The topic of revisiting the football program has come up periodically over the past three decades and in December of 2015 it came up again—but this was the first time the subject was broached under Bardo, who’s been president since 2012.
“Everything is on the table,” Bardo said according to Kansas.com. “The sports we offer, facilities, conferences. This is about the university, and its ability to support the community and support our students.”
What the community can support will largely depend on money. A football program at the FBS level costs roughly $13 million per season to run, according to Bardo—which would nearly double Wichita State’s current $18 million athletic budget.
in 1998, a 17-person committee gave a recommendation to then-president Gene Hughes that the school bring back the football program. But after approaching major donors and large corporations for support—and apparently not getting any—the school decided against bringing it back.
The time seems right for a football program right now with the school already boasting a powerhouse baseball program and a rising basketball team.
It won’t be easy, though, as the rural state produces few FBS-level players per season with both Kansas and Kansas State competing for recruits in the same area.
