Mike Slive is a good business man. I'll reserve judgement on how good a commissioner he is when the over signing issue is dealt with (or not).
Mike Slive is a good commissioner.
Oh, many of you out there don’t like him because he’s probably not done enough for your favorite school. He also oversees the SEC’s officials, for which he’s taken plenty of flak. And some folks might even take issue with all of the NCAA rumors and allegations that exist across the league — under his watch — these days. But the man is still a good commissioner.
Why? Because he brings in a lot of cash. And that’s Job One.
Kyle Veazey of The Jackson Clarion-Ledger grabbed the SEC’s most recent IRS information and did some math. He found that the two new mega-deals that Slive recently brokered with CBS and ESPN has more than doubled the league’s income from media rights, as expected:
| Dates |
TV/Satellite Radio Revenue |
Postseason Event Revenue |
Media + Postseason Revenue |
Avg. Cut per School |
| Sept ’08 – Aug ’09 |
$60.1 million |
$78.8 million |
$138.9 million |
$13.03 million |
| Sept ’09 – Aug ’10 |
$153.3 million |
$80.9 million |
$234.2 million |
$18.28 million |
Bringing in $5 million more per year per school is the kind of work that impresses Slive’s bosses — the league’s presidents and chancellors.
Slive will be less than a week past his 72nd birthday when his contract expires on July 31st of next year. If he chooses not to continue past 72 — his predecessor Roy Kramer retired at that age — then the SEC will have some very big shoes to fill.
Whether the man currently in those shoes is popular or not, Slive has overseen an unmatched era of SEC dominance on the football field. And he’s also made everyone involved a lot more money.
