USA Today released its annual finances report for Division I institutions and the report shows the University of Missouri was the least profitable school in the SEC with $97,848,195, some $2 behind Mississippi State. Vanderbilt is a private institution and his not required to share their financial reporting.
Mizzou Athletics was the only program to generate less than $100 million. However, it should be noted that overall, Mizzou is ranked 36th out of 230 public schools in Division I in terms of revenue generated.
What some may find disturbing is that the athletic department failed to turn a profit resulting in a $4.5 million deficit for the first time since 2012. That was the year, the Big 12 withheld over $12 million after Missouri exited for the SEC.
There are a few reasons for the upside down number. Despite selling out men’s basketball season tickets which created a more than $2 million increase, season ticket sales for football drooped in 2017. There was an increase in coaches salaries and a new softball complex helped result in the deficit.
Athletic Director Jim Sterk stated publicly on Monday it could take at least a couple of years for Missouri to recoup those deficits, but with the south end zone expansion, the athletic department is projecting a bump of $4 million in revenue per year. However, that won’t be reflected until fiscal reports in 2020.