There are many people better equip to analyze the implications and opportunities that come from having an athletic department running "in the black" but from a common man's perspective I hope this reflects the strength of the UConn brand and the quality of the University leadership.
We all want to come out of this at the big boy table, with a real chance to compete, and this tells me we're doing what we can at this point in time.
UConn, in 2010, did not operate in the black, which makes me suspicious about this idea that there are 22 schools that do so.
According to this
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/ncaa-finances.htm , UConn has a loss:
Student Fees: $8,626,506.00
Direct Institutional Support: $5,951,523.00
The revenues already include donations. It's very difficult for me to figure out what they mean by guarantees. Also, things like debt interest on new buildings and facilities is murky (I know that UConn largely had these paid for either privately or by the state). Lastly, the figures don't include subsidies for the cost per student. Since most athletes come from out-of-state, you'd think this would be minimal but I don't know how much UConn charges out-of-state students in relation to the actual cost per student.
Just as a comparison, Rutgers is in the mid $30 million range in terms of losses.
The last study I read in 2010 that took into account direct institutional support and student fees showed that only 14 programs were in the black. But even in that study, someone showed that U. Texas athletics had over $250 million in debts being serviced by the academic side, which bit into their profit.