In the final segment of our series on how college athletes would be taxed should they become paid athletes, we look at solely the basketball programs for the Mountain West Conference and Big East Conference.
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If this is your first time stopping by, here are some other articles to get you caught up to speed in the series on the impact state income taxes could have on NCAA recruiting.
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The Mountain West Conference (MWC) is very similar to the Pac 12 not only in location but also in the effects they would incur should they pay their basketball stars. Similar to the Pac 12, there is a large disparity among the teams in the conference. Basketball players for San Jose State would make $34,014 less per year than their conference mates at UNLV. Aside from the Pac 12’s gap between Oregon and Washington State, this is the largest difference for state tax bills between conference mates in the entire NCAA.
The large variations among the MWC is good news for UNLV as they have finished 3rd in the MWC for the past 5 years, usually trailing to either New Mexico or San Diego State. With Nevada’s lack of an income tax, paying MWC basketball players would greatly benefit UNLV as they would be able to offer their players $17,005 more annually than the Lobo’s and $33,518 more than the Aztecs.
With the recent divorce that split the Big East basketball schools from their former conference mates with football programs, it appears the Big East came out on the wrong end of the deal. Many of their former football programs left for the American Conference which now holds the title as the NCAA conference with the smallest average state income tax bill ($10,049). Contrarily, the average basketball player in the Big East owes the second largest amount ($20,913) in state income tax of all NCAA basketball players.
Within the conference, Villanova appears to be the greatest benefactor from the change to pay college athletes. Not only is the Wildcats state income bill of $11,688 the least in the Big East, but their stiffest competitors in the conference standings the past few years – Georgetown and Marquette – face the two largest state tax bills among the conference. Excluding the teams who left the Big East and those who just joined this past season, only the Georgetown and Marquette programs have averaged better conference standings than Villanova over the past five years. If college athletes were to get paid, Villanova’s program could likely exceed the Hoyas’ and Golden Eagles’ programs as they could offer their basketball athletes $13,364 and $18,908 more, respectively, than their inner conference foes.
While the $19,000 gap in net income between Villanova and Georgetown seems significant, the Big East is the NCAA conference with the least variation among conference teams. Whether this will make the Big East the most competitive conference is yet to be seen.
While the $19,000 gap in net income between Villanova and Georgetown seems significant, the Big East is the NCAA conference with the least variation among conference teams. Whether this will make the Big East the most competitive conference is yet to be seen.
NOTE:
This article only discusses state income taxes. College athletes would also be subject to federal and local income taxes. Provisions in the federal tax code allow for the deduction of state and local income taxes for certain income thresholds. Given this potential deduction on federal taxes, the variance in total income taxes owed may not be as drastic between conferences and schools. However, for simplicity sake - this article solely focuses on state income taxes.
Estimated football and basketball salaries provided by CNBC's Mark Koba (@MarkKobaCNBC).
This article only discusses state income taxes. College athletes would also be subject to federal and local income taxes. Provisions in the federal tax code allow for the deduction of state and local income taxes for certain income thresholds. Given this potential deduction on federal taxes, the variance in total income taxes owed may not be as drastic between conferences and schools. However, for simplicity sake - this article solely focuses on state income taxes.
Estimated football and basketball salaries provided by CNBC's Mark Koba (@MarkKobaCNBC).
- Estimated football salary: $178,000
- Estimated basketball salary: $375,000