Kellen Winslow, FAMU’s new athletic director, pulled no
punches when he was asked to address the state of the university’s sports programs earlier this week.
“It's broken,” Winslow said of the FAMU athletics department.
“It can’t be fixed. Tear it down, start over build it the right way.”
Winslow made the comments at the weekly luncheon of the 220
Quarterback Club, a support organization for the Rattler football team.
Back in May, the Tallahassee Democrat reported that FAMU
athletics expects to finish with about a $1.4M deficit at the end of this
fiscal year (June 30).
According to the newspaper: “Ronica Mathis, director of university budgets, told trustees she was able to lessen this year's athletics deficit by $1.3 million by using a combination of funds, including $700,000 in scholarships from the FAMU Foundation and $300,000 in Title IX money, to the athletics budget. That leaves a projected negative balance of $1.4 million for the current school year, which the university will cover with revenue from auxiliary resources such as the food service operation. Mathis attributed much of the deficit to a drop-off in ticket sales as the two primary revenue sports, football and basketball, endured losing seasons.”
The audience members at the 220 Quarterback Club luncheon left
with mixed reactions to Winslow’s speech. Some applauded his comments. Others
believed that the new athletic director needed to rethink his assessment.
“I don't think the program is broken to the point that it
can't be fixed,” said Eddie Jackson, president of the club and a former FAMU vice-president
of university relations.