Spring Break
Travel-friendly schedule saves CSU much-needed money
Sean Star
Issue date: 11/21/08 Section: Sports
A penny saved is a penny earned.
Such is the case this year for the Rams football team and the cash-strapped athletics department at CSU.
Thanks to a schedule drafted by the Mountain West Conference and three non-conference games played within state, the team is saving thousands of precious dollars from its travel budget, investing some of the extra money in recruiting as part of the program's rebuilding efforts.
Because the Rams played road games at regional foes Air Force and Colorado earlier this year, along with a quick jaunt up to Wyoming this Saturday, all accessible with a two-hour bus ride, the team has only made three plane trips this season, compared to the five it made last year.
With a travel party of 130 - consisting of players, coaches, trainers, media, videographers, senior department staff members and donors - the bill for a plane trip adds up quickly.
Each flight carries a $75,000 price tag. Room and board costs an additional $12,000 to $18,000. A bus ride to and from Denver International Airport is $3,000, and an occasional highway patrol escort from the hotel to the stadium goes for another $1,000. Add it all up and the cost of traveling to an away game can reach nearly $100,000, according to Jeff Collier, the Athletics Department's business manager.
Though Collier said the department budgets accordingly, he also said the team has saved money this year because of the Rams' travel-friendly schedule.
And because of the savings, an extra $50,000 has been put toward recruiting this year. The program has also invested the extra money in video editing equipment, renovations to the locker room at Hughes Stadium and football supplies, Collier said. The rest has been put toward savings.
The extra funds came as a delightful surprise for assistant coach Greg Peterson, the team's recruiting coordinator.
"I wasn't even aware of it. That's good news," Peterson said. "But you think about it, and it makes sense. When you have monies within your program, you're going to put it where you need it most. And right now, as we're going through the season, pretty soon you start traveling, that'll be great to have a few more resources."
Such is the case this year for the Rams football team and the cash-strapped athletics department at CSU.
Thanks to a schedule drafted by the Mountain West Conference and three non-conference games played within state, the team is saving thousands of precious dollars from its travel budget, investing some of the extra money in recruiting as part of the program's rebuilding efforts.
Because the Rams played road games at regional foes Air Force and Colorado earlier this year, along with a quick jaunt up to Wyoming this Saturday, all accessible with a two-hour bus ride, the team has only made three plane trips this season, compared to the five it made last year.
With a travel party of 130 - consisting of players, coaches, trainers, media, videographers, senior department staff members and donors - the bill for a plane trip adds up quickly.
Each flight carries a $75,000 price tag. Room and board costs an additional $12,000 to $18,000. A bus ride to and from Denver International Airport is $3,000, and an occasional highway patrol escort from the hotel to the stadium goes for another $1,000. Add it all up and the cost of traveling to an away game can reach nearly $100,000, according to Jeff Collier, the Athletics Department's business manager.
Though Collier said the department budgets accordingly, he also said the team has saved money this year because of the Rams' travel-friendly schedule.
And because of the savings, an extra $50,000 has been put toward recruiting this year. The program has also invested the extra money in video editing equipment, renovations to the locker room at Hughes Stadium and football supplies, Collier said. The rest has been put toward savings.
The extra funds came as a delightful surprise for assistant coach Greg Peterson, the team's recruiting coordinator.
"I wasn't even aware of it. That's good news," Peterson said. "But you think about it, and it makes sense. When you have monies within your program, you're going to put it where you need it most. And right now, as we're going through the season, pretty soon you start traveling, that'll be great to have a few more resources."
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