A strong athletics program is one of the main drivers of student recruitment
When the Pac-12 dissolved in 2023, it did not merely rearrange conference alignments — it quietly unraveled the financial architecture that sustained athletic programs across the West. Washington State University now confronts that unraveling directly, as its governing board voted to redirect $20 million from general university funds into athletics, a decision that reveals how deeply sports and institutional identity have become intertwined with enrollment, revenue, and the question of what a university is for. The choice to protect athletics while deferring the harder question of where the money will come from reflects a familiar tension in American higher education: the pressure to compete visibly while quietly absorbing invisible costs.
- The Pac-12's 2023 collapse left WSU with a new media deal worth roughly $20 million less per year than the old conference structure provided — a structural wound that has been bleeding ever since.
- To stem the losses, WSU's athletics department already cut more than $9 million and laid off 32 staff members in 2025, real people whose jobs disappeared as administrators tried to outrun the shortfall.
- The Regents voted Friday to transfer $20 million from the university's general budget to athletics, framing the move as essential to student recruitment and institutional pride — even as other programs face pressure.
- The board has not yet decided which university budgets will absorb the cut, deferring that painful reckoning to a May meeting and leaving the true cost still unassigned.
- Regent Marty Dickinson issued a public call for donors to 'double down,' signaling that the university cannot close this gap through internal transfers alone and is counting on outside investment to survive.
Washington State University's governing board voted Friday to redirect $20 million from its general budget into athletics, attempting to close a financial gap that has grown steadily since the Pac-12 dissolved in 2023. When the conference collapsed, WSU lost not only its affiliation but the revenue streams that had long sustained its athletic operations. The new media deal the university negotiated provides substantially less than what the old structure delivered — a difference now quantified at roughly $20 million annually.
The crisis had been visible for some time. Internal documents flagged the athletics budget situation as 'imminent' as early as 2023, yet the full weight of it only became unavoidable in the years that followed. In 2025, the athletics department cut more than $9 million and eliminated 32 positions — layoffs that fell on real people in a department already operating under strain.
President Betsy Cantwell framed the transfer as a strategic investment, arguing that a strong athletics program drives student recruitment and retention — two areas where WSU has faced persistent challenges. The Regents accepted that logic and voted to protect athletics, even as other parts of the university face budget pressure. Interim Athletics Director Jon Haarlow was direct about the structural reality: the gap between historical conference distributions and future revenue is real, and it must be closed.
The board did not, however, decide where the $20 million would actually come from — that question was deferred to May's Regents meeting. Regent Marty Dickinson used the vote as a public call to donors, urging them to 'double down' on pledges and signaling that the university cannot solve this alone. One note of stability: the $12 million renovation of Gesa Field will proceed, backed by roughly $11 million in existing donor commitments. But the broader picture remains unresolved — a university pulling from one pocket to fill another, waiting to learn where the real pain will finally land.
Washington State University's governing board voted Friday to redirect $20 million from the university's general budget into athletics, a move designed to plug a widening financial hole created by the collapse of the Pac-12 and the media rights deal that followed it.
The shortfall emerged gradually but became impossible to ignore. When the Pac-12 dissolved in 2023, WSU lost not only conference affiliation but also the revenue streams that had sustained its athletic operations. The new media agreement the university negotiated provides substantially less money than what flowed in under the old conference structure. The gap between what WSU used to receive and what it will receive going forward now amounts to roughly $20 million annually.
WSU President Betsy Cantwell framed the transfer as an investment in the university's broader health. A robust athletics program, she argued in a statement released after the board's vote, functions as one of the primary engines driving student recruitment and retention—two areas where WSU has struggled in recent years. The Regents' resolution reflected this logic: athletics, the board determined, was worth protecting even as other parts of the university faced budget pressure.
The university had seen this moment coming. Internal documents presented to the Regents board identified the athletics budget crisis as "imminent" as far back as 2023, when the Pac-12 first began to fracture. Still, the reality of the shortfall forced difficult choices. In 2025 alone, WSU's athletics department approved budget cuts exceeding $9 million and eliminated 32 positions to try to manage the decline. Those layoffs represented real people losing jobs in a department already stretched thin.
Regent Marty Dickinson used the moment to call on the university's donor base to step up. She framed the board's decision as a signal to wealthy alumni and supporters that WSU was serious about athletics and expected them to be serious too. "It is a call to action to our donors," she said, urging them to "double down" on pledges and investments. The implication was clear: the university could not solve this problem alone.
Interim Athletics Director Jon Haarlow acknowledged the structural reality facing the program. "There's a gap between the historical distributions and what we're going to receive from the conference moving forward," he said. That gap, now quantified at $20 million, would have to be closed somehow. The Regents' vote provided one answer, but it deferred the harder question: where exactly would the $20 million come from? The board decided to table that decision until May's meeting, giving administrators time to identify which university budgets would absorb the cut.
One bright spot: the $12 million renovation project for Gesa Field, WSU's football stadium, would proceed unaffected. The project already has roughly $11 million in donor commitments, suggesting that at least some supporters remain willing to invest in the program's infrastructure. But the broader picture remained uncertain—a university trying to stabilize an athletics program by pulling money from elsewhere, hoping donors would fill the gaps, and waiting to see where the real pain would land.
Citações Notáveis
There's a gap between the historical distributions and what we're going to receive from the conference moving forward— Jon Haarlow, WSU interim athletics director
It is a call to action to our donors. We need them to double down with us right now and lean into this— Regent Marty Dickinson
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does a university in financial stress decide to give more money to athletics instead of, say, academic programs?
Because enrollment is dropping. When prospective students choose a college, they're often drawn by the visibility and pride that comes with a strong sports program. WSU sees athletics as a recruitment tool—maybe the most visible one they have.
But they just laid off 32 people in athletics. How does that square with saying the program is a priority?
It doesn't, really. That's the contradiction at the heart of this. They cut $9 million last year and eliminated jobs, and now they're saying they need to inject $20 million more. What changed is the board decided the cuts weren't enough—that athletics needed protection, not further reduction.
Where is the $20 million actually coming from?
That's the thing—they haven't decided yet. They're kicking that decision to May. It means some other part of the university will lose funding, but they're not saying which part. It's a deferred problem.
Is this sustainable?
Not without donor money. The Regents are essentially saying: we'll put in $20 million, but we need wealthy alumni to fill the rest of the gap. If donors don't step up, this just delays the crisis.
What happens if they don't?
Then WSU faces another round of cuts, probably deeper than the last one. The Pac-12 collapse didn't just cost them money—it cost them leverage. They're no longer in a power conference, which makes them less attractive to recruits and donors both.