Expect Gophers Football to Hire a GM Soon

The college football landscape has changed drastically in the past few years. That means the Minnesota Gophers must also change how they operate. Even at the collegiate level, football teams across the country are hiring general managers to manage player personnel, or what used to be known as “student athletes”.

At the professional level, a general manager assembles a roster within the parameters of a given budget. They are also responsible for organizational staffing and development of player roster. Each acquisition has a cost and that’s something a GM must be abreast of.

Minnesota Gophers looking into a GM for football

With the ever-expanding NIL landscape in college football, the Minnesota Gophers are now looking into hiring a general manager, too. Athletic Director Mark Coyle talked with Marcus Fuller, of the Star Tribune, about what a general manager may look like at the collegiate level.

“If it’s at $21 million to $22 million [annual shared revenue], you have to have somebody who’s going to manage that cap for you at the same time. If a professional team misses on a player, it really impacts their cap for future years. And so, we’re going to have to start to think that way. We’ve looked at, do we need to bring somebody in that can help us manage those caps? Is it different people for different sports?

And then, more importantly, we want to be very strategic and analytical when we assign those dollar values, when we make those commitments to those kids where we’re different than the professional level. It’s not just how many baskets do they make, right. Are you going to class? Are you going to graduate? Those things all come into play too. Those are things we ought to measure.”

Mark Coyle to the Star Tribune on a Minnesota Gophers general manager

Related: Confirmed: Gophers New Revenue Split Will Mostly Pay Football Players

Dollars are being dispersed for NIL agreements throughout colleges, and will require a new position of compliance. That’s where this general manager position would come in. The Minnesota Gophers presumably will make a hire for this role, prior to the 2025 season, though Coyle doesn’t say for sure that it will happen.

Minnesota Gophers football to rule most decisions

It shouldn’t be a surprise that the greatest revenue generating sport will cause the most influence. Coyle estimates that football is roughly 90% of the finances for the Minnesota Gophers athletic department. A continued investment in the program will only drive revenues further.

The Minnesota Gophers currently offer 22 sports programs. Sport cuts could be part of the dollar allocation down the line, but Coyle feels good with where things are currently. Nonetheless, they are evaluating things on a constant basis, in this ever-changing landscape.

“I made some of our coaches really nervous because I said we have to look at everything we’re doing in terms of recruiting, travel, budgets, nutrition, how we do all those types of things. It’s going to look different for Minnesota. It’s going to look different for Ohio State, etc.”

Mark Coyle on money for Minnesota Gophers programs

The ever-changing landscape of college sports will continue to generate a need for adjustment. Still considered amateur competition, players are now compensated like never before. Of course, that makes sense, since college football is making more money than ever before.

Related: Nobody Believes in the Minnesota Gophers

The Minnesota Gophers will need to remain competitive, on that front, or risk being left in the dust. It seems as though Mark Coyle and the University are trying to think ahead and planning for what is next. But good luck doing that with collegiate athletics in 2024.