According to Forbes 2014 the top 10 most valuable conferences in College Sports:


1. Big Ten
Bowl Games: $45.7 million
NCAA Tournaments: $24 million
TV Deals: $250 million
Total: $318 million

The Big Ten has massive TV income, and it will only grow larger as the Big Ten Network (of which it owns 49%) becomes increasingly profitable. The conference leads the field in NCAA tourney payouts thanks to playing a staggering 96 tournament games over the last six seasons; each game played is worth $250,000 this year.


2. ACC
Bowl Games: $46.6 million
NCAA Tournaments: $18 million
TV Deals: $240 million
Total: $305 million

The outstanding football performances of Florida State and Clemson, which went to the BCS Championship and Orange Bowl, respectively, helped the conference net over $30 million in BCS money alone this year. The ACC has an escalator in its ESPN TV deal, and this year will collect some $197.5 million.


3. Pac-12
Bowl Games: $35 million
NCAA Tournaments: $13.3 million
TV Deals: $250 million
Total: $299 million

The Pac-12 failed to send an at-large team to a BCS bowl this year, missing out on a $6.3 million BCS payout. And though there is massive TV revenue from the $250 million-per-year deal with Fox and ESPN (this year's payout is actually closer to $194 million), its wholly owned Pac-12 Network requires the conference to pay some $15 million per year to buy back its member schools' third-tier rights from Learfield Sports and IMG College.

4. SEC
Bowl Games: $51.5 million
NCAA Tournaments: $14.8 million
TV Deals: $205 million
Total: $271 million

The SEC isn't traditionally a basketball power, but this year Florida made a run to the Final Four and Kentucky went all the way to the title game before suffering defeat. All in all, the SEC's 2014 NCAA Tournament performance will net the conference more than $20 million over the next six years. There's little surprise that the conference dominated the nation in bowl game revenue; no other conference earned more than $47 million in postseason football revenue.

5. Big 12
Bowl Games: $42.4 million
NCAA Tournaments: $19.8 million
TV Deals: $200 million
Total: $262 million

On a per-school basis, the Big 12 ranks second only to the Big Ten with over $26 million in revenue per member school. That earning power is a big reason why the Big 12 has often been a suspected landing spot for teams rumored to be looking for a new conference home.

6. American
Bowl Games: $30.6 million
NCAA Tournaments: $21.8 million
TV Deals: $20 million
Total: $72.3 million

The AAC may have lost the Catholic 7's basketball units, which are worth nearly $8 million this year, but it will still claim the nation's second-highest NCAA basketball payout thanks mostly to the past performances of Connecticut, Louisville and Syracuse.

7. Big East
Bowl Games: $0 million
NCAA Tournaments: $8.5 million
TV Deals: $41.7 million
Total: $50.2 million

Unimpressive football play can be a death knell for a conference's earnings, and no football teams is usually even worse. Yet the Big East was able to get a 12-year, $500 million deal out of Fox, thanks largely to the company's dire need of live telecasts for its fledgling sports network.

8. Mountain West
Bowl Games: $5.7 million
NCAA Tournaments: $7.8 million
TV Deals: $18 million
Total: $31.5 million

The conference appeared to slip when it lost BYU, TCU and Utah in recent years, but those schools were replaced with Boise State, Fresno State and four others. The new members helped the MWC negotiate an ESPN deal that gives it a step up on the competition, but even that is diminished by an escalator clause - the conference will take home around $14 million in TV revenue this year.

9. Conference USA
Bowl Games: $7.5 million
NCAA Tournaments: $3 million
TV Deals: $14 million
Total: $24.5 million

Few conferences have been shaken up as much as C-USA, which added seven new programs in 2013 after watching the likes of Memphis, UCF, SMU and others jump ship. Its five-year agreements with CBS and Fox are each worth around $7 million per year.

10. Atlantic 10
Bowl Games: $0 million
NCAA Tournaments: $11.5 million
TV Deals: $5 million
Total: $16.5 million

Like the Big East, the A-10 doesn't play football. But while it earns nothing on the turf, it wins big on the court. The recent performances by VCU, La Salle and Dayton have been particularly great, and in the last two years the conference has played nearly as many games as it had in the previous four combined.

http://www.forbes.com/pictures/emdm45ehljf/1-big-ten-3/

Wow, the BE has double the AAC's TV deal $$$$. That makes no sense to me.

(08-21-2014 09:39 AM)bluebacker Wrote:  Wow, the BE has double the AAC's TV deal $$$$. That makes no sense to me.

It's all when you sign the deal. At the time the BE had the best basketball teams in the country. Next deal they sign will probably be 1/4 or less of their current one.

Wow. SEC is 4th? Never would a guessed that one. I thought they would be 2nd behind the big 10

(08-21-2014 12:30 PM)SouthernBoiNOLA Wrote:  Wow. SEC is 4th? Never would a guessed that one. I thought they would be 2nd behind the big 10

Wait until the SEC NEtwork revenue kicks in.

(08-21-2014 12:40 PM)SigEpMike Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:30 PM)SouthernBoiNOLA Wrote:  Wow. SEC is 4th? Never would a guessed that one. I thought they would be 2nd behind the big 10

Wait until the SEC NEtwork revenue kicks in.

Yep. The rich get richer.

Pretty sure I read where the SEC schools are predicting to get close to 40 million a year in TV revenue alone starting in 2015, when the first SEC Network revenues are distributed.

The MWC is behind the BE. That's gotta sting.

(08-21-2014 12:40 PM)SigEpMike Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:30 PM)SouthernBoiNOLA Wrote:  Wow. SEC is 4th? Never would a guessed that one. I thought they would be 2nd behind the big 10

Wait until the SEC NEtwork revenue kicks in.

Subscribers are going to find that a large portion of the content is tennis, golf, volleyball, soccer, softball, track, swimming, etc., documentaries, films of old games and talk shows. One thing for sure: The SEC Network will never receive a dime from me. I would sooner unplug my TV and stick to radio only.

That doesn't even include the AACs 100 million dollar war chest of abandoned NCAA credits, exit fees, and entrance fees.

It gets split 60-40 (old schools/new schools) over the next 5 years.

The TV deal. Jesus, that still stings. When the American and Big East go back to the boards we'll go up and they will go down, but god that deal still looks rough.

I get we're less desirable than the B12, but one tenth. God that really, really stings.

BTW, I'm not kicking AAU leadership. Did the best they could with a bad draw, but that still is a rough look.

Oh well, top dog of the G5. It's better than a boot to the face...

(08-21-2014 04:40 PM)Gray Avenger Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:40 PM)SigEpMike Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:30 PM)SouthernBoiNOLA Wrote:  Wow. SEC is 4th? Never would a guessed that one. I thought they would be 2nd behind the big 10

Wait until the SEC NEtwork revenue kicks in.

Subscribers are going to find that a large portion of the content is tennis, golf, volleyball, soccer, softball, track, swimming, etc., documentaries, films of old games and talk shows. One thing for sure: The SEC Network will never receive a dime from me. I would sooner unplug my TV and stick to radio only.

Have you dropped your cable/satellite coverage?

(08-21-2014 05:59 PM)SigEpMike Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 04:40 PM)Gray Avenger Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:40 PM)SigEpMike Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:30 PM)SouthernBoiNOLA Wrote:  Wow. SEC is 4th? Never would a guessed that one. I thought they would be 2nd behind the big 10

Wait until the SEC NEtwork revenue kicks in.

Subscribers are going to find that a large portion of the content is tennis, golf, volleyball, soccer, softball, track, swimming, etc., documentaries, films of old games and talk shows. One thing for sure: The SEC Network will never receive a dime from me. I would sooner unplug my TV and stick to radio only.

Have you dropped your cable/satellite coverage?

We all pay for the channels via subscriber fees.

http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journ...C-net.aspx

It looks like you guys are going to pay $1.30 approx per household.

(08-21-2014 04:40 PM)Gray Avenger Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:40 PM)SigEpMike Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:30 PM)SouthernBoiNOLA Wrote:  Wow. SEC is 4th? Never would a guessed that one. I thought they would be 2nd behind the big 10

Wait until the SEC NEtwork revenue kicks in.

Subscribers are going to find that a large portion of the content is tennis, golf, volleyball, soccer, softball, track, swimming, etc., documentaries, films of old games and talk shows. One thing for sure: The SEC Network will never receive a dime from me. I would sooner unplug my TV and stick to radio only.

I can see it now Saban will be doing an interview and then go into the promotion Folks it is only $9.99 Then each interview you will have a player or coach repeating only $9.99. (take off in the WWE network self promotion)

Atlantic 10 made more in NCAA money than the BE.

I'm sure the AAC money drops with no BCS bowl for football and without another title run in basketball.

The league had almost as good a first year of existence as a league could have.

(08-21-2014 05:59 PM)SigEpMike Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 04:40 PM)Gray Avenger Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:40 PM)SigEpMike Wrote:  

(08-21-2014 12:30 PM)SouthernBoiNOLA Wrote:  Wow. SEC is 4th? Never would a guessed that one. I thought they would be 2nd behind the big 10

Wait until the SEC NEtwork revenue kicks in.

Subscribers are going to find that a large portion of the content is tennis, golf, volleyball, soccer, softball, track, swimming, etc., documentaries, films of old games and talk shows. One thing for sure: The SEC Network will never receive a dime from me. I would sooner unplug my TV and stick to radio only.

Have you dropped your cable/satellite coverage?

No, I didn't have to yet. I only subscribe to Direc-TV's basic package which does not have the SEC Network. That, plus all the channels that I receive with rabbit-ears antennae plus a plethora of DVD's provides all the TV viewing that we want. Too much crap on TV these days anyway (I hate reality shows and "series" almost as much as I do "rap"). If DirecTV raises my rate, there will be a heated discussion/negotiation and I will drop thm like a hot potato if necessary (I will wager that they back down). My wife and I have already agreed on this.

(08-22-2014 04:47 AM)HoopDreams Wrote:  I'm sure the AAC money drops with no BCS bowl for football and without another title run in basketball.

I am equally sure that our TV deal will be re-negotiated in the next year or so after Navy joins for football. The AAC was disadvantaged by a "perfect storm" of bad publicity before the first negotiation, which cast the new conference in a light of weakness and instability. The AAC is already clearly the 6th strongest and richest conference and I look for the TV money to be much better after the next deal is struck, which will help close the large gap between 5th and 6th significantly.

Interesting info - it really highlights the difference between the big 5, where they all make over $250M, and everybody else, with #6 coming in below $75M.

(08-22-2014 09:06 AM)roundhouse74 Wrote:  Interesting info - it really highlights the difference between the big 5, where they all make over $250M, and everybody else, with #6 coming in below $75M.

True, but looking on the bright side, UofM is about to enjoy an era of TV exposure and bowl opportunities which were not even dreamed of 20 years ago. Winning upon the stage now set will lead to glory and riches for Tiger football. Dare to believe.......and do your part with loyalty and generosity.