Reader Reactions | Athletics accounts for half decrease in reserves

Readers react to an article showcasing how the athletics department has contributed to the university’s reserves deficit. The article explains that WSU has spent a significant amount of money on athletics, including a $1 million raise for football Head Coach Mike Leach, but has not necessarily made a strong enough return on that investment.

Daniel Stuart Hoffman: “Thank you for pointing out that fallacious argument that always pops up about ‘oh, it’s a separate budget’ that totally ignores that once they go over it, they take money from reserves that everyone pays into, ergo we all pay for their overspending. I did not want to go to a school with a big athletics program specifically for that reason, because higher learning is the reason this place exists … If athletics cannot be solvent and contribute money to its host rather than taking away, it does not belong on campus.”

Matthew McKibbin: “I might be the only one who doesn’t think this is a big deal. Spend money to make money. Athletic donors need to pay up and fully support the facility debt payment. The university needs to support the [athletic director] enough to account for the free marketing they get, which they used to do until recently. Unfortunately, we had the same spending at the same time on the academic side and got the reserve down too low.”

Calley Hair: “This in-depth article is one of best pieces I’ve seen come out of The Daily Evergreen during my undergrad. It’s well-researched, flows smoothly and makes me proud to see that the future will have no shortage of quality news writers.”

Lawrence Hatter: “Spending down your reserves during a period of stock market growth is extremely dangerous. It makes the institution more vulnerable to economic downturns.”