Not sure I understand your /s — my point is whether UNC is good or bad at football shouldn’t matter to a flagship state university’s mission. (I care about the wellbeing of student athletes, I just think NCAA Div 1 is minor leagues with University brands.
There’s a reason I went to Davidson College instead of UNC 👩🏼🏫
I fundamentally disagree. The football program is essentially advertising for the school. At a time where smaller universities are closing and international students - who bring in major dollars to the university - are not coming to the US, appealing to new students is a critical mission.
And the football program at a major university like UNC is essentially self-funding. It's not a choice between another PhD and a weight lifting room. That weight lifting room is already paid for. Keeping that PhD around requires students paying tuition.