Letter: Jack Graham's vision for CSU is flawed

Editor:

Athletic Director Jack Graham’s vision of a main campus football stadium is flawed. He claims that football success requires this stadium, which will bring large numbers of high tuition out-of-state students. Both are false. Data show that even with a top 20 team, the tuition gain would be perhaps $2 million.

He claims that increased athletic giving will spill over to academics. Data show that increased athletic giving, if it occurs, often detracts substantially from academic giving. He claims that the “top of mind” awareness from a winning football team will bring better students and enhance academics. In fact, most students choose a university because of the quality of academic programs. He claims that his 42,000 seat stadium will put CSU in the top 20 and a new league. The data show that the stadium size for a top 20 program is roughly 90,000 seats, and at places that have been superpowers for decades.

He claims that the successful football program that will fill the stadium and reap needed dollars to benefit academics. Data how that places that accept such a sell see unfilled stadiums, failed projections, and a financial drain on the academic budget. He claims that none of these costs will EVER come out of student fees or state money. In reality, they always do. The administration is already talking about substantial loans against highly exaggerated future revenues. Many universities are currently in financial distress because of these kinds of shenanigans.

Check these hard facts at www.soshughes.org.

Carl Patton
41 year Fort Collins resident and CSU Professor