NSU football: Spartans will not bid for playoff game

Norfolk State athletic director Marty Miller said that the school will not bid for a home game in the FCS playoffs, despite the fact that NSU currently appears like it has a good chance at qualifying.

Miller, who works with a much smaller budget than Old Dominion, said he has looked into the bidding process and decided that NSU could not risk the potential of losing money on the game. Old Dominion athletic director Wood Selig told my colleague Rich Radford earlier this week that the Monarchs were moving forward with plans for a bid in case they made the FCS playoffs.

This story from the Harrisonburg Daily News Press, which is from 2009, best illustrates some of the financial issues at play. State schools James Madison (2009) and William & Mary (2004) both made money by hosting the game, but their profits were limited.

The NCAA requires a minimum bid of $30,000 up front and then takes a significant portion of the revenue generated by the game. Winning bids are often even larger. James Madison, for instance, bid more than $80,000 in 2009. 

Miller said the prospect of breaking even financially is questionable and he could not risk the money currently earmarked for facility or staffing improvement.

“I discovered that most sites have lost money,” Miller said. “We’re not in a place where we can do that. We’re trying to improve our revenue stream.”

While Rich speculated on the potential for Old Dominion hosting Norfolk State, there are no guarantees that the match-up would be so revenue-friendly. Either team could miss the postseason, adding to the uncertainty.

“You don’t know how the teams will travel,” Miller said. “You need good attendance just to break even. There are some questions marks and it’s a risk. We’ve given thought to it. We didn’t feel like it would be the best decision at this time.”

For Norfolk State, playoff attendance would be uncertain. The crowd of 10,000 for an important game against South Carolina State, played between periods of drizzle two weeks ago, had to be disappointing. A similar crowd during a playoff game would lose money for the athletic department and Norfolk State fans have a history of poor attendance in rainy or cold weather.

Miller said Norfolk State would entertain thoughts of hosting in the future if the Spartans look likely to qualify.

When the MEAC debated moving to the Legacy Bowl format last year, one of the reasons its supporters wanted to leave the playoffs was because conference teams usually get sent on the road.

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