.Northern Illinois stunned No. 5 Notre Dame final weekend on a last-second basket to notch college soccer's first large trouble of 2024. For the Huskies, it's a win they'll be celebrating for years to follow. For the Dealing with Irish, it is actually a season-crusher. To lose the home opener to a small college coming from an extremely substandard association was a humiliation for Notre Dame.Especially because they spent NIU $1.4 million to carry out it.This radiates a light on among the longest and also very most pricey heritages in university football: warranty games. They are actually also gotten in touch with "funds activities," "payday games," or even, as I such as to call them, "get full weeks." A pricey (as well as unsafe) traditionFor decades, in the 1st handful of full weeks of the time, primary university football institutions have actually paid smaller colleges ahead to play all of them in their house.In Full week 1 alone, much more than $35 million was actually devoted around a minimum of 55 assurance video games, according to Front Office Sports. Alabama created the greatest check to its own enemy, Western side Kentucky, for a massive $1.9 thousand. WKU dropped that game 63-- 0, yet they perhaps hit the count on the bus ride home and also likely will not hesitate about it.In Week 2, three schools-- Western side Michigan, Middle Tennessee, and also Utah State-- got payments bigger than NIU's $1.4 million. They shed by a consolidated rating of 156-- 3, but they took home a total of $4.85 million in the process.It's typically a deal for both staffs. The little schools get an income, the large universities get another home activity to milk gameday revenue. The little college reaches use the large phase and get nationwide direct exposure, the large one acquires a cupcake on the schedule to start the year in a sporting activity without any preseason. Therefore all's effectively and excellent until the lesser group chooses to present out and draw the trouble.