YPSILANTI, MI - A financial report by Eastern Michigan University to the NCAA reported game expenses for its wrestling program were more than $290,000, when the actual expense was about $12,000.

Despite the error, EMU Spokesman Geoff Larcom said the incorrect figure was not used as justification for the university's recent elimination of the wrestling program to save money.

EMU confirmed the inaccuracy of the 2017 NCAA Membership Financial Report, which is required by the NCAA and produced by the university's Budget & Accounting Office, Athletic Department and a third-party auditor.

Larcom said the university is working to update the report it submitted to the NCAA.

"After additional review, three expenses were miscategorized and incorrectly place in the wrestling numbers," Larcom said. "Again, this report is not used for any internal purpose - including the recent decision to eliminate sports - and is only used to complete the NCAA and Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act requirements."

The line item of "game expenses" submitted to the NCAA reported that the wrestling program spent $292,662, according to the report. The correct figure is $12,362.

The expenses attributed to the wrestling program, which included the hiring of officials, security and event staff, were significantly higher than any other sport in the report, with football having the next highest total at $165,807. All other sports listed on the report had game expenses listed at less than $31,000.

Three expenses contributing to the figure should have been counted as expenses for EMU's football, women's basketball and men's basketball, the university said. Those figures are:

$131,250 for football "bowl assessments"

$61,450 for women's basketball game officials

$87,600 for men's basketball game officials

Wrestling is one of four sports EMU chose to eliminate in March, along with softball, men's swimming and diving and women's tennis in an effort to save $2.4 million toward a budget shortfall between $4.5 and $5.5 million.

Former EMU Wrestling coach Dave Bolyard said he didn't have discussions with the athletic department or university administration related to expenses of the program, or any conversations about the possible elimination of the sport, until he was informed the night before the university made the decision public.

When informed of the expense error, Bolyard said he wished there would have been more conversations with himself and other coaches impacted by the elimination of sports programs.

"To see that number, you don't have to be into the sport to see what they reported as far as some of the numbers are false," Bolyard said. "That part was hard for me. I've been meticulous about our budget and I know what we cost. I don't know everything, but that number is easy to look at and say, 'How is that possible?'"

In a press conference announcing the elimination of the four sports programs, Athletic Director Scott Wetherbee said the decision to eliminate specific sports came after breaking down pros and cons for each.

"You look at: How were their facilities? Do we need to build a new building? Do we need to build a new stadium?" he said. "How are we providing for them? What is the Mid-American Conference offering them? How many other teams are they competing against?"

The incorrectly characterized expenses would mean the wrestling program was operated at a total cost 32 percent lower than what was reported to the NCAA at $615,000, rather than $895,000.

With 22 student-athletes on the team receiving some form of aid totaling $284,000, Bolyard argued the wrestling program at EMU is not a large financial burden on the university and that it attracts students to the university to participate in athletics.

"Universities across the country see wrestling as an asset through enrollment," said Bolyard, who was named MAC Coach of the Year after it was announced EMU was eliminating the wrestling program. "I would argue that we're already close to that to some degree. We could be a bigger asset. Maybe they don't see that or understand that."

National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Executive Director Mike Moyer argued the NWCA has helped to start or reinstate 195 new college wrestling teams since 2000.

Moyer said instituting wrestling and other non-revenue sports can be a financial benefit to colleges and universities by boosting enrollment.

"I understand that mistakes can happen, but what's concerning is, if they have in fact done the due diligence that should have been done prior to making the decision to eliminate upwards of 85 student athletes, I can't imagine how many additional people should have seen that document," Moyer said. "You'd like to think that someone should have caught that. It makes no sense that EMU would eliminate four sports - 85 students - knowing that declining enrollment at EMU in general is what led to the budget cuts."

EMU President James Smith said the university's budget was built on the assumption that EMU would generate 478,000 student credit hours for the 2017-18 academic year. Based on fall semester enrollment, the projection was reduced to 473,000 student credit hours and eventually projected down further to 470,000, based on winter enrollment figures.

The credit hour projection, Smith said, represents an 11.6 percent decline from just four years ago. In June, EMU projected it would see less in revenue from tuition and fees, from $221.3 million in 2017 to $214.8 million in 2018 - representing a 2.5 percent drop in credit hours for the 2018 fiscal year.

Following the decision to eliminate the sports, in addition to nearly 60 staff positions, a coalition of faculty, staff and students have advocated for a stop to cuts, pending a review of EMU's finances by key stakeholders.

EMU responded that it would not be revisiting the decision to cut the sports or staff positions.