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In case you didn’t know, there is a clear correlation between success in
college sports and the money generated by a university’s athletic department. It doesn’t necessarily matter which came first. If a school’s team wins, then the money will come in. And if the money comes in, then the programs are more likely to find themselves in a position to be victorious. It’s the classic “chicken and egg” scenario of college athletics. Which universities are in the most prosperous situations? We’re glad you asked.
USA Today — using financial data from the 2013-14 fiscal year — has released its ranking of colleges, based solely on the total revenue generated by their athletic departments. It should come as no surprise that this list features a lot of familiar faces. These are big-time universities, with major athletic programs, and super devoted fan bases. However, what may throw you for the biggest loop, is the order by which these colleges sit. This is where things get interesting.
Of course, it should be noted that these rankings only consist of public schools, as they are the only colleges required to release their figures. Still, for the most part, all the big players are in the mix. Please, for your own sake, read this while sitting down. The amount of money generated by some of these school is so high that it may actually knock you off your feet.
With that, here’s a look at the seven richest athletic departments in college sports.
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7. Oklahoma Sooners
- Total Revenue: $129,226,692
- Total Expenses: $113,366,698
The
Oklahoma Sooners come in at No. 7 on the list of richest athletics departments, with a total operating revenue of a little over $129.2 million. Oklahoma reached this number by making $36.9 million in ticket sales, $33.4 million in contributions, $46.6 million in rights/licensing, and $12.3 million from other areas. We’d say that
Bob Stoops and the Sooners football program are certainly a fortunate bunch.
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6. LSU Tigers
- Total Revenue: $133,679,256
- Total Expenses: $122,945,710
The total expenses of the
LSU athletic department have increased from $105.5 million in 2013 to $122.9 million in 2014. Fortunately, the school’s total revenue has gone up as well. What was once $117.5 million (in 2013) has since become $133.7 million (in 2014). LSU reached this total by receiving $37.7 million from ticket sales, $49.3 million from contributions, $40 million from rights/licensing, and $6.6 million from other areas.
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5. Ohio State Buckeyes
- Total Revenue: $145,232,681
- Total Expenses: $113,937,001
The
Ohio State Buckeyes have more going for them than simply residing in the
top college sports town in the country. They also boast a rich athletic program — top five, in fact. With a total operating revenue of just over $145.2 million, Ohio State had an extremely lucrative 2014. This total came as a result of $56 million in ticket sales, $28.2 million in contributions, $49.9 million from rights/licensing, and $11.1 million in other areas. Considering
Urban Meyer has just taken the Buckeyes back to the pinnacle of the college football landscape, we wouldn’t be surprised to see this number go up come 2015.
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4. Alabama Crimson Tide
- Total Revenue: $153,234,273
- Total Expenses: $120,184,128
You can’t talk about wealthy college athletic departments and not have
Alabama as part of the discussion. Over the past eight seasons — going into No. 9 —
Nick Saban has built a football dynasty at this storied university. If you’re succeeding on the gridiron in college, you can bet the money will soon follow. In 2014, the Crimson Tide athletic department amassed a little over $153.2 million in total revenue. The most money came from rights/licensing — $52.5 million — but athletics also made $37.2 million in ticket sales, $32.2 million in contributions, and $25.3 million from other areas. On top of that, the athletic department received just under $6 million from school funds.
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3. Michigan Wolverines
- Total Revenue: $157,899,820
- Total Expenses: $142,551,994
The
University of Michigan has the wealthiest athletic department in the
Big Ten Conference, and sits at No. 3 in the overall rankings of public college athletic departments. How did the university, that made $143.5 million in 2013, find itself sitting pretty with a little less than $157.9 million in total revenue come 2014? Lets see: $53.3 million from ticket sales, $35.3 million from contributions, $55.6 million from rights/licensing, $256,316 from school funds, and $13.5 million from other areas. That’s a solid take right there. And because of that, you know who’s smiling?
This guy.
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2. Texas Longhorns
- Total Revenue: $161,035,187
- Total Expenses: $154,128,877
In regard to money generated by athletic departments, the
Texas Longhorns are used to finishing in the
top position. However, in 2014, all this university did was lead the land in total expenses — just over $154.1 million. Yet, there is no shame in coming in second place here; especially if that means the school brought in roughly $161 million. Texas made $53.7 million in ticket sales, $37.6 million from contributions, $60.7 from rights/licensing, and $9 million from other areas. With this amount of money in the athletic department war chest, we don’t see any reason why the Texas Longhorns won’t be hooking their opponents in the near future.
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1. Oregon Ducks
- Total Revenue: $196,030,398
- Total Expenses: $110,378,432
Nike Founder Phil Knight has always wanted to see his alma mater prosper. So he just did it — with an unbelievable
athletics complex.
With this donation, the
Oregon Ducksathletic department generated a little over $196 million in 2014. This sum came as a result of $26.6 million in ticket sales, $35.6 million in rights/licensing, $1.7 million in student fees, $440,000 in school funds, and $6.7 million from other areas. Of course, none of this would be possible without the contributions. With Knight leading the way, the Oregon athletic department generated just over $124.9 million from this category alone.
With friends like this, is it any wonder that Oregon’s football program can afford to wear
different uniforms each game?
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