Gators, others getting $23 million from SEC due to pandemic losses

The Gators and every other SEC program received $23 million in supplemental revenue from the conference because of the devastating financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the league announced Wednesday afternoon.

That injection of cash will help offset the $45 million in lost revenue SEC schools averaged, according to the conference.

“The extraordinary circumstances produced by the global pandemic have presented colleges and universities with an unprecedented disruption to their programs and budgets,” SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said in a statement. “This supplemental revenue distribution will help ensure each SEC member will continue to provide high levels of support to its student-athletes.”

The conference funded its supplement through upcoming increases in media rights money. In December, the SEC announced a new 10-year deal with ESPN starting in 2024.

The SEC said it expects athletic departments to use the funds “to maintain each school’s historically high standards for academic, athletic, medical, nutritional and mental health support for their student-athletes and help offset the significant costs associated with COVID testing during the 2020-21 athletic year.”

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