Abstract
Anecdotal discussions regarding donor contributions to athletic departments have long placed considerable emphasis on the success of the departments’ athletic programs. Among the most visible sports is football. The purpose of this study was to explore one high profile athletic department’s level of financial gifts and donations related to the performance of the university’s prestigious football program. The following data were collected for each year over an 11 year period (1998 thru 2008): the football team’s winning percentage; total money raised from donors; number of donors making contributions; number of contributions; and average size of each contribution. The researchers found that the only linier relationship that existed with the team’s winning percentage was a negative relationship between winning and the average size of each contribution (p < .05; R
2 = .682).