The UTR Pro Tennis Tour Podcast with James McKie · James McKie

Andrew Donovan - President - Altius Sports Partners

·33 min·3 clips

Andrew Donovan explains how schools are grappling with $30-35 million in added expenses from NIL and revenue sharing.

Andrew Donovan, President of Altius Sports Partners, joins host James McKie to discuss the evolving challenges in college athletics. Donovan advises athletic departments on navigating rapid changes, including NIL and revenue generation. His background includes over a decade in senior administration at universities like Tennessee and LSU. Altius Sports Partners initially focused on helping schools develop NIL strategies and infrastructure, working with over 50 Division I programs. The company now also conducts revenue audits, manages multimedia rights RFPs, and performs "secret shopper" evaluations of game-day operations. Donovan explains that schools face massive new financial pressures from revenue-sharing settlements and expanded scholarship costs. He describes a chaotic regulatory landscape where NCAA rules are constantly challenged, creating a patchwork of state laws. A major focus is the threat to Olympic sports like tennis, citing over 50 college tennis programs cut recently. Donovan advises non-revenue sport coaches to have clear expectation conversations with their administrators and seek operational efficiencies, like regional scheduling. He encourages creative community engagement, such as hosting tournaments or facility rentals, to demonstrate value and generate revenue. Coaches are warned against unilaterally soliciting donors, which could disrupt broader institutional fundraising. Donovan suggests a future where only football and basketball athletes might be deemed employees, potentially relegating other sports to a club-like model. For tennis athletes, he recommends pursuing authentic brand partnerships aligned with the sport's luxury and wellness image. Building a personal brand through social media content, like coaching tutorials, is crucial. Athletes should actively seek out their school's dedicated NIL support staff for assistance with opportunities and paperwork. The tone is educational and advisory, grounded in Donovan's direct experience as both a campus administrator and a consultant. The conversation is structured yet conversational, moving from broad industry analysis to specific tactical advice. College tennis coaches, athletic administrators, and student-athletes seeking to understand the new financial realities would benefit from this episode. Listeners looking for entertainment or discussions on professional tennis mechanics might find it less relevant.

As heard by us

A grounded look at college tennis under administrative pressure.

Andrew Donovan keeps the discussion grounded in practical tradeoffs. He ties college tennis to NIL, revenue, efficiency, and the travel costs that shape what programs can afford.

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Why you'd press play

You want the inside story on how college tennis survives the money squeeze.

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