This estimate of those miscellaneous expenses has for years been categorized as roughly 10 percent of the cost of an academic scholarship. The listing is mandated by the U.S. Department of Education in filings it uses to oversee financial aid. It was just never added in as a benefit for athletic grants before. Now, it will be.
"The definition of a full [athletic] grant has excluded that category," said Big Ten associate commissioner for compliance Chad Hawley by phone on Monday. "So, the rub was: Well, you say it's a full scholarship. That's a misnomer because you're not providing what it actually costs for me to be a student."
More columns, commentary from David Jones
The interesting part is, this estimated expenses figure, set by university budget offices and financial aid departments, has varied widely in the past from school to school. It's always been a somewhat arbitrary amount. Some who want their school to project an air of prestige and exclusivity don't mind at all if it's lofty. Conversely, enrollment recruiters, commonly want to keep it low so their schools don't appear too expensive to parents and students already overburdened by prospective debt.
But starting this year, 8-figure-budgeted athletic departments and their representatives will suddenly be keenly interested in this incidental expenses amount - because it has become a stipend for their athletes and is potentially a significant recruiting tool. And they will, of course, want it to be as high as possible.
Penn State coach James Franklin is on record recently as saying the expenses stipend is definitely on the table as a recruiting factor.
The questions are: How much effect will the inevitable lobbying of ADs on behalf of their coaches have on university financial officers to lift the stipend figure as high as they can? And will those schools with powerful athletic coaches succeed in tilting the field in their favor by raising the stipend to significantly higher levels than their rivals?
You might be wondering, where does Penn State stand? If you're a fan of college athletics, in a very good position - as it is right now, at the top of the Big Ten.
Based on cost-of-attendance figures cited by CollegeData.com for the 2014-15 academic calendar, Penn State ranks at the top of the Big Ten with a miscellaneous expenses figure of $4,788. If it stays the same next school year, that means $4,788 of walking-around money during the nine-month period for athletes who receive full grants in aid.
In contrast, Ohio State ranks a mere 8th in the Big Ten, currently designating a mere $2,454 of tuition cost to incidental expenses - barely half of PSU's amount. You would expect Urban Meyer, Thad Matta and their messenger, Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith, to have a say in doubling that number or more by July when schools must designate any changes. Same with Jim Harbaugh and John Beilein at Michigan whose incidental expenses amount is currently designated as a relative pittance - $2,054, 12th in the conference.
I would think everyone will max out to 5,000 as the stipend or it would have to be agreed upon by all P5 for a lower level.
