.Northern Illinois stunned No. 5 Notre Dame final weekend on a last-second basket to notch university soccer's very first significant trouble of 2024. For the Huskies, it's a gain they'll be actually commemorating for several years to find. For the Combating Irish, it is actually a season-crusher. To lose the home opener to a tiny university coming from an extremely poor event was a discomfort for Notre Dame.Especially due to the fact that they spent NIU $1.4 thousand to perform it.This sparkles a lighting on some of the lengthiest and also most expensive traditions in college football: warranty video games. They're also gotten in touch with "money video games," "paycheck activities," or, as I just like to phone them, "buy weeks." A pricey (and high-risk) traditionFor decades, in the very first couple of weeks of the period, significant college soccer establishments have paid out much smaller universities to find to play all of them in their house.In Week 1 alone, much more than $35 thousand was spent all over a minimum of 55 guarantee video games, depending on to Face Office Athletics. Alabama wrote the most significant inspection to its own opponent, Western Kentucky, for an enormous $1.9 million. WKU shed that video game 63-- 0, yet they perhaps hit the rely on the bus ride home and most likely will not hesitate about it.In Week 2, 3 colleges-- Western Michigan, Middle Tennessee, as well as Utah Condition-- obtained payouts bigger than NIU's $1.4 thousand. They dropped through a combined score of 156-- 3, but they took home a total amount of $4.85 million in the process.It's normally a good deal for both teams. The little schools acquire a paycheck, the major universities get an additional home activity to dairy gameday profits. The little institution gets to use the big stage and also acquire national visibility, the large one gets a dish on the routine to begin the year in a sport without preseason. So all's properly and great up until the minimal crew makes a decision to reveal out and draw the distress.