The NCAA planed to distribute $600 million to Division I schools and conference this spring, before the ultra-lucrative men's basketball tournament was canceled last week due to coronavirus concerns.
The organization has insurance to cover the tournament's cancelation, but a report from USA Today shows that policy will recoup less than half of that.
The actual dollar figures range between $250 million and $275 million, according to the report, and it's not as simple as simply waiting for the check from State Farm or Allstate to arrive. Policies such as these can take a while to untangle, and it's not as if the NCAA is the only organization looking to cash in a similar policy these days, either.
In the meantime, the NCAA was scheduled to disperse its first in a series of payments on April 15, leaving ADs across the country scrambling to prepare for a reduced and/or delayed check.
"NCAA leadership and membership committees are identifying and working through the considerable implications related to the decision to cancel remaining winter and all spring championships in response to the COVID-19 pandemic," the NCAA said in a statement last week. "While some decisions can be made quickly like the suspension of recruiting activity, others may take time to reach conclusion. As details become available, we will share with our membership and the public."
The NCAA compiled $400 million in reserves from 2004-14, but then spent that covering legal settlements, among other things.
All told, the NCAA planned to take in $827 million from CBS and Turner Sports for airing this year's tournament.
Like anything else in times such as these, football-first schools in the Power 5 conferences would endure the softest blow while the schools at the bottom of the totem pole, particularly ones that either don't play football or do so at the FCS level, would be hardest hit.