COLUMBIA, Mo. — University of Missouri System leadership established a new oversight committee Thursday that will monitor Mizzou athletics amid broad changes to college sports and rising spending by the athletics department.
The UM System Board of Curators voted unanimously to create the Mizzou Intercollegiate Athletics Special Committee during its regularly scheduled meeting on the MU campus.
The four-member committee’s oversight will range from finances to progress of athletics facilities renovations to name, image and likeness compensation and the future of the NCAA.
“Particularly at this critical moment in the evolution of key programs and with major planned investments in MU Athletics imminent, accountability to the Board and the State through this new committee is more important than ever,†reads a meeting document making the case for the committee.
People are also reading…
Bob Blitz, the attorney who led ºüÀêÊÓƵ’ legal effort against the Rams and netted a record settlement, will chair the committee. Todd Graves, Robin Wenneker and Jeff Layman make up the other three members.
“We are aware that the fundamental aspects of Collegiate Athletics are undergoing significant and ongoing changes,†reads part of the committee description. “These include, but are not limited to, shifts in athlete acquisition and retention methods and costs, the changing landscape of coach salaries and mobility, as well as the rising expenses associated with maintaining, upgrading, and constructing facilities. These changes bring about various challenges with broader implications.â€
The committee’s first charge focuses on Mizzou athletics finances. The new oversight group will have the power to “obtain, monitor and gather all information the committee deems necessary to assess progress of athletic funding, efforts and results of funding.â€
In the 2023 fiscal year, which ended in June, the athletics department finished in the black by a single dollar, partially due to direct financial support in the form of a loan from the university. Mizzou athletics spent and generated record amounts that year, which ended before the 2023 football season and Monday’s record-setting $62 million donation.
The committee is also tasked with obtaining and monitoring “all information regarding the progress of the Memorial Stadium Project, any other athletic facilities or plans and the progress of the Huron Roadmap.â€
Mention of Huron refers to the athletics department’s 2022 deal with the consulting firm to identify areas in which Mizzou can “further invest in athletics excellence,†according to a news release issued at the time. Establishing the committee came up as part of Huron’s work with MU.
Pre-design work for a proposed renovation of the stadium’s North Concourse is ongoing after the curators approved a partnership with an architecture firm in December. A more concrete proposal for the project is expected to come before the board at its April 18 meeting.
The committee’s third charge is its broadest and relates to the overall future of college sports. The group will be routinely updated “on matters concerning NCAA, SEC or any legal matters pending or on the horizon regarding the foregoing and NIL, Title IX, taxable status of contributions or other matters that may affect athletics at MU.â€
Those areas — player compensation, conference realignment and the waning power of the NCAA — are among the hot-button topics presenting uncertainty across the college sports landscape.
The committee also has the power to tackle other matters related to Mizzou athletics as it sees fit.
Thursday’s resolution doesn’t specify when the special committee will begin meeting, but its expectations for university and athletics department leadership were clear: “Recognize and execute all things necessary to cooperate and adhere to the requests and directives of this special committee in a timely manner so that committee can accomplish its activities.â€