Syracuse University is set to receive $20.8 million in revenue from the Atlantic Coast Conference after its first year in the league.

The ACC distributed $291.7 million in revenue for the 2013-2014 fiscal year according to ESPN.com, resulting in each of the 14 full-time conference members receiving an average of $20.8 million. It’s a $56.6 million revenue increase for the league, which added Pittsburgh University and SU as full-time members in 2013.

Joe Giansante, SU Athletics chief communications officer, said the revenue is a sum of the money from ACC television rights and the league’s bowl contracts from the past year. He added that this year’s revenue total from the ACC “far surpasses” the amount SU received from the Big East conference in past years.

Giansante said, in general, the money in the five power conferences—the ACC, the Southeastern Conference, the Big Ten, the Big 12 and the Pac-12—is increasing, while money outside those conferences is falling.

“If we’d stayed in what’s now the AAC [American Athletic Conference] or another league, it [the revenue] would’ve been lower,” he said.

SU is in constant contact with the ACC about financial matters, Giansante said. Members of the league then have an idea of where revenue numbers will come in and can budget appropriately.

“It’s not like a surprise or winning the lottery,” he said. “We know what our expenses will be and we count on certain revenues.”

The money goes toward building facilities, operation of the athletic department, retaining coaches and student athlete services, he said. He added that the revenue also funds sports including the tennis program and football, allowing them to compete at a high level in the ACC.

Said Giansante: “We make sure we balance our budget on an annual basis and these dollars help us do that.”

Published on June 14, 2014 at 11:24 pm

Contact Brett: blsamuel@syr.edu | @Brett_Samuels27