Bleeding red

The University of Hawaii athletic department expects to post a $3.3 million annual deficit, a school record, when the books close on the current fiscal season.

The 2013 fiscal year, one of the most tumultuous in the department’s history in the wake of the Stevie Wonder concert fiasco, ends June 30 and will mark the 10th time UH has finished in the red in the past 12 years.

The latest deficit for the $33 million program is about six times the $512,000 that was anticipated when the fiscal year began July 1, and $1 million more than the amount the Board of Regents were told to expect during a December briefing.

The deficit is largely driven by lower-than-expected ticket revenues in major sports and fallout from last summer’s so-called "Wonder Blunder," which was to have been a benefit concert for the financially strapped, 21-sport department.

"I think the football record (3-9) had an impact and certainly pushed our losses to be bigger than what we had anticipated, but there were several other things that also happened," said Ben Jay, who took over as athletic director five months ago. "And we were over budget in some areas of necessary expenses. Add all that up and we have a deficit to end this year that is much more than we would have liked."

The latest deficit projections come a month after UH-Manoa Chancellor Tom Apple told the regents

that he planned to pay off over time an approximate

$13 million accumulated net deficit built up over the past decade.

The 2013 deficit is expected to push that figure up to about $14.5 million when audited returns are posted. Jay and Apple have said that also will be covered.

For the 2013 annual budget, UH said it sustained a $2,145,000 shortfall in income, about $1.4 million of which was blamed upon lagging ticket sales. Football was expected to produce about $4.5 million in ticket revenue but fell $1.2 million short in a transitional season in which the team lost nine of its first 10 games. Women’s volleyball came up $80,000 short, and men’s volleyball was $50,000 under projections.

"We’re trying to make it up and trying to find new revenues, but the loss of some of our sponsorship revenue due in part to what happened here has been unfortunate," Jay said.

UH said $575,000 in anticipated sponsorship funding from the Hawaii Tourism Authority was not forthcoming, and $200,000 was lost in the ill-fated Wonder concert.

The "Wonder Blunder" also added $105,000 in what were described as "unbudgeted legal fees."

In addition, UH said it ended up paying $50,000 more in Mountain West Conference travel subsidies than originally budgeted. It also absorbed $265,000 in Mountain West and Big West entry fees, the amount of which UH said was agreed upon after the budget had been drawn up.

Jay said the athletic department’s goal is to "at least get to the break-even point for 2014."

He pledged "to pull out as many stops as we can to increase ticket sales, not just in football, but in our other sports as well. We’re working on strategies for that right now."

Apple won the regents’ support last month for billing the athletic department at the resident rate for out-of-state scholarships and also said his office would help pay athletic department staff salaries.