AD cuts UNLV budget with care

In another life, Jim Livengood might have been one of the sharper partners at a global accounting firm. He just has this knack for numbers.

"I'm not about red ink," he said. "When you're in a position of leadership dealing with budgets, it's not the one you want to put on paper."

It has been decades since Livengood was forced to draw such a color and the UNLV athletic director, amazing as it might seem in these desperate economic times, won't again once the university's fiscal year ends June 30.

Livengood will speak publicly over the next few days about cuts he has made to ensure UNLV athletics remains in the black now and again in 2012, about tough decisions and where he had to slash so that the Rebels wouldn't lose any of their 17 intercollegiate programs or staff positions beyond those already eliminated.

But on an early morning call from Florida on Monday, Livengood offered specifics about what has been the worst financial situation he has faced as an athletic director.

He balanced 16 straight budgets at Arizona with a football program that for much of that time was dreadful. He can't remember the last time one of his budgets saw red ink -- maybe his first few years at Washington State in the late 1980s.

"I would tell any young person today who has plans of entering athletic administration to spend a lot of time studying budgets and fundraising and the legalities and potential legal issues in this day with regard to risk management," Livengood said. "It's a banner day for me when at least half the people are happy with any decision ...

"Nobody likes the (changes) we have to make, but they understand. We have good people. We're blessed to have the coaches we have."

Coaches who must now work harder to raise outside funds for things they are accustomed to having.

Summer school for student-athletes won't be paid for by athletics in the 2012 fiscal year, a critical part of keeping many athletes eligible. It's also a savings of $250,000. Recruiting budgets will be cut by $50,000. So will travel for teams. Equipment will be trimmed by $40,000.

Livengood's budget also won't fund cell phones for staffers, a common practice now for cash-strapped athletic departments and likely a big change for some football and basketball recruiters at UNLV whose monthly bill might equal some peoples' mortgage payments.

It could be much worse. For fiscal 2011, UNLV athletics received $1.7 million less than projected from the Thomas & Mack Center. That's a big, important number. That's a lot of dollar signs to make up for elsewhere.

"At the end of the day, keeping all 17 of our sports was very important to me," Livengood said. "Whether they produce revenue or not, I truly believe in the value of 480 student-athletes having the college experience. But fiscal year 2012 will be tough."

He still sees hope. He believes better fundraising efforts of late have led to better relationships and contacts, that there are those with the means willing to step forward and support the program. He's a big believer in the Rebel Athletic Fund and those running it.

He hopes having two more home football games in 2012 than the upcoming season will mean successful gate receipts and that the excitement surrounding new men's basketball coach Dave Rice and his staff will continue to fill seats at the Thomas & Mack.

Programs across the country have cut far more than those specifics mentioned here and others Livengood will offer this week. He did about as good a job as UNLV coaches could have hoped for given the times.

On Friday, he will gather the athletic department staff for an evaluation retreat to look closely at how each of 17 programs are doing competitively as it relates to the Mountain West and NCAA and UNR, of how each can be better and do more with less.

"I'm not smart enough to see into the future of what might happen," Livengood said. "There is no crystal ball with any of this. But I do see a future where no state money needs to be used for athletics. I believe that day will come. Right now, we're not working on a deficit, but the next 12 months are critical for raising money. We have done as good a job as ever in that area the last year.

"We need to be better in everything we do. I think we are staffed right now as well as UNLV has been in a long, long time. At the end of the day, it's always going to come down to how good your coaches and student-athletes are."

And, at least for UNLV, having an athletic director good enough at crunching numbers to make black ink over red a reality, even in the worst of times.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard from 3 to 5 p.m. Monday and Thursday on "Monsters of the Midday," Fox Sports Radio 920 AM. Follow him on Twitter: @edgraney.