Forbes magazine released a list of the most valuable college football teams in the country and Notre Dame was selected as the most valuable.
The Fighting Irish football program is worth $91 million based on what the team contributes to the university’s athletic department for non-football sports ($23.5 million), the University’s academic use ($23.2 million), and the incremental sales to South Bend, Ind., and the surrounding county when the team plays state games at Notre Dame Stadium.
Big advantage for the Fighting Irish: A $9 million annual broadcasting fee from NBC, owned by General Electric, by far the most for any team. It also helps Notre Dame that it plays as an independent team, not belonging to an NCAA conference–so it doesn’t have to share its broadcasting and bowl revenue the way other schools do.
The criteria by which they decided this is as follows…
To do so, we calculated each football program’s total revenues from tickets, sponsorships, premium seating and broadcasting. Then we subtracted expenses to derive the football program’s profits. Next, we measured how much of each team’s profits went for non-football scholarships and toward other sports, and was shared by other teams in its conference. We also looked at how much additional money the county generated when the team played a home game. In our scoring system the first two factors were given the most weight, while county revenue was given the least.
Interesting enough, USC didn’t make the list because their profits were low compared to the other 15 teams ranked by Forbes. Despite being the most dominant program over the last four years, USC didn’t make the list in part because of better TV deals for the Big XII, Big Ten, and SEC as opposed to the Pac 10.
A lot of Pac 10 games end up on Fox Sports regional channels and not coincidentally, there wasn’t a single Pac 10 team on Forbes top 15 list.
USC Fanner you are correct about beating the Irish and how the coaches get burnt out quickly. The samething can be said about USC to. Both of theses programs are in my mind the ones that everyone else is trying to duplicate.
As of right now I beleive that the the expectations are too high for this particular team. However this is what ND has built their reputation on by doing the impossible. Weis will have the team ready. It’ll be up to the team to complete task before them. Win or loose I really don’t care because the future for ND football is improving quickly and better times are ahead.
I’m an USC Fan myself and stroly agree with Kevin W. If we lost evry game in a season yet beat the Irish our whole season would be a smashing success. That’s why coaches for the Irish get so burned out so quickly. Everyone is trying to kick their ass including the alumni…
Garvo is 100% RIGHT! You can’t blame ND. Any team with 11 National Titles and 7 Heisman Trophy Winners will either be LOVED or HATED. I however LOVE Irish Football. I LOVE the Tradition of Winning and the fact that any team that plays them thinks they’re playing in the Super Bowl. Everyone wants to beat the Irish. If your team lost evry game during the season and is fortunate enough to beat the Irish, they would consider their season a success. That’s the mystique about playing the Irish.
Irish Realist I couldn’t agree with you more. I also want to point out that it was the “NET WORKS” that approached ND not the other way around. Who can blame ND for sealing the deal. I really don’t care what the ND haters think. You find me aother program that has the following,11 national titles and 7 “different” heisman winners and I beleive 3 or more movies. I could go on but why.
You have a good christmas and stay safe.
If this blog doesn’t bring the ND haters out, I don’t know what will. Get ready for “greedy”, “arrogant”, “elitist”, & “undeserving” to be thrown around.
Before that, however; I wish someone would take the time to remind the haters why ND is not in the Big 10. It’s a tired old story that dates back to Rockne’s days about how the Big 10 didn’t deem ND worthy of their elite conference. Anyway, paybacks are hell & the rest is history.
Merry Christmas & God Bless you all!