The budget may have been shrinking for some other reason.
Im sorry but i have to disagree. I played for two years at Florida State as an invited walk-on and before we started two-a-days each year (06, 07) T.K. Wethrell the University President came and spoke to the team and handed out accounting records that listed revenue and such in an attempt to show how important public perception of the team is (06 academic problems). Of all revenues tha tFSU brought in, including tuition, research grants, alumni donations, ANY and ALL other sports including Basketball and baseball, football made more than any of them for the school. Profits somewhere around $23.5 Mil
Along with a revenues list he handed out a itemized list of what it cost to put each player through school, tha tnumber is closed to $38,000 a year. so if you crunch the numbers $38k x 85 scholarship athletes... $3,230,000. thats a profit of$20,270,000 million. or $238,470 per player-per year. more than enough to pay for all your classmates to get an engineering degree two or three times if you wanted. And get the degree in the new lab that was paid for by football.
I grew up a Gator and will always be a Gator. and this academic stuff is very embarassing. but theres no reason for off the wall claims like that no offense but there had to be some other reason buddies didnt get into the C.O.Engineering.