Does spending help winning?
Advocate: NCAA spending report incomplete
Someone at NCAA headquarters has a wicked sense of humor. One day after LSU announced its plan to raise the price of football tickets and surcharges for nearly half the seats in Tiger Stadium, the NCAA released what it called a myth-busting report that said, in simple terms, there's no evidence that increased spending leads to higher winning percentages.
Before you shout "Aha!" and further condemn LSU for the first significant step in catching up with most of its Southeastern Conference brethren on ticket surcharges, there's something you should know: The NCAA report also said there's no evidence proving there's an arms race in college athletics.
That's because the data for the study didn't include capital expenditures. You know, such sundries as stadiums, luxury suites and football complexes.
Did someone say No Clue At All?
Upon further inspection, the results of the study released Thursday by the NCAA form the basis of an interim report -- and a flawed one at that.
But someone in Indianapolis, home of the NCAA offices, decided Thursday was the right time to announce, "Hey, we're still studying spending in college athletics, but so far, after ignoring the big-ticket items on campus, we can see no connection between spending and championships."
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By CARL DUBOIS
cdubois@theadvocate.com
Advocate sportswriter
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