No. 15 Norfolk State (27-6) was defeated by No. 2 Stanford (29-5), 79-50, in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. The disparity is closer than Jackson State-UConn, but it is still a concern. The Lady Spartans reported a 2022-23 total operating expenses of $1,244,343.00 compared to the Cardinal program, estimated a little over $8.1 million in 2021-23.
The bottom line is unavoidable: HBCUs and mid-majors will have to increase their budgets to compete at higher levels. Whether through garnering competitive NIL deals for recruits, increasing corporate and alumni support, and retaining coaches, black colleges and universities must improve their plans for generating revenue from the thousands into the millions.
