.Northern Illinois stunned No. 5 Notre Dame final weekend break on a last-second basket to notch college regulation football's very first big trouble of 2024. For the Huskies, it is actually a win they'll be commemorating for many years ahead. For the Combating Irish, it is actually a season-crusher. To shed the home opener to a tiny institution coming from a significantly substandard association was a discomfort for Notre Dame.Especially since they paid for NIU $1.4 thousand to carry out it.This beams a lighting on among the longest as well as most pricey practices in college soccer: promise games. They're also called "money activities," "salary games," or, as I like to phone them, "purchase full weeks." A pricey (and also risky) traditionFor years, in the very first couple of full weeks of the time, significant college football organizations have paid out smaller institutions to follow to play all of them in their house.In Week 1 alone, more than $35 million was spent across at the very least 55 promise activities, according to Front Workplace Athletics. Alabama wrote the greatest check to its opponent, Western Kentucky, for an immense $1.9 thousand. WKU dropped that game 63-- 0, yet they most likely reached the rely on the bus experience home and likely will not hesitate about it.In Week 2, three universities-- Western Michigan, Middle Tennessee, and Utah State-- acquired payouts bigger than NIU's $1.4 million. They lost through a mixed score of 156-- 3, however they took home a total amount of $4.85 thousand in the process.It's commonly a deal for each crews. The small universities obtain a payday, the big schools obtain another home video game to milk gameday revenue. The small university gets to play on the significant phase as well as obtain national exposure, the big one acquires a cupcake on the routine to start the year in a sport without any preseason. So all's well as well as excellent until the lesser staff determines to reveal out as well as pull the upset.