Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, N.C., is a tribute to the earning power of big-time college athletics. Since 2000, the school has added over $100 million in improvements, including a four-story tower with luxury suites and a football-operations center that houses three swimming pools, a weight room and a 3,500-square-foot player lounge.
But this place wasn’t built on winning football. Its tenant, North Carolina State, hasn’t finished higher than fourth in The Atlantic Coast Conference in over a decade and is 1-2 this season heading into tomorrow’s game against heavily favored East Carolina. These facilities sit on a foundation of charitable fans, their blind faith in better seasons and one man with a knack for cultivating both.
Bobby Purcell, the 53-year-old executive director of the school’s Wolfpack Club, has constructed one of the most prolific fund-raising operations in college sports history. Since he took over in 1997, the booster organization has raised over $200 million in donations for NC State athletics. The $27 million he raised in donations this year was a richer haul than several schools currently ranked in college football’s top 10. Mr. Purcell’s club recently surpassed 20,000 donors, which is more than four times as many as Ohio State.
wsj.com
9/19/08
