Boise State’s athletic department reported a $2 million budget deficit for fiscal year 2026 to the Idaho State Board of Education at an Aug. 13 meeting, warning that the deficit could reach $18 million in 2027.
Athletic Director Jeremiah Dickey and Interim Chief Financial Officer Stacy Pearson met with the board at Idaho State University where the pair reported on the athletic department’s finances, attributing the deficit to revenue-sharing with players, as well as major lawsuits filed by the Mountain West against schools that left the conference for the Pac-12.
The report indicated the department had spent $10 million on revenue-sharing, a system where
schools use a portion of the money generated from athletics to directly compensate athletes.
The original Name, Image and Likeness model, which was passed by the NCAA in 2021, allowed student-athletes to make money from individual endorsements only.
But after a federal judge approved the House v. NCAA settlement in 2025, schools were allowed to set aside a portion of their athletic revenue to directly pay athletes.
The ability of student-athletes to earn money, which has changed the landscape of college athletics since 2021, has created disparity among schools.
“We don’t need what everyone else has,” Dickey said to the board. “We just need more than we currently have.”
As big-name universities go to greater lengths to financially compensate their athletes, smaller-market schools like Boise State are forced to compete as best they can, sometimes stretching budgets in the process.
With the NCAA increasing the amount schools are allowed to spend on revenue-sharing from $20.5 million to $21.3 million, Dickey expressed that the department’s spending in that area is likely to rise in FY 2027, saying that the university is “falling behind” nationally.
“It is a challenge for us,” Dickey said when asked about revenue-sharing. “Obviously we’re behind. We’re trying to keep pace with those we compete with.”
On top of the $10 million spent on revenue-sharing, the department took a big hit when the Mountain West sued Boise State and the four other departing schools, seeking $100 million total in “exit fees,” and an additional $55 million from the Pac-12 in “poaching fees.”
The parties settled earlier this month, with Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, SDSU and Utah State each owing $9.8 million in exit fees, according to reporting from the San Diego Union-Tribune.
However, a Mountain West bylaw that allows the conference to withhold annual distributions from a school as soon as it submits a formal notice of departure caused the conference to withhold $46.9 million total from the five departing schools from the July 2025 and July 2026 distributions. This means the universities, including Boise State, now owe the conference a total of $2.1 million.
Despite legal battles and other challenges, the Boise State athletic department remains confident it can offset any deficit.
“[We] are looking to our reserves to say, ‘if there is a deficit, we have a strong balance sheet and financials as well as reserves that we look to backstop that deficit,’” Pearson said. “We do anticipate ending FY 26 in a strong financial position, even with some of the deficits.”
Part of the department’s confidence stems from the fact that Boise State Athletics ended FY 2025 with an $11.4 million surplus, providing a cushion for the financial losses experienced in 2026.
Boise State football’s trip to the College Football Playoff, which earned the university $8 million, as well as the success of a Post Malone concert held at Albertsons Stadium were the two main contributors to the surplus, according to the university.
During the meeting, State Board Executive Director Jennifer White confirmed the department’s confidence, explaining that Boise State has reserve funds to sufficiently absorb financial losses, and issues with the athletic department’s budget will not affect the university as a whole.
