SW Arkansas Times

Columbia County's institution invested $1,115,867 on their football teams in 2023, an 8.3% increase in funding from the previous year, according to the U.S. Department of Education.

This represents 18% of all money invested on sport teams at Southern Arkansas University Main Campus during 2023.

The average sports expenses at Columbia County have grown 108.2% since 2010.

College football is one of the biggest sports in the U.S., with some college teams eclipsing NFL teams in terms of attendance and profit.

In 2022, after a decades-long fight, student athletes nationwide gained the right to profit from their names, likenesses, and images as a result of a flurry of new state laws and an NCAA policy change.

Year	Football Team's Expenditures	% from grand total sport team expenditures
2023	$1,115,867	18%
2022	$1,029,953	17.3%
2021	$799,276	19.4%
2020	$975,692	19.8%
2019	$1,027,375	19.1%