TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Florida universities are searching for ways to pump more money into sports ahead of a proposed landmark NCAA settlement that would open the door for schools to directly pay athletes — and using state dollars could be on the table.
Florida has long held a bright line against putting tax dollars into college athletics. But that could change soon, as schools here and across the country grapple with revolutionary changes coming to the NCAA.
Universities are expecting moves like eliminating caps on student scholarships and giving athletes a cut of sports proceeds to raise costs by more than $20 million annually per school. Colleges as a result are considering a range of options to stay competitive, while also surviving financially — decisions that could lead to eliminating or scaling back some sports, creating new fees or, for public schools like Florida’s universities, asking state legislatures to kick in more cash.
“It’s an arms race, let’s call it what it is,” Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. said during a meeting of top university officials in October. “This could be affected by having other states decide. You have Alabama, or you have Tennessee — you have other places decide that they’re going to pour some state funds into this, and then it puts our universities at a disadvantage.”