boosters, the lobbyists of college athletics

espn delves inside the nature of alumni giving back to alma maters with its "power to the boosters" series.

one story deals with current oil exec T. Boone Pickens who gave $165 million to his school oklahoma state.

What kind of bang for his buck does he want? Just wins, baby. And, of course, to be heard when it comes to hiring and firing coaches. Like he was when former OSU quarterback Mike Gundy, a favorite, landed the head coaching gig after last season.

meanwhile nike exec Phil Knight plays the heavy at univeristy of oregon

So, in the showdown leading up to the coach's exit and eventual shuffle to the University of Oklahoma, Knight cut off his financial support to the track squad. The identical don't-cross-me tactic Knight deployed after president Dave Frohnmayer earlier aligned the university with the Worker Rights Consortium, a group critical of Nike's labor practices. "The bonds of trust," Knight said, "have been shredded." Eventually, the university reversed course and Knight turned the financial tap back on.

college athletics is such a big business that big money guys who at times help also possess undue influence
and the student-athlete-players don't get much of it...