There is a lot to unpack in here. Cincinnati was doing about as
poorly financially as UConn as it pertains to the athletics department with respect to the student subsidies.
The new AAC deal is a drop in the bucket compared to what is needed to close the gap. Cutting a soccer team seems so minor to operate compared to the magnitude of issues for an AAC school to operate. Is COVID being used as an excuse for cover? Is this more about the travel costs for non-revenue sports in such a spread out conference?
As this pertains to UConn, I have no idea how this could play out. Specifically from football, revenue was $3 million and expenses $16 million. Does UConn benefit not playing for one season, especially one where they had to curry favor to schedule games on short notice i.e. lower buy game $$? I doubt it is that simple, especially since other parts of the institution are losing money from the on-campus housing refunds and operating under normal conditions.
However, unlike Cincinnati, UConn is now in a travel friendly conference for most sports. Does UConn dodge this bullet?
Does this affect the hockey rink that has been the subject of much debate the last couple years?
I do not have the answers to these questions, but I do hope we do not lose any sports as a result of this.