Appears the COA stipend will be the hot offseason topic this year. So far, every SEC coach has discussed it in Destin.
Here's this from 247 from last week.
Here's this from 247 from last week.
Then, there's this al.com article from today.The Chronicle of Higher Education published a list of the estimated cost of attendance scholarships that will be offered by each Power 5 school for the 2015-16 school year.
The figures are based on the group's governmental formula, so schools are not making up the figures themselves and they can't just elect to pay student-athletes any amount they want to give them. The formula has caused some discrepancies in the amounts SEC schools are allowed to offer, and many believe the stipend figures could become a big factor in recruiting.
For example, the University of Tennessee is estimated to be able to pay athletes $5,666 - while Kentucky can only offer $2,284. The additional $3,000 a year might not seem like a lot to some, but it could be an important factor in the decisions of some families.
Could cost-of-attendance affect recruiting? One SEC AD thinks so
When the Southeastern Conference convenes this week in Destin, Fla., it will debate the latest hot-button issue: Cost-of-attendance figures.
The average fan could care less about cost-of-attendance, but it's produced plenty of anxiety in athletic directors across the country. Many of those same athletic directors fought to get the measure approved in January, but now reality has set in and some have realized it's not an even playing field.
There are significant disparities in the money offered by each school for full cost-of-attendance -- Auburn, for instance, provides nearly $3,000 more than Stanford -- leading some to believe it will be used as a recruiting advantage.
"I think we all agree in the conference it's an issue," Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity told AL.com. "It does make a difference to some individuals; to some young men and some young women. I would hope the majority of the conference would love to see some consistency in those numbers."