By Deshawn Pouper, Staff Reporter
We all know California State University is facing a budget crisis. From a financial standpoint, University administrators are bracing for a rough couple of years. In an email sent to Toros this past July, CSUDH President Thomas A. Parham said Dominguez Hills was “not on strong financial footing.” Further, he described the budget crisis as “uncharted territory,” saying we all must work together to “find our way to where we need to be.”
I agree, teamwork makes the dream work, so here’s my suggestion: Toros football. Now, I know I am not the first CSUDH student to propose this, and so long as we have the facilities that could accommodate a football team (cough, Dignity Health Sports Park, cough), I’m sure I won’t be the last. But just hear me out, because a robust football program could not only boost morale on campus, but maybe even the university’s bank account.
Before I continue, let’s be clear about something, a football program alone probably wouldn’t be the end-all, be-all solution to sustainable university funding. But that doesn’t mean it couldn’t help.
Angelenos take a lot of pride in their sports, and I know there’s a lot of love for athletics among the Toro Nation. I think Toros football could bring a lot of eyeballs to Dominguez Hills, especially at a time when the university administration is working to foster an on-campus culture among students.
Investment in a Toros football would pay off in brand deals, television contracts, merchandising and licensing agreements, and NIL (name, image, likeness) partners. A TV contract, for example, could bring in a lot of money if, say, a national powerhouse tapped CSUDH for what would ultimately be an exhibition.
A few years ago, Southern Miss and Western Kentucky each received $1.9 million just to play against (and lose to) Alabama, the defending national champions. If CSUDH were scheduled for a similar game, I have no doubt that it would be worthwhile for Toros Athletics. A couple million dollars may not stave off budget cuts completely, but it may slow the bleeding in some way.
Comparing apples to apples, CSUDH could model its football program after CSU-Bakersfield, which boasted an enrollment of just under 10,000 students last fall. The Roadrunners have steadily increased total revenue over the past decade, according to data compiled by USA Today. Minus expenses, a few hundred-thousand dollars in profit may not be much, but in a budget crunch, anything is helpful.
Getting Toros football off the ground wouldn’t happen overnight, of course. The university would likely have to invest a lot of time, money, and effort into researching, developing, and establishing the program and its brand – not to mention recruitment. Once the team is ready to go, I’m sure a few non-conference games against the Wolverines or Bruins would teach them a few pointers. Those games might even help offset the startup costs.
No matter how you slice it, all of this would be in service to the university. Gotta spend money to make money, right?
Toros football could be big business for the university. “Necessity is the mother of invention,” as the saying goes, and right now CSUDH needs all the help it can get as it looks to weather the fiscal storms to come.
