KALAMAZOO, Mich — The coronavirus pandemic has forced Western Michigan University to make some significant cuts to its athletic budget, according to the Detroit Free Press.
In a Monday report, the Freep said Western's athletic director Kathy Beauregard knew her department would be severely impacted when COVID-19 began shutting down collegiate sports -- but she had no idea the specifics of the impending financial fallout.
WMU will cut over $6 million from its $38 million budget, the Freep reported. That includes a 25% voluntary salary cuts for football head coach Tim Lester and hockey coach Andy Murray. The assistant coaches for the football and hockey teams will also receive cuts, the report continued.
Beauregard told the Freep she has also matched the reductions from Lester and Murray.
Beauregard also said individual sports will not be cut at this point. But, if WMU were to cut a team, it would have 15 team sports -- just one shy of the 16-team threshold needed to remain in Division 1.
According to the Freep, a group of alumni agreed to make $100,000 donations to the WMU Foundation to help cover the scholarships for senior players to come back for another year -- COVID-19 cancelled all spring seasons.
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