The new fiscal year for WVU athletics begins today, which means the past fiscal year is now in the books … and the ink will apparently be black.

In 2006-07, WVU athletics showed a profit of $4.25 million. For the fiscal year that closed Monday, the revenue and expense lines will be closer. The final numbers will be crunched in the new few weeks.

“We’re probably going to be somewhere in the $49 to 50 million range,” said WVU’s veteran athletics financial chief, Russ Sharp. “We should be in the black, unless a very large depreciation number (on facilities) hits us, and I don’t expect that.”

West Virginia’s athletic budget ranks third among Big East Conference all-sports members, not far behind Louisville ($54.6 million in 2006-07) and Connecticut ($52.8 million).

That’s somewhat remarkable when one considers the enormous financial hit WVU took in the Fiesta Bowl as well as all the expenses poured into coaching salaries for various sports. Then again, the Mountaineers were big winners in revenue sharing plans because of success in football and men’s basketball, which helped offset the expenses.

People tend to have a lot of fun with the athletic department, but it’s truly proved to be skilled at adapting with the times and doing so as a self-sustaining entity.