Vols outspend all on recruiting

KNOXVILLE – The University of Tennessee routinely outspends every school in the country on football recruiting, according to data compiled by USA Today from reports by the schools on NCAA-mandated financial statements.

Tennessee topped the nation in football recruiting expenditures in four of the past five years for which spending reports are available. The data covers the 2008-09 school year through the 2012-13 school year.

Recruiting expenses include transportation, lodging and meals for recruits and recruiters on official and unofficial visits, per NCAA guidelines.

Annually, over that period, Tennessee spent nearly $1.3 million, 36 percent more than any other university. No other school averaged a seven-figure expenditure.

Tennessee finished second only once, in the 2012-13 school year. Auburn spent $1,384,188 on football recruiting, outspending Tennessee by $91,644.

Tennessee’s athletics department did not respond to a request for comment.

Tennessee also leads the nation by a wide margin in a even less flattering category: recruiting dollars spent per win, a measure that reflects a school’s effectiveness at recruiting top talent and translating it into on-field success.

From the 2010 season to the 2014 season, each victory by the Vols came at a recruiting cost of $231,627. Tennessee averaged between five and six wins per season during that period. The second-least-frugal school, again Auburn, spent less than half of that figure on each win.

The reason for the one-year lag between the time frames used for the spending data and the wins data is to ensure the on-field contributions of the players recruited in those years are reflected.

Overall, SEC schools took the top three spots in the country when it comes to football recruiting expenditures.

Alabama finished third behind Tennessee and Auburn. Arkansas and Georgia also made the list of the 10 highest spenders, finishing seventh and ninth, respectively.

The comparatively high expenditures on football recruiting came during a period of financial uncertainty at Tennessee. In January 2013, in the middle of the last year for which data was received, the Sports Business Journal reported that the university had the highest debt in the SEC at more than $200 million.

“We’ve got to get football healthy,” Tennessee athletic director Dave Hart told the Sports Business Journal at the time. “That’s our economic engine. When that program is successful, everybody wins.”

On average, over the five-year span, Tennessee spent more than 60 percent of its recruiting budget for all sports on football.

PAY TO PLAY

SEC schools’ annual football recruiting expenses, 2008-13*

1. Tennessee, $1,297,109

2. Auburn, $950,316

3. Alabama, $903,217

4. Arkansas, $652,459

5. Georgia, $626,139

6. Florida, $557,360

7. Mississippi, $438,486

8. LSU, $428,305

9. Missouri,** $424,944

10. Kentucky, $380,210

11. Mississippi State, $352,047

12. Texas A&M,** $287,111

13. South Carolina, $263,094

*Vanderbilt is exempt

from disclosure because it

is a private university.

**Missouri and Texas A&M did not join the SEC until 2012; spending reflects all five years.