Winning the WAC Title Means $5,600 for SDSU’s Stolz

SAN DIEGO — Coach Denny Stolz will receive $5,600 and each of his 10 assistants will receive $2,800 for leading San Diego State to its first Western Athletic Conference football championship and into the Holiday Bowl this season.

“This is consistent with every major program I’m acquainted with,” said Fred Miller, SDSU athletic director. “You provide a stipend for your coaches for bowl games.”

In addition, Stolz has received $10,000, plus interest, from a separate bank account. The money will be awarded annually if Stolz runs a program free of NCAA probations. According to Miller, Stolz was given the money after internal and external audits were conducted.

“We released the money to Denny in early November,” Miller said. “We have no problems at all with our football program.”

Stolz is paid a base salary of $57,500 by SDSU. The $10,000 held in the interest-bearing account derived from Stolz’s outside income through such sources as summer youth football camps.

Miller said the school has conservatively planned on a $650,000 payoff from playing Iowa in the Holiday Bowl on Dec. 30, although bowl officials are estimating a $700,000 payoff for each school.

SDSU projects $48,000 for team expenses, which would leave $602,000 from an assumed $650,000 payoff. The Aztecs and WAC split the money remaining after team expenses, meaning SDSU would receive $301,000.

Miller said SDSU’s bowl-related expenses would be $184,000, leaving $117,000 from the bowl. Additionally, the Aztecs already had an $88,000 surplus over what they had budgeted from regular-season football ticket sales.

SDSU had a $557,000 budget deficit before the football season began.

“We will commit no less than $100,000 to debt reduction,” Miller said. “As a fiscal conservative, this is as far as I’ll let myself go now.”

In addition, Miller also has budgeted $11,000 for the men’s volleyball team and $9,000 for men’s tennis.

“A couple of years ago, those programs received a zero-fund base from the university,” Miller said. “They were required to fund everything themselves for their programs. If these sports have value, let’s at least get them into an operational function.”