No Idaho college sports programs can get by on its own. The UI athletic program pays about half its costs. Idaho isn't unique. Few university athletic programs of any size cover their expenses. College administrations keep these programs partly out of tradition and partly because of politics.
Nothing gives a college better exposure than a winning football team.
A higher public profile brings gifts from alumni and the public. Even a losing program helps. Athletics played at least some role in that. Earlier this year, the State Board of Education moved to slow the raid on student fees and university budgets to cover athletics' bills. Idaho higher education spends.