,324 ($3,300)

Syracuse, $59,610/$61,242 ($1,632)

Virginia, $24,528/$27,092 ($2,564)

Virginia Tech, $20,960/$23,730 ($2,770)

Wake Forest, $62,140/$64,540 ($2,400)


SEC

Alabama, $24,542/$27,434 ($2,892)

Arkansas, $19,064/$23,066 ($4,002)

Auburn, $23,578/$29,164 ($5,586)

Florida, $17,230/$20,550 ($3,320)

Georgia, $20,082/$22,680 ($2,598)

Kentucky, $21,464/$23,748 ($2,284)

LSU, $24,192/$27,288 ($3,096)

Mississippi, $18,204/$22,704 ($4,500)

Mississippi State, $17,294/$22,420 ($5,126)

Missouri, $21,040/$24,704 ($3,664)

South Carolina, $21,414/$25,565 ($4,151)

Texas A&M, $19,764/$22,470 ($2,706)

Tennessee, $23,710/$29,376 ($5,666)

Vanderbilt, $61,470/$64,250 ($2,780)

Source: The Chronicle of Higher Education.

http://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/tim-sullivan/2015/04/13/cost-attendance-prove-costly-uk/25748011/
 
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