Oklahoma reported a profit of $9,350 for its trip to the Fiesta Bowl, but had the Big 12 not come to the rescue, the Sooners would have faced a financial mess, according to the Hartford Courant.
Oklahoma was responsible for selling 17,500 tickets for its matchup against Connecticut. The Sooners sold only 5,567, leaving 11,933 unsold or withheld tickets.
The Big 12 stepped in and absorbed 10,403 tickets at a cost of $1,884,250. That left Oklahoma on the hook for the remaining 1,530 at $337,080.
Connecticut, which sold only 2,771 tickets, lost nearly $1.8 million on the trip. However, the Big East has a policy not absorbing costs from unsold or withheld tickets.
Big East commissioner John Marinatto told the Courant that he expects the league will address a bailout plan for unsold bowl tickets in the spring.
"The membership could certainly make a decision to have what's in place now, or change to more of a fluctuating policy where schools, in a particular year, would be responsible to contribute a portion of their bowl monies back to the school that's trying to cover cost when it can't sell its tickets," he said.
"It's a reasonable thing to do. . . . I expect it to be discussed this spring."
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