Money. Money. Money. Money. Money.
And power, too.
That’s not only what makes the world go ’round, it’s also what enables colleges to field football and basketball teams that will kick State’s or Tech’s or perhaps their rival’s butt, or have a chance to. It’s what athletic departments at universities around the country need to compete.
And if finding that money by partnering with private investors who will hand it over to them, but also have their say in how business is done and also exact their guaranteed cut soon enough; if all that infringes or seems to infringe on or run counter to the supposed core mission of one, some or all of those universities … well, then, what do you figure will win out? Altruism and academics or cold, hard cash that winning requires? Perhaps both can win.
The University of Utah is turning to a private equity firm in New York — Otro Capital — to generate the finances it needs — up to $500 million in revenue, according to one report — in a wild world of college sports that has institutions like Utah flying into new frontiers in finding funding.
Utes Athletic Director Mark Harlan spelled out Utah’s motivation behind the school’s and the department’s new deal with Otro, set to kick in at some unspecified date early in 2026: “We’re in the Big 12 and we’re happy to be there. But we also know the conference that we’re in is below the revenue of the two other conferences.”
Those conferences would be the SEC and the Big Ten, two leagues that haul in for their member schools substantially more money via TV contracts and other streams of revenue.
As the financially favored do so, teams in other leagues, such as the Utes, suffer the consequences of trying to keep up — competitively and organizationally — with notable resource deficits. Players are being paid, coaches and facility upgrades are expensive, recruits and transfers need to be drawn in, rev-share and NIL payouts must be provided. As mentioned, some athletic departments are operating in the red. Utah may love that color — everywhere but on its ledgers.
So what does it do? It does what other universities — and some conferences, too — are exploring the possibilities of doing. It connects with a firm with money to help it bolster its chances of making more money through various channels, not just to stay afloat, but to remain competitive.
Utah president Taylor Randall on Tuesday tried to lean into the altruistic angle on the move, saying: “First, we wanted to maintain the financial viability of the core of this institution, recognizing that the athletic department is part of that. … Second, there was a strong desire to preserve Olympic sports or non-revenue sports, particularly women’s sports.”
Any chance a deal like this, with added pressure to stir more money and success through high-profile sports, could actually hurt women’s sports? Nobody knows, for sure.
There are a few ways to look at Utah’s move.
One is that bringing in an entity that is in the money business to make more money for its investors might further muddy waters that already are mucked up — legitimizing the place for such endeavors attached to a university that wants its cut, too, but is primarily, at least in theory, existing — meant to exist — in the holy realm of higher education. Typically private equity is about monetizing whatever it can, as fast as it can, whether or not it’s in the best interests of a university over the long run. Some figure this will further commercialize college sports, that it might, for instance, boost ticket and concession prices higher, might make almost everything about college sports professional, might make college football little more than a lesser version of the NFL, with college colors, names, mascots and passion attached.
Another is speculation that this deal is a sign of desperation. Utah is one of the first universities to do this in this manner. Is it trying to respond to the deeper funds BYU seems to have?
Yet another — if Otro doesn’t get what it wants from Utah profits, will it dig into university funding that affects some academic programs? Tuition costs? Officials say there are guardrails to prevent those risks.
Or will it do the opposite, giving the school what it needs to be great at sports, with financial security, and beyond just that, also power and prestige among other well-positioned institutions? And allowing Utah to focus more on raising tons of funds for research and other worthy initiatives?
That’s got to be the university’s intention and its hope.
What happens if the private equity people don’t like the direction the coaches are steering various programs? Will they cross over boundaries to pressure decisions like that? It’s not hard to imagine, even if that’s not part of the written deal, that outside pressure could arise.
As Utah is supposed to be divvying up and dividing responsibilities between its business and Otro Capital’s business interests, when push comes to shove, investors need their return. In addition, combined, a deal like this could raise tax and regulatory concerns. And while Utah says it will have majority control, as mentioned, sometimes that line between major and minor can be blurred over in the fog of war, the fog of investment war.
Conversely, the kind of agreement Utah is arriving at with private equity is going to happen at schools all over the country on account of how expensive competing has become. Winning is even pricier. It’s just a matter of time. Those who are able are going to be eager to avoid debt, taking this road could be their way out of such a painful predicament.
Much was made by some folks outside of the Big 12 — and some inside of it, too — regarding the amount of money recent football league champion Texas Tech was shelling out to its players and coaches, to its program, in order to win. But the Red Raiders were doing nothing that other top college powers weren’t doing.
Bottom line is, money — and power — in college sports is the bottom line. That’s a fact of life that won’t change. We’ll see if its being tossed around is contained in any way. Good luck putting a lid on it now. Either way, those athletic departments that have money, wherever it comes from, if it’s managed properly, coached up properly, will be crowned champions. Those who don’t, won’t.
Utah needed money to keep up. Even if purists, those who preferred college sports the way they used to seem to be governed, (don’t kid yourselves, money has always been a key factor) object to the professionalization of college games, this much is true: Now, the Utes will have a better chance of doing so.