After the controversy surrounding Miami (Ohio)’s March Madness qualifications, the Mid-American Conference finds itself with a unique financial opportunity heading into the Big Dance.
After weeks of debate, the RedHawks (31–1) received an at-large bid to the NCAA men’s basketball tournament on Selection Sunday, despite losing in the quarterfinals of the MAC tournament after an undefeated regular season.
Akron (29–5) won the MAC tournament and earned the conference’s automatic March Madness bid, receiving a No. 12 seed in the bracket’s Midwest Region that will see the Zips play No. 5 Texas Tech in the first round.
Miami (Ohio) will play SMU in the First Four—fighting for the No. 11 seed in the Midwest Region—marking the first time since 1999 that the MAC will have two teams in the men’s NCAA Tournament.
The two bids for the MAC mean at least a $4 million payout in March Madness units that conferences receive for participating teams.
With more than $220 million up for grabs, conferences are paid $2 million for every game one of their teams plays in the NCAA tournament.
The $4 million guarantee for the MAC is already double what it has previously received for sending just one team to the Big Dance. If Miami (Ohio) beats SMU in the First Four, the MAC’s payout will jump to $6 million, even if Miami (Ohio) and Akron lose their first-round matchups.
Either team advancing to the second round would mean $8 million for the MAC, and $10 million if they both pulled off upsets.
Conferences are paid out those units on a six-year rolling basis, and many divide them equally among all schools, even those that don’t make the tournament—adding key revenue for mid-major programs.
“We’ve been able to take this unique, dynamic time, and create a little bit of a path for ourselves, with our donor support, that we can at least be in the game with what’s happening today,” Miami (Ohio) athletic director David Sayler told Front Office Sports earlier this month. “We’re not at the top of the market—what the majors are spending, but I can tell you that we’re very well set up to retain our players and really try to move them forward.”
Mid-Majors Showing Up
The Atlantic 10, another mid-major conference, also sent two teams to March Madness: league champion VCU and at-large bid Saint Louis. It’s the 18th time in the last 20 years the A-10 has sent more than one team to the tournament.
The West Coast Conference earned three bids for the fourth time in conference history, with league champion Gonzaga, as well as Saint Mary’s and Santa Clara, all going dancing.
