Howard University officials have not yet reviewed men's basketball coach Kenny Blakeney's proposal to sell a one-third stake in his program for $100 million, the school told ESPN in a statement Tuesday.
The Washington Post reported last week that Blakeney met with a private equity firm in June and spoke to potential investors in July, with the ultimate goal of keeping Howard's men's basketball program from “falling behind” in the changing landscape of college sports.
In a statement provided to ESPN on Tuesday, Howard athletic director Kery Davis said Blakeney's plans “reflect his own personal ideas and have not been vetted by the University's leadership.”
“Head men’s basketball coach Kenny Blakeney is an extraordinary leader of young men and has made a significant contribution to our Athletics Department and the University as a whole, recruiting phenomenal student-athletes and leading the program to back-to-back Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championships and NCAA Tournament appearances over the past two seasons,” Davis said. “Like all of our coaches and athletic administrators, Coach Blakeney continues to enthusiastically explore ideas to generate financial support that will allow our student-athletes to be more competitive while representing the University. Over the years, we have been extremely fortunate to secure sponsorships and gifts that have greatly assisted our 21 Division I teams, from a multi-million dollar renovation of our training facilities to covering expenses for student-athletes to participate in cultural enrichment programs that allow them to travel and compete abroad.
“The recent comments attributed to Coach Blakeney reflect his own personal views and have not been reviewed by University leadership.”
According to the Post, Blakeney is seeking an initial $100 million to upgrade the program’s stadium and roster, and then either go independent or join a larger conference. Fifty million dollars would go toward renovations at Burr Gymnasium, while Blakeney would then spend $4 million to $5 million in NIL money to build a roster.
The recent House agreement will allow schools to pay players directly (up to 22% of average revenue from media rights, ticket sales and sponsorships) and schools in power conferences are expected to spend between $20 million and $22 million.
“I don't want to have a two-tier system where we can't compete for the NCAA tournament or the national championship,” Blakeney told the paper. “And from what I'm hearing right now, it's a real possibility that there will be an NCAA tournament that doesn't include everyone else; it only includes the Power Four.” [conference] “Colleges and maybe the Big East. That's not what I signed up for.”
While Blakeney is the first known college coach to actively seek private equity investment, this is not the first time that private equity and college sports have become intertwined in the past year. ESPN reported in June that the Big 12 was in talks with private equity firm CVC Capital Partners for a 15%-20% stake in the league, while Florida State has reportedly discussed raising private equity if needed for a potential exit from the ACC.
“We're just at the beginning,” Blakeney said. “But I feel like there's a small window of opportunity because of the speed at which NIL is moving, the transfer portal is moving forward, the professionalism of our business is happening. This has to happen quickly. There have to be some conversations.”
