NSU athletics feeling strain of budget cuts

Pinching pennies may be smart in today’s economy, but it’s not an easy task when running an athletic department.

When the state announced that it was cutting the budgets of every four-year college in Louisiana, members of the Nicholls State athletics department knew they would not be immune.

Originally, the department had been told it would have to cut $471,195. That number has since been reduced to approximately $150,000, according to Athletics Director Rob Bernardi.

The department has until June 30, the end of the fiscal year, to make the cuts.

The cuts are the latest in a financially tough year for Nicholls State. The university lost money when the Colonels’ New Mexico State football game was cancelled at the outset of the season because of Hurricane Gustav’s arrival.

“That game guarantee was $300,000,” Bernardi said. “After you deduct expenses, we probably would have gotten about $170,000 back. That was lost revenue.”

Next season, both the football and basketball teams have guaranteed “money” games. The football team plays two paying games and the basketball team has four to six in the works.

To save money, Nicholls’ athletics department implemented a spending freeze in late 2008.

Bernardi said the department has approximately $5 million to operate its 14 sports programs. Of the $5 million, the university provides roughly half. The rest of the funds are generated through ticket and gear sales and sponsorships.

“Last year, we operated through the fiscal year, balanced our budget and actually had a little extra,” the athletics director said. “This year was awfully challenging, because of lost revenue from the football game.”

Fiscal challenges have already been felt throughout the department. Bernardi said coaches rely on fundraisers – such as Saturday’s skeet shoot – to generate funds.

“The coaches still have the leeway to build and operate their programs,” he explained. “Hopefully, by the end of the fiscal year we will have met our budget cuts and can resume with doing things the way they were.”

In the meantime, the spring programs will be faced with juggling travel schedules to non-conference games. Bernardi said budget cuts have made travel tougher. In past years, NSU’s softball and volleyball teams traveled outside of the southeast region to play in tournaments. That practice could be in jeopardy this season.

“We will try to curtail any unnecessary travel and be cautious about spending extra nights away,” he said. “We certainly asked the coaches when scheduling non-conference games to be mindful of travel. It’s important to schedule opponents that are easily accessible travel-wise.”

To trim costs, Nicholls’ hiring freeze remains in effect until the budget is finalized.

The university’s search for a new Lady Colonels’ soccer coach has been on hold until the freeze is lifted. Former coach Cindy Piper resigned in November.

The coach search was narrowed to 10 finalists in December, and Bernardi said a new coach had been expected to be hired by February. However, the hiring freeze postponed a hire. The athletics director said there is no timetable for hiring a new coach.

For the time being, assistant coach Kristen Fillmore, a former player, has been handling all of the duties.

“We are going to do whatever is asked of us by the university to contribute to the overall fiscal responsibility,” Bernardi said. “I can’t say when exactly we’ll be able to hire a coach. Hopefully, we’ll be able to hire one when the university gives the go-ahead.”

Despite the cutbacks, Bernardi said monies have been appropriated by the state to fund Nicholls’ sports programs. The only exception is the soccer complex, which is being built with donations from Mike Fesi.

Work replacing the baseball and softball outfield walls and scoreboards – all damaged by Hurricane Gustav – is expected to be completed before the seasons begin this month.

“We want to do whatever is necessary to help not only the athletic department but the university manage the budget,” Bernardi said.