[Tuck4Bama]

TUSCALOOSA -- Football salaries will account for more than 10 percent of the Alabama athletics department's operating budget for the 2007-08 fiscal year.

Roughly $7.3 million of the estimated $70 million operating budget presented Thursday to the University of Alabama system board of trustees is pegged to pay employees of the Crimson Tide football program.

Alabama hired head coach Nick Saban in January with an eight-year deal worth an average of $4 million per season, making him the highest-paid coach in college football.

Saban was given roughly $2.245 million to divide among on-field assistant coaches. His staff is the best-paid in the Southeastern Conference.

"It was important for him to be able to hire the staff that he wanted to hire and needed to hire," UA athletics director Mal Moore said. "We were able to do this, and I'm glad that we could."

The addition of Saban and his staff helped raise the athletics department's overall salary totals to roughly $22.21 million, which is almost $7 million more than the $15.27 million spent in 2005-06.

The cost for football is nearly $6 million more than the $1.52 million in salaries for men's basketball, which is the department's second-costliest sport.

Nevertheless, Alabama still expects to turn a profit this year, thanks in part to a record number of ticket sales ($22 million for football alone), contributions ($21.1 million) and broadcasting rights ($7.9 million).

"The financial situation of the athletic department is very good," said trustee Finis St. John, chairman of the athletics committee. "People who have questioned the salaries probably don't really understand the fact that what we've done in the athletic department has generated much more revenue than it has cost us."

Football salaries take 10 percent of Tide sports budget- al.com

[Stoney]

Mal Moore is having a constant fundraiser.....please contribute.