Laura Pappano, a freelance journalist for The New York Times, The Hechinger Report and The Women’s Review of Books joins hosts Kevin Lapka and Curtis Grube in the latest episode of the Lantern Sports Podcast.

As decisions on the fall sports season hang in the balance, this episode provides strong insight and understanding of the economic impact for college athletics in 2020 and beyond.

Conferences and universities across the country, including the Big Ten, have made changes to their fall sports seasons. Pappano evaluates the economic significance of a conference-only schedule for the Big Ten and what’s at stake for smaller schools who collect less revenue from athletics than Ohio State.

Whether sports are played at some capacity or they’re cancelled altogether, Pappano stresses the financial importance of students returning to campus and how that may be the most important factor in determining the economic stability of a fall sports season.

The 2020 sports season is going to look drastically different one way or the other, but we also discuss how the economic scenarios of 2020 may affect sports when they return in full in 2021.

Listen here, on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or anywhere else you find your podcasts.

How Ohio State’s athletic deficit could change the program

The Lantern's Sports PodcastBy The LanternAug 27, 2020