FAYETTEVILLE — The University of Arkansas will pay Tulsa a game guarantee of $1.085 million for Saturday’s homecoming game, but that’s not the entirety of the financial agreement.
The Razorbacks also agreed to pay a “scheduling fee” of $365,000 to the Golden Hurricane last June in an amendment to the original contract.
The original contract, signed on Feb. 16, 2017, by then-UA Athletic Director Jeff Long and Tulsa Athletic Director Dr. Derrick Gragg, called for a game guarantee of $1.5 million.
However, after Tulsa asked that a portion of the guarantee be paid last summer, the overall payment was reduced by $50,000 to equal $1.45 million, a source with knowledge of the deal said. That $1.45 million is believed to be the second-largest guarantee paid by Arkansas for a football game, behind a $1.5 million payout to Coastal Carolina last season.
UA agreed to pay Tulsa $365,000 by June 30, 2017, as per the amended agreement, signed by Long on May 23 and by Gragg on June 7. The final payment of $1.085 million is due within 90 days of Saturday’s game.
All of the monetary figures in the contract and the amendment obtained by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette through public records requests, were redacted by the UA, which maintains that revealing the game guarantees puts the university at a competitive disadvantage.
The cost of game guarantees continues to escalate for Power 5 teams. Arkansas State received a reported $1.7 million to play at Alabama this year, and got $1.65 million for facing Nebraska last season.
Colorado State holds the record guarantee of $2 million for a game at Florida this season that was part of a the agreement when Coach Jim McElwain left the Rams to take the Gators’ reins in December 2014.