A year after reporting a $5.6 million surplus, Indiana Athletics submitted its 2024 fiscal year financial report to the NCAA, and according to information originally published by the Herald-Times, the athletic department reported a $3.1 million deficit.
The department produced a total revenue of $173.5 million, which is $28.8 million more than the previous fiscal year. The greatest increase in revenue came from the $31.4 million in direct institutional support as that figure was previously just $5 million.
On the contrary, the department reported $176.6 million in operating expenses — $37.6 million more than in 2023. The steep increase can be largely attributed to coaching salaries and severance payments.
Indiana Athletics paid its coaches $6.6 million more in the 2024 fiscal year than the previous year. Former Indiana football head coach Tom Allen’s $15.5 million buyout is included in severance payments, which total $22.1 million.
Indiana made its first College Football Playoff appearance in head coach Curt Cignetti’s first season in Bloomington. With the Big Ten earning $46 million in the CFP, each of the 18 schools in the conference will receive nearly $2.6 million.
That figure, however, is not included in the 2024 fiscal year report, which runs from July 2023 to June 2024.
In preparation for the new revenue-sharing model that will allow schools to pay its players a projected total of $22 million, which would replace the Name, Image and Likeness collectives like Hoosiers Connect, the athletic department made internal changes.
According to the Indianapolis Star’s report Jan. 17, Indiana Athletics eliminated 25 positions within the department, leaving 12 unfilled positions vacant while laying off 13 employees.
Dalton James covers Indiana football and women's basketball for the Indiana Daily Student. You can follow him at @DaltonMJames on X and contact him via email at jamesdm@iu.edu.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this article misstated the notification of termination.
