Examining relationships between athletic department finances, athletic success, and academic success among NCAA division I FBS institutions

Common wisdom holds that increased spending leads to competitive success and that a tradeoff exists between athletics and academics. The purpose of this study is to determine whether relationships exist between relative competitive success as well as student-athlete academic success of NCAA Division I FBS athletic departments and each of the following factors: (a) how much institutions spend on athletics overall, and per participant, (b) how much institutions spend on revenue sports and, (c) how much revenue institutions generate from revenue sports.;EADA data, NCAA Graduation Success Rates, and Directors' Cup standings were used for the years 2004-05 through 2011-12. Simple and multiple regression analyses found significant relationships between Directors' Cup points, NCAA GSR, and each independent financial variable. Although administrators should give careful consideration when making practical forecasting decisions based on these findings, results prove valuable for shaping broad-based principles and goals.