.Northern Illinois stunned No. 5 Notre Dame last weekend on a last-second basket to scratch university regulation football's very first huge upset 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 drop the home opener to a little university from an extremely inferior conference was an embarrassment for Notre Dame.Especially given that they paid NIU $1.4 million to carry out it.This radiates an illumination on some of the longest and very most expensive customs in university soccer: assurance games. They're additionally contacted "cash games," "paycheck games," or, as I like to contact them, "purchase weeks." An expensive (and also high-risk) traditionFor decades, in the initial handful of weeks of the time, major college volleyball establishments have paid smaller sized schools to follow to play all of them in their house.In Full week 1 alone, more than $35 million was spent around a minimum of 55 warranty games, depending on to Front Office Athletics. Alabama created the most significant check to its own challenger, Western Kentucky, for an immense $1.9 million. WKU lost that activity 63-- 0, but they perhaps hit the count on the bus trip home as well as probably won't hesitate about it.In Week 2, 3 colleges-- Western side Michigan, Middle Tennessee, as well as Utah State-- acquired payouts greater than NIU's $1.4 million. They lost by a consolidated rating of 156-- 3, however they took home a total amount of $4.85 million in the process.It's commonly a bargain for each groups. The tiny schools receive an income, the significant universities receive yet another home game to dairy gameday revenue. The small university gets to play on the major stage as well as obtain national exposure, the significant one obtains a cupcake on the schedule to start the year in a sport with no preseason. Therefore all's well and really good until the smaller group chooses to show out and also draw the distress.