The New Orleans area is a different landscape then NJ. The pro teams in the market to compete with for advertising money and donations are the Saints and the NBA franchise. While there are less businesses in New Orleans vs. NY / NJ there are fewer options for sports to entertain clients. Also, LSU is king in Louisiana for casual fans. I have met people from Louisiana over the years that either didn't go to college or went to smaller schools without athletics and they all root for LSU.
in NJ:
- competing with the Giants, Jets, Yankees, Mets, Knicks, Nets, Rangers, Islanders, Eagles, Phillies, 76ers, and Flyers professionally
- for colleges you have Army, Penn St, and Temple locally with many fans having allegiances to Michigan and Notre Dame
- NJ does not have its own TV networks and shares with Philly and NYC
- many of the local businesses prefer to advertise with the professional teams over the local college teams
- many casual fans have tough decisions to make about where to spend their limited sports ticket budgets between college and pro. Rutgers is probably 5th 6th on the list.
in LA:
- competing with the NBA franchise and Saints professionally
- for colleges you have Tulane, the directional schools, Loyola, and Grambling. Some fans may have allegiances to Texas, Alabama, or Arkansas in the neighboring states.
- New Orleans does not share TV stations with other states
- it is likely that the local businesses advertise with LSU on Saturdays and the Saints on Sundays
- casual fans have fewer options to spend their sports ticket budgets on so LSU is probably a top 2 to 3 choice.