Dobelle taking portion of UH athletic surplus

Advertiser Staff

Two weeks into his tenure as president, Evan Dobelle is already putting his imprint on the University of Hawai'i by taking the precedent-setting step of diverting some of the athletic department's budget surplus for campus-wide use.

The athletic department, which had projected a $250,000-$500,000 deficit six months ago, said it rallied in the second half of the fiscal year and now expects a $361,595 surplus, part of which will be turned back to the university.

How much of the money Dobelle plans to take and where it will be spent have yet to be determined, pending a final auditor's report, school officials said.

It is the first time in the school's 25-year history of Division I athletics that its surplus will be shared with the university, athletic department officials said.

Dobelle said he recognizes that many fans view UH as the state's pro team, "but we can't allow ourselves to forget it is a university with an academic mission."

"My interest is that when they do well on the playing field (everybody) has to be able to benefit from that," he said.

As an example, Dobelle said, UH shares in grants that researchers bring to the university.

"I think what President Dobelle, in looking at the total (university) situation, is asking us to do is be part of the team and assist other programs when we can," said Hugh Yoshida, UH athletic director.

Karl Benson, commissioner of the Western Athletic Conference, said he is not aware of any school in the 10-member conference that regularly shares a budget surplus with the rest of its campus.

Murray Sperber, an Indiana University professor and author of "College Sports Inc." said it is both rare for a Division I athletic program to have a surplus and for athletics to be expected to share it with the rest of the school. "It is beyond rare, actually."

More common, said Rick Burton, director of the James H. Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon, is that some teams "that go to bowl games or accrue a sizeable payoff might share some of it."

UH football coach June Jones said, "I feel like (a lot of people) look at football, basketball and the other sports, and if we do well, everybody ought to benefit."

Only twice in the past 20 years has the UH athletic department transferred money elsewhere, but they were one-time, special-circumstance situations and not by university policy, officials said. Once in the mid-1990s $312,000 was returned to the state, and on another occasion money was reportedly given back to the administration.

Since the mid-1970s it has been school procedure for surpluses to be deposited in the athletic department's reserve account to be used during emergencies. A $1 million withdrawal, which the athletic department has been paying back, was made in 1999 to cover losses stemming from the Rainbows' 0-12 football season.

The reserve fund contained $1,012,000 at the beginning of the last fiscal year, according to Mike Nagafuchi, athletic business manager.

The athletic department's report of a financial turnaround comes six months after coaches and section heads were told that below-projection trends in ticket sales and rising transportation costs necessitated cutbacks in operating expenses.

The current surplus comes despite a 3-9 season in football, the athletic department's biggest breadwinner.

Jim Donovan, UH associate athletic director, said, "It is outstanding to have this kind of a surplus in a year which football and baseball struggled a little. It is a reflection on how well the various coaches and departments pitched in as a team to keep expenses down."

Donovan said the athletic department spent approximately $500,000 less than it did last year. He said the largest trim this year came from football, which saved more than $200,000 through cuts in spring practice, recruiting expenses and supplies.

Donovan said $17,500 in salary and benefits was saved by leaving unfilled the position of special teams coach Dennis McKnight, who departed after the season.

"We've made a conscious effort to do what we can," Jones said.

In addition, Donovan said significant savings were realized from expenses trimmed by the training room staff and in administrative budgets, including travel.

Moreover, Donovan said, UH realized more in Western Athletic Conference disbursements, concession revenue and its share of logo rights payments than was anticipated.

UH's share of the WAC revenue from the conference basketball tournament and NCAA tournament was $606,625. In addition, UH received $70,000 from the sale of the Warriors' new athletic logo apparel.

The UH athletic department generates more than 90 percent of its revenue, primarily through ticket sales, television and radio rights fees and donations. However, the department receives $1.4 million from the state, less than 1 percent of the $172,933,397 the Manoa campus receives from the state.

Of the money the athletic department receives, $455,036 is allocated for the operation and maintenance of classrooms and facilities in the lower campus area where the athletic department is located.

"Still," Burton said, "what the Hawai'i president is doing seems pretty admirable."

At tiny (enrollment: 1,800) Trinity College, a Division III school in Hartford, Conn., where Dobelle previously served as president, athletic budget surpluses were not turned back to the school.

"That's because we never had a surplus," said Richard Hazelton, the athletic director. "I watched it too close to make sure."