Executive Summary 

Sponsor 22 sport programs and support more than 625 student-athletes: 

  • Men’s programs (9): baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, hockey, swimming & diving, outdoor track & field, and wrestling
  • Women’s programs (13): basketball, cross country, golf, gymnastics, hockey, rowing, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis,  indoor track & field, outdoor track & field, and volleyball
  • Twenty-one programs compete in the Big Ten Conference and one  program, women’s hockey, competes in the Western  Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA).
  • FY24 budget is $135 million (FY24 budget ranks 10th in the Big Ten)
  • During Mark Coyle's tenure, Minnesota has won 16 regular-season conference titles, eight conference tournament championships, and 17 individual NCAA national championships. Those titles have come from 11 different programs.
  • Gopher Athletics generates $473.7 million annually in economic impact in Minnesota and draws more than 1.3 million people  annually to a Gophers athletic facility.
  • Gophers football and basketball generated more than 40.6 million TV views from 2021 through March 2023. 

Headcounts: Fall 2023

Faculty
0
Staff (P&A, Civil Service, Labor Rep)
275
Graduate Assist/Prof-in-Training
9
Total
284

Unit-Specific Measures & Data 

  • Finished 31st out of 305 universities in the 2022-23 Learfield Directors' Cup race, which measures broad-based success (top 11 percent of all Division I athletics departments).
  • Gopher student-athletes posted a record GPA of 3.46 in the fall of 2023. In 2022-23, Minnesota had 318 Academic All-Big Ten honorees, 115 Big Ten Distinguished Scholars, 56 CSC Academic All-District selections, and nine CSC Academic All-Americans.
  • Minnesota has a 95 percent Graduation Success Rate (tied for third in B1G) and has recorded the six highest GSR marks in school history during the last six years (school-record 96 percent mark in 2021, 94 in 2022, 2020 and 2019, and a 93 in 2018).
  • In the most recent APR scores, five Gopher programs recorded a perfect multi-year score, while eight programs had perfect single-year APR scores.
  • Athletics employs 122.9 sport staff and 157.25 support staff. Support staff work in the following units: Administration; Business Operations; Communications; Equipment; Event Management; Facilities; Marketing; Creative Services; Gopher Digital Productions; Golden Gopher Fund; Human Resources;  Information Technology; ”M” Club; Athletic Medicine; Nutrition; Sport Psychology; Ticket Operations; Spirit Squad; Athletic Performance; Student Athlete Development/Leadership U. 

Organizational Structure/Design

Athletics fiscal year 2024 budget is $135 million. The major sources of revenue are NCAA and conference distributions, ticket sales, gifts and sponsorship  evenue. Athletics receives $6.9 million annually in an allocation from the University and returns $6.7 million in cost pool (overhead) and enterprise assessment payments back to campus. Athletics receives no student fees. Payroll costs represent 43 percent of budgeted expenses.  Scholarship expenses make up 12 percent of the budget.  

Financial challenges include: a dramatically changing NCAA landscape with respect to student-athlete compensation; maintaining a broad-based program with 22 competitive teams; fielding competitive and profitable revenue-producing teams (football, men’s  basketball, and men’s hockey); operating new and aging facilities; and generating revenue in a competitive market for entertainment and philanthropy.

Revenue does not include carryforward.

Fiscal Pages

Expenditures do not include net transfers.

Fiscal Pages

Key Areas of Strength & Strategic Opportunities

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Key Areas of Strength & Strategic Opportunities

Strength: Commitment to student-athlete academic success and student-athlete development

  • Our number one priority is to graduate our student-athletes.
  • Minnesota has separated itself with its vibrant student-athlete development program. We provide leadership training and skill development that will positively impact and prepare our student-athletes as they graduate from our world-class institution. While prioritizing academics and athletics, Minnesota also encourages positive social development and offers comprehensive mental health support for all student-athletes.  

Strength: Commitment to fiscal responsibility and compliance

  • Our $135 million operating budget ranks 10th in the Big Ten Conference.
  • The Golden Gopher Fund continues to have record fundraising (averaging $35 million annually) and the  onference entered into a new TV partnership prior to the 2023-24 academic year. This partnership continues to position the Big Ten above peer conferences in TV revenue.
  • The complexity of intercollegiate athletics requires us to be vigilant with respect to our commitment to compliance academically, athletically, and socially. Doing it “right” matters in Minnesota. Intercollegiate athletics is a visible platform for the institution and we will continue to focus on integrity and strict compliance to all internal and external rules and regulations that govern our daily activities. 

Strategic Opportunity: Commitment to broad based, nationally competitive athletic programs.

  • The University has a long-standing history of success across our Olympic sport programs. As we move forward, we must continue to strive for competitive success in our revenue sports of football, men’s hockey, and men’s basketball. 

Strategic Opportunity: Continued evolution of collegiate landscape

  • Name, Image and Likeness (NIL), the transfer portal, and potential employment status of student-athletes is  losely monitored as we build our future operating budgets and ensure ongoing NCAA and University compliance. At Minnesota, we are running a marathon and not a sprint regarding these initiatives. We have taken a measured, prudent approach that we believe will continue to position us for long-term viable success.