Buffs’ Pac-12 payout up but trails rivals
On the plus side, the CU Buffaloes got 5 percent more from the Pac-12 in 2018 distributions than in the previous fiscal year. But the Buffaloes’ per-school payout from the Pac-12 still trailed their former Big 12 compatriots — and trailed what old rival Nebraska reportedly took in from the Big Ten by almost $23 million.
The Pac-12 announced Monday that it provided to CU and other member schools an actual cash distribution of $31.3 million for 2018. That’s an increase over 2017’s $29.9 million, but it also included money held over from the league’s Rose Bowl reserves, which the Pac-12 withholds from league members two out of every three years.
The league reported a total revenue at $497 million in 2018, a drop of $12 million over the previous fiscal year, and a per-school distribution of $29.5 million before Rose Bowl income was factored in.
Even with the Rose Bowl bonus, CU and other Pac-12 schools sit fourth out of the four Power 5 leagues whose earnings have been reported. Fully vested Big Ten schools, including the Cornhuskers, reportedly received $54 million apiece in 2018; the SEC distributed $43.7 million per member; the Big 12, CU’s home from 1996-2011, distributed $36.5 million per member before local TV rights tiers. Commissioner Larry Scott received compensation of $5.3 million in 2017, reports said, up $500,000 from 2016.
The Pac-12 CEO group also announced they had voted to eliminate the “loss of a season penalty” for all student-athletes who transfer within the conference. And administrators continued to clamp jumper cables on the postseason outlook for men’s basketball, this time on the scheduling front.
After having voted this month to move to a 20game men’s hoops conference slate, the CEO group debuted more restrictive standards for future nonconference scheduling starting next season. CU and other Pac-12 peers henceforth must:
• Not schedule non-Division I opponents in the regular season;
• Not participate in road “buy” games;
• Not schedule road games with nonconference opponents who fail to meet a minimum “five-year trailing average” NET rating of at least 200.
• Meet “a nonconference five-year trailing average” for all nonconference opponents that comes out to 175 or less.
The NET ranking debuted in the 2019-20 season, replacing the RPI as the NCAA’s standard of choice, and Pac-12 officials told The Post on Monday that KenPom.com data will be used for previous years until enough NET seasons have been accumulated.
CU (23-13) finished with a 65 NET rating but missed the NCAA Tournament for a third straight year because of a middling nonconference slate and the overall weakness of the Pac-12, which only sent three members to the NCAA tourney in each of the last two seasons. The Buffs last winter hosted five nonleague opponents who finished with a NET rating greater than 175: Omaha (178), Portland (326), Colorado State (193), South Dakota (230) and Illinois-Chicago (211). CU played on neutral or road courts three times against teams with a 200 NET rating or higher, visiting Air Force (244) in Colorado Springs and taking on Indiana State (204) and Charlotte (266) in the Diamond Head Classic Dec. 22-25 in Honolulu.