@Carm this piece that you were right about:
Answer: Yes, up to $2.5 million of new incremental athletically related financial aid (e.g., scholarships) above the current Division I institutional financial aid limits in the 2024-25 Division I Manual will count against the benefits cap each year. Beyond $2.5 million, new incremental athletically related financial aid beyond the current Division I institutional financial aid limits in the 2024-25 Division I Manual will not count against the cap. Further, financial aid that would have been countable under the 2024-25 financial aid legislation that is not based in any degree on athletics (e.g., scholarships given to all students from particular states, nonqualifying merit-based awards) will not count against the benefits cap.
This is really is messed up. So if the AD adds a Wrestling or Baseball scholarship that's going to reduce the 20.5 million cap for direct payments. That really forces the AD to make some tough choices. Pretty easy to add 2.5 million in new scholarships.
Wonder what Dannen will do? Give every coach a budget and they can add a scholarship or pay your top athletes? Sure don't see football adding many scholarships at the expense of paying the top guys, maybe a few, but certainly not 20.
Value of a out of state full ride scholarship is $47k, so $2.5 million would be 53 out of state full ride scholarships. Wonder how it will be broken down by payments and scholarships and by sport.
Another weird part of this is it looks like this continues in following years, it isn't a one time thing. If a school funds all or just a whole bunch of new scholarships, their direct payments are going to be 2.5 million less annually. That could be a big deal and ultimately really hurt new scholarship availability at the money losing sports.
Anyway, interested on your thoughts on this, just seems a weird thing to do, applying new scholarships as part of the direct payment budget.
