Virginia Tech (in white) plays Boston College in 2007. Courtesy of User B.
Virginia Tech (in white) plays Boston College in 2007. Courtesy of User B.

Earlier this week, Virginia Tech announced it had received a $20 million anonymous donation for its athletic program, the largest ever gift for sports at the school. The donation comes as Virginia Tech is ramping up spending on athletics, particularly football, as it seeks to compete in a rapidly changing landscape of intercollegiate athletics.

Here’s how Tech’s donor base compares to other schools in the Atlantic Coast Conference

The list is incomplete because not every school discloses its data to the Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database, which is where this data comes from:

Here's how much ACC schools receive in donations to the athletic program. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database
Here’s how much ACC schools receive in donations to the athletic program. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database

Here’s how Tech’s donor base compares to SEC schools

For any Tech fans who harbor dreams of joining the Southeastern Conference, or are just curious, here’s how Tech’s donor base compares to SEC teams. All but Vanderbilt disclose that funding. I’ve also included the University of Virginia in this chart so Wahoo fans can see how they compare. If Virginia Tech were to join the SEC, its donor revenues would be the lowest in the conference, although not that far behind Mississippi State. As for Texas, well, everything’s bigger in Texas.

Here's how much SEC schools receive in donations to the athletic program. Virginia and Virginia Tech included or comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Here’s how much SEC schools receive in donations to the athletic program. Virginia and Virginia Tech included for comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

Here’s how Tech’s donor base compares to Big Ten schools

Same thing, just a different conference comparison. Virginia Tech’s donor revenue is more in line with many Big Ten schools, and bigger than some. I’ve included Virginia for comparison purposes, too.

Here's how much Big Ten schools receive in donations to the athletic program. Virginia and Virginia Tech included or comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Here’s how much Big Ten schools receive in donations to the athletic program. Virginia and Virginia Tech included for comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

Here’s how mandatory student fees at Tech and Virginia compare to ACC schools

I’ve been writing this week about the mandatory student fees for athletics at James Madison, because JMU plays this weekend in the College Football Playoffs. You can read my first column (JMU’s fee is more than four times the other CFP schools combined) and my second column (JMU generates more through mandatory student fees than any other school in the country and, when you count other school support, has the second most subsidized athletic program in the country). This column, though, is about Virginia Tech, so let’s see how Tech (and Virginia) stack up against other schools in the Atlantic Coast Conference in terms of the revenue generated from such fees. Not every ACC school is listed because some private schools don’t disclose that data.

Here's how much ACC schools generate from mandatory student fees. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Here’s how much ACC schools generate from mandatory student fees. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

Here’s how mandatory student fees at Tech and Virginia compare to SEC and Big Ten schools

Umm, as my other columns reported, many SEC schools don’t have these fees.

Here's how much Big Ten schools generate from mandatory student fees. Virginia Tech and Virgiina added for comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Money generated from mandatory student fees in SEC and Big Ten schools. Virginia Tech and Virginia added for comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

How total school support at Tech and Virginia compare to other ACC schools

Some contend that Virginia schools get dinged for high mandatory fees for athletics because other colleges hide those expenses elsewhere under the heading of “institutional support.” To get a clearer picture, let’s look at the total of institutional support and mandatory fees together. You’ll see that Tech is pretty much in line with the ACC schools that disclose such figures.

Here's how much ACC schools receive in donations to the athletic program. and institutional support combined Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Here’s how much ACC schools receive in mandatory student fees and institutional support combined. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

How Tech and Virginia compare with SEC and Big Ten schools for total school support

The SEC is a mixed bag. Many schools don’t have any formal institutional support; some have quite a lot. If Tech and/or Virginia were in the SEC, they’d be on the high end of things.

Here's how much Big Ten and SEC schools receive in mandatory student fees and and institutional support combined. Virginia Tech and Virginia added for comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Here’s how much Big Ten and SEC schools receive in mandatory student fees and institutional support combined. Virginia Tech and Virginia added for comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

How do Tech and Virginia’s ticket sales revenue compare to other ACC schools

Tech’s about in the middle. Remember that the private schools in the ACC don’t disclose this data. Pittsburgh doesn’t, either.

Here's how much ACC schools receive in ticket sales. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Here’s how much ACC schools receive in ticket sales. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

How do Tech and Virginia’s ticket sales revenue compare to Big Ten and SEC schools

Virginia generates lower ticket revenue than any SEC school. Tech outranks Mississippi State. Compared to Big Ten schools, it beats Maryland, Rutgers and UCLA. Generally, though, Tech is on the low end of ticket revenue.

Here's how much Big Ten schools receive in ticket sales revenue. Virginia Tech and Virginia added for comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Here’s how much SEC and Big Ten schools receive in ticket sales revenue. Virginia Tech and Virginia added for comparison purposes. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

How Tech and Virginia compare to other ACC schools for total athletic revenue

They both seem pretty competitive, but do have to compete with some schools with more revenue.

Total athletic revenue for the ACC schools who disclose such data. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Total athletic revenue for the ACC schools that disclose such data. Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

How do Tech and Virginia compare to other Big Ten and SEC schools for total athletic revenue

Tech is lower than most of these schools.

Total athletic revenue for the Big Ten and SEC schools that disclose such data. Virginia Tech and Virginia added for comparison purposes Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.
Total athletic revenue for the Big Ten and SEC schools that disclose such data. Virginia Tech and Virginia added for comparison purposes Source: Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

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Yancey is founding editor of Cardinal News. His opinions are his own. You can reach him at dwayne@cardinalnews.org...