For those who believe football is all that matters, consider that the $5.5 million profit that the federal government showed for Marquette basketball in 2009-10 was more than MOST of the Division I-FBS FOOTBALL programs in the country. Overall, these official figures indicate Marquette basketball is the 56th most profitable sports program in all of Division I, while Louisville basketball is more profitable than all but 18 football programs. (see top 100 in all sports listed below).
There is every reason to expect we will continue to see more great players follow Wes, Lazar, Jimmy, DJO, Jae and Davante to Marquette to play in an NBA arena where the program is bigger than most football programs. Why go to a school where you are the 70th most important athlete on campus to many people?
The profit numbers give me hope that Rick Pitino keeps Louisville in the Big East as the $14.7 million profit for Louisville basketball currently dwarfs the $2.4 million profit I estimate Louisville football produces – though obviously this could change with a huge payout by the Big 12.
To get an estimate of the overall profit or loss of all 3,500 Division I sports programs, I calculated the impact of Title IX matching scholarships. The 120 most profitable college football programs averaged over $9 million a year in profit, BUT football also necessitates matching scholarships for about four women’s teams, at an average cost of $2.4 million for the biggest 120 programs. Therefore and average of 25.5% of the profit earned by football goes right back into Title IX compliance. I did not calculate every single sport for every single school, but I estimated the 25.5% across-the-board with football programs.
For those who want MU football back, it is worth noting that more than a quarter of FBS football programs lose money even before you consider matching Title IX scholarships, including current and potential Big East members Rutgers, UConn, TCU, SMU, Nova, Temple, Southern Miss and Memphis.
Calculating the Title IX impact for basketball programs is much easier, since a men’s basketball program only necessitates having the same number of women on scholarship for basketball. While most women’s basketball programs do cost some money, Marquette and West Virginia actually turned a profit on the women’s side as well.
Put it all together, and the most profitable football programs clear about $7.1 million when pared with their Title IX programs, while the top 120 combined basketball programs clear about $2.1 million. The only other sport to crack the top 100 was Minnesota hockey as the 80th most profitable program.
The following table shows the 100 most profitable programs, with the profit for the men’s program, then the estimated cost of matching Title IX programs (or in the case of Marquette and West Virginia the extra money the ladies brought in), and then the total figure. Just for fun, I threw in the most profitable program for 21 other sports that also rank in the top 500 overall. And if you are wondering, I learned while my daughter was being recruited to play soccer (thank you Title IX), that Penn does not award scholarships even though they are Division I, thus their profit in many sports:
| Rnk | College | Sport | Men's profit | Est. Title IX Impact | Est. Real Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas | Football | $68,782,770 | $(17,539,606) | $51,243,164 |
| 2 | Georgia | Football | $52,488,741 | $(13,384,629) | $39,104,112 |
| 3 | Penn State | Football | $50,407,978 | $(12,854,034) | $37,553,944 |
| 4 | Michigan | Football | $44,835,985 | $(11,433,176) | $33,402,809 |
| 5 | Florida | Football | $44,197,604 | $(11,270,389) | $32,927,215 |
| 6 | LSU | Football | $43,226,243 | $(11,022,692) | $32,203,551 |
| 7 | Alabama | Football | $40,725,197 | $(10,384,925) | $30,340,272 |
| 8 | Tennessee | Football | $39,208,537 | $(9,998,177) | $29,210,360 |
| 9 | Auburn | Football | $38,217,492 | $(9,745,460) | $28,472,032 |
| 10 | Oklahoma | Football | $38,103,560 | $(9,716,408) | $28,387,152 |
| 11 | South Carolina | Football | $35,457,715 | $(9,041,717) | $26,415,998 |
| 12 | Notre Dame | Football | $34,642,429 | $(8,833,819) | $25,808,610 |
| 13 | Nebraska | Football | $32,062,280 | $(8,175,881) | $23,886,399 |
| 14 | Ohio State | Football | $31,941,460 | $(8,145,072) | $23,796,388 |
| 15 | Iowa | Football | $27,352,540 | $(6,974,898) | $20,377,642 |
| 16 | Michigan State | Football | $26,964,777 | $(6,876,018) | $20,088,759 |
| 17 | Arkansas | Football | $26,478,860 | $(6,752,109) | $19,726,751 |
| 18 | Texas A & M | Football | $25,294,079 | $(6,449,990) | $18,844,089 |
| 19 | Louisville | Basketball | $16,706,817 | $(1,978,928) | $14,727,889 |
| 20 | Kentucky | Football | $17,971,203 | $(4,582,657) | $13,388,546 |
| 21 | Duke | Basketball | $14,242,969 | $(1,039,915) | $13,203,054 |
| 22 | Oklahoma State | Football | $17,292,309 | $(4,409,539) | $12,882,770 |
| 23 | Wisconsin | Football | $16,585,311 | $(4,229,254) | $12,356,057 |
| 24 | Mississippi | Football | $16,474,738 | $(4,201,058) | $12,273,680 |
| 25 | Arizona | Basketball | $13,363,103 | $(1,430,867) | $11,932,236 |
| 26 | UNC | Basketball | $13,824,688 | $(2,153,268) | $11,671,420 |
| 27 | West Virginia | Football | $15,102,123 | $(3,851,041) | $11,251,082 |
| 28 | Minnesota | Football | $14,848,773 | $(3,786,437) | $11,062,336 |
| 29 | Virginia Tech | Football | $14,828,223 | $(3,781,197) | $11,047,026 |
| 30 | Washington | Football | $14,664,667 | $(3,739,490) | $10,925,177 |
| 31 | Clemson | Football | $14,650,130 | $(3,735,783) | $10,914,347 |
| 32 | Illinois | Football | $14,193,299 | $(3,619,291) | $10,574,008 |
| 33 | Colorado | Football | $13,646,041 | $(3,479,740) | $10,166,301 |
| 34 | Indiana State | Basketball | $10,264,973 | $(329,148) | $9,935,825 |
| 35 | Ohio State | Basketball | $11,532,517 | $(1,921,800) | $9,610,717 |
| 36 | Missouri | Football | $11,594,938 | $(2,956,709) | $8,638,229 |
| 37 | Arizona State | Football | $11,576,019 | $(2,951,885) | $8,624,134 |
| 38 | NC State | Football | $11,529,798 | $(2,940,098) | $8,589,700 |
| 39 | Texas Tech | Football | $11,493,005 | $(2,930,716) | $8,562,289 |
| 40 | Wisconsin | Basketball | $10,049,768 | $(1,508,851) | $8,540,917 |
| 41 | Oregon | Football | $11,380,204 | $(2,901,952) | $8,478,252 |
| 42 | Arizona | Football | $10,675,291 | $(2,722,199) | $7,953,092 |
| 43 | Illinois | Basketball | $9,355,746 | $(1,456,291) | $7,899,455 |
| 44 | Syracuse | Basketball | $10,160,444 | $(2,563,459) | $7,596,985 |
| 45 | West Virginia | Basketball | $6,811,627 | $608,109 | $7,419,736 |
| 46 | Georgia Tech | Football | $9,311,353 | $(2,374,395) | $6,936,958 |
| 47 | Indiana | Football | $8,943,424 | $(2,280,573) | $6,662,851 |
| 48 | Indiana | Basketball | $8,824,839 | $(2,248,350) | $6,576,489 |
| 49 | Minnesota | Basketball | $7,970,650 | $(1,563,403) | $6,407,247 |
| 50 | Vanderbilt | Football | $8,335,884 | $(2,125,650) | $6,210,234 |
| 51 | USC | Football | $8,196,472 | $(2,090,100) | $6,106,372 |
| 52 | Tennessee | Basketball | $6,736,628 | $(792,533) | $5,944,095 |
| 53 | Michigan State | Basketball | $7,752,191 | $(1,990,120) | $5,762,071 |
| 54 | Boise State | Football | $7,652,199 | $(1,951,311) | $5,700,888 |
| 55 | NC State | Basketball | $7,201,304 | $(1,592,588) | $5,608,716 |
| 56 | Marquette | Basketball | $5,548,653 | $27,661 | $5,576,314 |
| 57 | UNC | Football | $7,269,531 | $(1,853,730) | $5,415,801 |
| 58 | Oregon State | Football | $7,054,605 | $(1,798,924) | $5,255,681 |
| 59 | UCLA | Football | $7,007,436 | $(1,786,896) | $5,220,540 |
| 60 | Pittsburgh | Basketball | $6,998,187 | $(1,783,992) | $5,214,195 |
| 61 | Northwestern | Football | $6,945,643 | $(1,771,139) | $5,174,504 |
| 62 | Dayton | Basketball | $6,024,000 | $(905,274) | $5,118,726 |
| 63 | Arkansas | Basketball | $8,591,645 | $(3,557,929) | $5,033,716 |
| 64 | Miami | Football | $6,728,367 | $(1,715,734) | $5,012,633 |
| 65 | Central Florida | Football | $6,653,435 | $(1,696,626) | $4,956,809 |
| 66 | Iowa State | Football | $6,580,398 | $(1,678,001) | $4,902,397 |
| 67 | Kansas State | Football | $6,396,572 | $(1,631,126) | $4,765,446 |
| 68 | Purdue | Football | $6,272,332 | $(1,599,445) | $4,672,887 |
| 69 | Washington | Basketball | $6,017,679 | $(1,459,305) | $4,558,374 |
| 70 | UNLV | Basketball | $5,589,104 | $(1,177,299) | $4,411,805 |
| 71 | UCLA | Basketball | $6,024,975 | $(1,650,042) | $4,374,933 |
| 72 | California-Berkeley | Football | $5,869,660 | $(1,496,763) | $4,372,897 |
| 73 | Maryland | Basketball | $5,536,767 | $(1,297,597) | $4,239,170 |
| 74 | Xavier | Basketball | $6,376,553 | $(2,174,003) | $4,202,550 |
| 75 | Brigham Young | Football | $5,439,315 | $(1,387,025) | $4,052,290 |
| 76 | Mississippi State | Basketball | $3,941,748 | $- | $3,941,748 |
| 77 | Texas | Basketball | $6,566,315 | $(2,762,688) | $3,803,627 |
| 78 | Pittsburgh | Football | $5,043,612 | $(1,286,121) | $3,757,491 |
| 79 | Utah | Football | $4,763,360 | $(1,214,657) | $3,548,703 |
| 80 | Minnesota | Ice Hockey | $4,272,482 | $(837,485) | $3,434,997 |
| 81 | Mississippi State | Football | $4,589,709 | $(1,170,376) | $3,419,333 |
| 82 | Northwestern | Basketball | $5,845,397 | $(2,426,884) | $3,418,513 |
| 83 | South Florida | Football | $4,359,168 | $(1,111,588) | $3,247,580 |
| 84 | Wake Forest | Basketball | $4,841,385 | $(1,668,656) | $3,172,729 |
| 85 | Kentucky | Basketball | $5,009,809 | $(1,979,128) | $3,030,681 |
| 86 | Stanford | Football | $4,044,674 | $(1,031,392) | $3,013,282 |
| 87 | Virginia Tech | Basketball | $4,404,952 | $(1,401,752) | $3,003,200 |
| 88 | Georgia Tech | Basketball | $5,213,420 | $(2,293,515) | $2,919,905 |
| 89 | Syracuse | Football | $3,834,314 | $(977,750) | $2,856,564 |
| 90 | Washington State | Football | $3,554,031 | $(906,278) | $2,647,753 |
| 91 | Georgetown | Basketball | $2,565,088 | $- | $2,565,088 |
| 92 | Louisville | Football | $3,294,638 | $(840,133) | $2,454,505 |
| 93 | South Carolina | Basketball | $5,115,933 | $(2,801,869) | $2,314,064 |
| 94 | Virginia | Football | $3,054,095 | $(778,794) | $2,275,301 |
| 95 | Vanderbilt | Basketball | $2,188,985 | $- | $2,188,985 |
| 96 | Missouri | Basketball | $4,124,762 | $(2,006,208) | $2,118,554 |
| 97 | Kansas | Basketball | $5,033,796 | $(2,998,724) | $2,035,072 |
| 98 | Alabama | Basketball | $4,300,697 | $(2,279,857) | $2,020,840 |
| 99 | Wyoming | Football | $2,702,970 | $(689,257) | $2,013,713 |
| 100 | Florida State | Football | $2,580,037 | $(657,909) | $1,922,128 |
| 104 | Texas | Baseball | $1,884,950 | $- | $1,884,950 |
| 125 | UNC Greensboro | Track | $521,948 | $513,798 | $1,035,746 |
| 144 | San Diego State | Rowing | $- | $752,084 | $752,084 |
| 150 | Pennsylvania | Lacrosse | $434,062 | $224,300 | $658,362 |
| 159 | Eastern Washington | Tennis | $218,819 | $281,147 | $499,966 |
| 167 | East Carolina | Volleyball | $- | $457,875 | $457,875 |
| 169 | UAB | Softball | $- | $433,466 | $433,466 |
| 172 | Southern | Soccer | $- | $387,479 | $387,479 |
| 183 | UNC Greensboro | Golf | $176,904 | $168,809 | $345,713 |
| 197 | Vermont | Field Hockey | $- | $293,897 | $293,897 |
| 215 | San Diego State | Water Polo | $- | $248,041 | $248,041 |
| 241 | NC Greensboro | Wrestling | $182,202 | $- | $182,202 |
| 247 | South Dakota State | Equestrian | $- | $165,000 | $165,000 |
| 306 | Pennsylvania | Squash | $38,201 | $38,015 | $76,216 |
| 313 | Bowling Green State | Gymnastics | $- | $65,487 | $65,487 |
| 325 | Troy | Rodeo | $27,214 | $29,154 | $56,368 |
| 334 | New Orleans | Swimming | $9,728 | $43,720 | $53,448 |
| 337 | The Texas at El Paso | Rifle | $- | $51,201 | $51,201 |
| 351 | Hampton | Sailing | $13,150 | $28,994 | $42,144 |
| 382 | Pennsylvania | Fencing | $19,132 | $10,657 | $29,789 |
| 478 | Vermont | Skiing | $51,555 | $(40,593) | $10,962 |
Just an FYI, none of the Ivies (inc. Penn) officially give out scholarships. With that said, I saw some creative financial aid packages, but none of them can condition admission or need-based aid on participation in sports.
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