The Wiz of Odds

From the Department of Self-Promotion

The Wiz's 2011 study of bowl game expense reports is cited in the May 14 edition of ESPN Magazine, which is titled "The Money Issue" and features Floyd Mayweather on the cover.

ESPN examined the most undervalued and overvalued assets in sports. In citing our study, ESPN determined that going to a bowl game ranked No. 6 on the overvalued list. The item appears on page 84.

The Wiz determined that the 70 teams in the 2010 postseason spent an average of $1.31 million on a bowl trip, with nearly 25% going toward required ticket purchases the teams did not recover. Read our report at this link.

Music City Bowl

The Wiz of Odds is conducting a comprehensive study of bowl game expense reports. All of the data collected — expense reports for 56 teams and bowl surveys for 40 teams — are being posted on the site. Here is the latest installment. For an overview of the project, click here.

The Music City Bowl is owned and operated by the Nashville Sports Council, a private 501(c) nonprofit. The inaugural game was played in 1998.

2010 participants: North Carolina and Tennessee.

North Carolina expenses: The school reported 1,465 absorbed tickets at a cost of $93,260. Administrative costs were listed at $297,923. The team also reported an expenditure of $3,072, which covered the cost of laundry services (at bowl site — $1,811) and rental of hydraulic lifts to film practice ($1,261). Download North Carolina Expenses

Survey: The school did not provide The Wiz of Odds with a bowl survey.

Tennessee expenses: The school listed 1,927 absorbed tickets at a cost of $115,780. In addition to the form returned to the NCAA, Tennessee provided a more detailed breakdown of expenses to The Wiz of Odds. Those expenses are listed on page three of the pdf.

On that page, total costs were listed at $816,221. Included in the expanded breakdown were items such as player bowl gifts ($42,550), bowl media guides ($15,312) and practice officials ($945). Download Tennessee Expenses

Survey: Athletic director Mike Hamilton gave the bowl a "dissatisfied" rating when asked if bowl policies were clearly communicated.

"The only real issue we had with the bowl was the management from the Sports Information Side [sic]," Hamilton wrote. "The postgame media setup was not very well managed. We had communicate [sic] our needs and our issues, and they were seemingly ignored. Media management could be better with this bowl."

He also expressed frustration with VIP courtesy transportation.

"The biggest issue we had was with the logistics of the hotel and their valet parking," he wrote. "If you were not traveling with the team on buses, it was nearly impossible to get onto or out of the hotel property. With 1,800 rooms, two football teams and a cheerleading competition going, the hotel was hectic and neither team felt like they were the priority.

"Cheerleaders became the focal point. When it takes nearly 40 minutes to get into or out of the hotel that is too long. This needs to be addressed." Download Tennessee Survey

Cotton Bowl

The Wiz of Odds is conducting a comprehensive study of bowl game expense reports. All of the data collected — expense reports for 56 teams and bowl surveys for 40 teams — are being posted on the site. Here is the latest installment. For an overview of the project, click here.

The nonprofit Cotton Bowl Athletic Association operates the Cotton Bowl, first played in 1937, making it the fifth-oldest bowl game.

2011 participants: Louisiana State and Texas A&M.

LSU expenses: The school reported only 97 absorbed tickets at a cost of $12,950. The biggest reported expense came from additional compensation and fringe benefits, which totaled $586,740. The school gave no other details. Download Louisiana State Expenses

LSU's travel party numbered 741, 10th highest among the 56 teams whose expense reports were obtained by The Wiz of Odds.

Survey: LSU did not provide a bowl survey to The Wiz of Odds.

Texas A&M expenses: The Aggies reported only 17 absorbed tickets at a cost of $2,125. The biggest expense listed was administrative, totaling an off-the-chart $773,542, easily the highest administrative cost of the 56 bowl reports obtained by The Wiz of Odds. The school did not disclose why those costs were so high. Download Texas A&M Expenses

Survey: Athletic director Bill Byrne answered either "satisfied" or "very satisfied" to each question on the survey. He gave bowl officials high marks for their use of technology.

"Bowl manual was well organized and easy to find answers to questions," Byrne wrote. "Having Manual [sic] on ipads [sic] made it easier to carry with you and have the ability to answer questions for various groups."

Sports Business Journal annually tracks what gifts bowls give to players. The Cotton Bowl declined to reveal what they would present to the players, but Byrne let the world know when he wrote this comment: "The student-athletes were very happy with the Ipad [sic]." (It's iPad)

Byrne did have one suggestion when asked what the bowl could do to improve the experience.

"Area to improve …. The driver pool (group that provides transportation). Drivers didn't know directions to stadium or other locations from hotel and would get lost, causing delays," he wrote. Download Texas A&M Survey

Pinstripe Bowl

The Wiz of Odds is conducting a comprehensive study of bowl game expense reports. All of the data collected — expense reports for 56 teams and bowl surveys for 40 teams — are being posted on the site. Here is the latest installment. For an overview of the project, click here.

The Pinstripe Bowl is owned and operated by Major League Baseball's New York Yankees and the Steinbrenner family. The inaugural game was played this past season.

2010 participants: Kansas State and Syracuse.

Kansas State expenses: According to the report, the Wildcats were required to purchase only 3,486 tickets. The school reported selling all but 301 tickets at a cost of $35,155. The biggest expenses were transportation ($546,841) and lodging/meals ($618,840). Those two expenses accounted for 87.2 percent of expenses. Kansas State also listed practice site costs of $10,895. Download Kansas State Expenses

Survey: Athletic director John Currie graded conditions of the practice and playing field as "neutral." He gave the same rating to the proximity of the practice field and stadium to the team hotel.

"Institution initially had to find own practice facilities for the first two days in community," Currie wrote. "Bowl staff was helpful during weather issues. Anticipate that practice field arrangments [sic] will be more definitive going forward. Game field was in poor condition due to weather."

Currie gave a "neutral" rating when asked about the adequacy of information provided by the bowl.

"Bowl manual needs significant additional information," he wrote. "Many unanswered questions in first year but anticipate significant improvement for future."

Although he was "very satisfied" over the quality of gifts for athletes, coaches and staff, Currie noted, "We were unable to purchase additional watches and female watches were not provided." Download Kansas State Survey

Syracuse: The private school declined to offer its expense report or bowl survey to The Wiz of Odds.

Hawaii Bowl

The Wiz of Odds is conducting a comprehensive study of bowl game expense reports. All of the data collected — expense reports for 56 teams and bowl surveys for 40 teams — are being posted on the site. Here is the latest installment. For an overview of the project, click here.

The Hawaii Bowl is one of seven postseason games owned and operated by ESPN. The game has been played annually at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu since 2002.

2010 participants: Hawaii and Tulsa.

Hawaii expenses: Playing a bowl game in your home stadium helps keep the costs down. The Warriors spent only $21,064 on transportation and absorbed 965 tickets at a cost of $43,290. The biggest expense was $158,587 for lodging and meals. The school also included $105,939 in bonuses to coaches, something few schools reported on the expense report. Hawaii's total expenses of $385,826 were fifth lowest among the 56 reports obtained by The Wiz of Odds. Download Hawaii Expenses

Survey: Hawaii did not complete a survey.

Tulsa: The private school declined to offer its expense report or bowl survey to The Wiz of Odds.

Meineke Car Care Bowl

The Wiz of Odds is conducting a comprehensive study of bowl game expense reports. All of the data collected — expense reports for 56 teams and bowl surveys for 40 teams — are being posted on the site. Here is the latest installment. For an overview of the project, click here.

The Meineke Car Care Bowl, which is played in Charlotte, opened for business in 2002. The game, which is owned and operated by Raycom Sports, has undergone several name changes. Continental Tire sponsored the event for three years before Meineke took over from 2005-10. Meineke dropped its sponsorship early in 2011 and Belk, a department store chain based in Charlotte, has become the new title sponsor.

2010 participants: Clemson and South Florida.

Clemson expenses: The school reported absorbing 3,023 tickets at a cost of $328,095. Total expenses were listed at $941,294. Download Clemson Expenses

Survey: Although it was a short 114-mile trip to Charlotte, Clemson sold only 7,118 tickets. Athletic director Terry Don Phillips nearly apologized to the bowl for Tiger fans' tepid interest in the game.

"The [bowl] staff did everything possible to assist us in the sale of tickets," he wrote. "We wish we could have sold more."

Clemson's biggest expense — meals and lodging — gobbled up 44.2 percent of expenses. Phillips gave a "neutral" response when asked about the cost of hotel rooms. Download Clemson Survey

South Florida expenses: A whopping 51.5 percent of the school's reported expenses of $1.4 million came from absorbed tickets. The team reportedly absorbed 9,548 tickets at a cost of $728,745. The school sold only 2,328. Under other expenses, the Bulls listed credit card fees of $4,049. Download South Florida Expenses

Survey: Absorbed ticket costs were apparently on athletic director Doug Woolard's mind when he filled out the survey. Woolard gave a "neutral" rating when asked about the ticket requirement and cost of tickets.

He was critical of the practice field location.

"The proximity of the practice field to the hotel was inconvienient [sic]. In future bowls, we would hope that the practice venue would be closer to the team hotel," he wrote.

Woolard also gave "neutral" responses when asked about the cost of hotel rooms and whether the accommodations were adequate for VIPs, the team, fans and alumni.

"There was a shortage of complimentary tickets for some of the events (e.g. Welcome Reception), while others we had hoped would be open to the rest of the travel party (e.g. Charlotte Motor Speedway).

"VIP Room (hospitality) needs to be more closely monitored. Donors and miscellaneous guests at the hotel often came in to the room, disturbing players and coaches." Download South Florida Survey