<p>As I said before, the criteria for listing the top 10 sports schools is not based on wins and losses, but rather the hype surrounding the sports at their respective schools. Saying that college hockey is a “2nd tier sport” is fine. But give Wisconsin its due respect. If we can pack 15,000+ into the Kohl Center twice a weekend for a SECOND TIER SPORT (hockey) in addition to 80,000+ for football and 17,000+ for basketball, then based on the criteria that’s pretty significant.</p>
<p>We are talking about revenue in college sports here. Yeah, there are a lot more D1 baseball programs than D1 hockey programs. Irrelevant; the majority of each make pennies. The point is, CWS >>>> Frozen Four in media coverage and revenue.</p>
<p>And btw, they do regionally televise college baseball regular season games. I don’t think they’re part of conference TV packages either…I know Vandy gets airtime on FSN, for example, in the regular season.</p>
<p>EDIT: And here are some sources:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.ncaa.com/brackets/2010/ncaa_bracket_DI_hockey_men.html[/url]”>http://www.ncaa.com/brackets/2010/ncaa_bracket_DI_hockey_men.html</a>
<a href=“http://www.ncaa.com/brackets/2010/ncaa_bracket_DI_baseball.html[/url]”>http://www.ncaa.com/brackets/2010/ncaa_bracket_DI_baseball.html</a></p>
<p>Coverage of baseball playoffs on ESPNU begins in the regionals…When there are still 64 teams in contention (click the regionals in the lower right-hand corner. All super-regionals were covered by at least ESPNU if not ESPN 1 or 2. CWS got lots and lots of airtime obviously.</p>
<p>Hockey? ESPNU until the FF, which lasts 3 games? They don’t compare.</p>
<p>Anyone claiming UCLA should not be on the list is just flat out wrong. 106 national championship, the most out of any college. </p>
<p>Most national champions= best sports school and with USC having 2 years of nothingness UCLA could make a play to be a contender in football stealing what would be USC recruits</p>
<p>
I guess if you’re gay…
jk but really
we’ll agree to disagree on this one because they televise college hockey games on PT and other channels.</p>
<p>
You’re preaching to the choir here, I completely agree with you. I think Wisconsin fully deserves to be on the list. And again, as you’ve said, it isn’t about wins or losses, it’s about how the fans react to each sport. Even as a die-hard Michigan fan, OSU deserves to be on this list for sure as well. Michigan packs the Big House with 110,000+ every single game (we set the record for attendance 2 weekends ago), and although Yost is considerably smaller, it’s always above capacity in terms of attendance. I don’t know how Crisler is but I’ll update you come Basketball season</p>
<p>Anyone claiming UCLA should not be on the list is just flat out wrong. 106 national championship, the most out of any college. </p>
<h2>Most national champions= best sports school and with USC having 2 years of nothingness UCLA could make a play to be a contender in football stealing what would be USC recruits ~ DCSPORTSFAN</h2>
<p>They’ve had one 10 win season in the last ten years, which was in 2005 when they beat Northwestern in the Sun Bowl, and still only finished 3rd in the Pac 10.</p>
<p>In fact, they’ve only had three 10 win seasons in the last 20 years…not a program I’d consider relevant.</p>
<p>Don’t blame USC on UCLA’s woes, Stanford is competing, as is Oregon, Oregon State and Arizona.</p>
<p>im just saying they have an opportunity to turn the football program around… They are already pretty darn good at every other sport hence the 106 national championships</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>That wasn’t the season. It was 2008-2009 that they won the title.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>USC self-imposed restrictions on the basketball program and the NCAA accepted those without further penalties. Also, they already served those, so there are no more major restrictions on basketball, including the NCAA tournament, if they qualify this year.</p>
<p>Well, if the criteria is just that everybody drops everything and goes to the local football or basketball game, then I’d nominate West Virginia and Mississippi even over Wisconsin. They and UT-Austin have the best tailgating (and craziest parties I’ve ever seen)—well, not counting at UC Berkeley two weeks ago (which was impressive since school hadn’t even started yet).</p>
<p>Of course, the difference is that there is not that much to do in Morgantown, VW or Oxford, MS–while there is a little more to do in Westwood (UCLA), in Las Vegas (UNLV), in San Franciso (UC Berkeley), and in Chicago (Northwestern)–which makes their turnouts more impressive to me than the turnouts in Morgantown. </p>
<p>Wisconsin wins points in my book because they do have other things to do in Madison and still get massive turnouts at their football and basketball games. Speaks volume about Wisconsin fans and their devotion to their school. Same can be said about the University of Texas and the turnouts in Austin. These two schools would probably be my choice for #1 and #2 in this category–although I couldn’t say which deserves the top spot.</p>
<p>P.S. I’m a UCLA alumnus–but I don’t think they belong in the top 10–despite their 106 national championships.</p>
<p>*As I said before, the criteria for listing the top 10 sports schools is not based on wins and losses, but rather the hype surrounding the sports at their respective schools. *</p>
<p>I would think it has to be both…hype and having winning “big money” teams in recent years…</p>
<p>After all, there are a lot more then 10 schools that go crazy for their teams.</p>
<p>Puzzling. Sixty-eight posts and >2,000 hits and not one of them from hawkette? :)</p>
<p>Well, if the criteria is just that everybody drops everything and goes to the local football or basketball game, then I’d nominate West Virginia and Mississippi even over Wisconsin. They and UT-Austin have the best tailgating (and craziest parties I’ve ever seen)—well, not counting at UC Berkeley two weeks ago (which was impressive since school hadn’t even started yet).</p>
<p>Of course, the difference is that there is not that much to do in Morgantown, VW or Oxford, MS–while there is a little more to do in Westwood (UCLA), in Las Vegas (UNLV), in San Franciso (UC Berkeley), and in Chicago (Northwestern)–which makes their turnouts more impressive to me than the turnouts in Morgantown. </p>
<h2>Wisconsin wins points in my book because they do have other things to do in Madison and still get massive turnouts at their football and basketball games. Speaks volume about Wisconsin fans and their devotion to their school. Same can be said about the University of Texas and the turnouts in Austin. These two schools would probably be my choice for #1 and #2 in this category–although I couldn’t say which deserves the top spot. ~ Calcruzer</h2>
<p>As a WVU alumnus, I agree somewhat, however I wouldn’t say, “there isn’t much to do in morgantown.” </p>
<p>While Morgantown is not Chicago/LA/New York/Boston, it certainly has alot “to do.” Lets not forget that this is a school that is routinely ranked as the top/near to the top party school in the nation - you can find something to do.</p>
<p>Students at schools like WVU, PSU, Ole Miss have everything a college student would want to do - sports, bars, tailgating, house parties, frats/sororities, school functions, and believe it or not, even conveniently located shopping malls and restuarants.</p>
<p>One of the reasons I went to WVU was because the town revolved around the school, not in reverse like you see at PITT. But it’s just a matter of taste.</p>
<p>With pro-sports being absent in WV, WVU is the states flagship team, which I suppose is similiar in Mississippi, Alabama, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.</p>
<p>If you think about it, not very many urban campuses have real knock out athletic programs, and even the ones who do struggle to have a fanbase. I suppose UCLA and Boston College would be the exception to that, but if you look at a school like Pitt, where even though they have competitive teams, they still lack a strong fanbase - pro sport town first and always.</p>
<p>BTW, I’m not sure when the last time you came through Morgantown, but it’s changed alot, even in the last 5 years. Lots of shopping and retail developments, new housing, and other developments have sprung up pretty quick. </p>
<p>I haven’t been to Oxford, but if I had to pick a campus to compare with WVU, I’d probably say Penn State. However, I have a feeling alot of the southern campuses would also resemble WVU.</p>
<p>Lots of opinions without much factual backing on this thread. According to the NCAA, here are the top revenue-producing college sports (median values) among NCAA FBS (Div. IA) schools for 2008:</p>
<ol>
<li>Football $12,932,000</li>
<li>Men’s Basketball $4,364,000</li>
<li>Men’s Ice Hockey $638,000</li>
<li>Men’s Lacrosse $372,000</li>
<li>Baseball $254,000</li>
<li>Men’s Volleyball $206,000</li>
<li>Women’s Basketball $198,000 </li>
<li>Men’s Water Polo $167,000</li>
<li>Wrestling $116,000</li>
<li>Women’s Equestrian $106,000</li>
</ol>
<p>Football, Men’s Basketball, and Men’s Ice Hockey are the “big three” in coaches’ salaries, too, with median values as follows:
- Football $1,095,000
- Men’s Basketball $822,000
- Men’s Ice Hockey $315,000
- Women’s Basketball $207,000
- Men’s Lacrosse $187,000
- Baseball $157,000
- Women’s volleyball $120,000
- (tie) Women’s Ice Hockey $113,000
- (tie) Men’s Soccer $113,000
- Field Hockey $111,000</p>
<p>Among NCAA FCS (Div. 1AA) schools, men’s ice hockey is second only to football as a revenue generator (median values):
- Football $648,000
- Men’s Ice Hockey $444,000
- Men’s Basketball $362,000
- Men’s Lacrosse $159,000
- Wrestling $129,000
- Baseball $79,000
- Men’s Skiing $69,000
- Women’s Equestrian $64,000
- Women’s Basketball $63,000
- Women’s Ice Hockey $62,000</p>
<p>Bottom line: if you’re at a school where college baseball or women’s basketball is big, it may seem like a big-time sport. And so it is in your small corner of the universe, but that’s a very small corner. Hockey is third to football and men’s basketball at most bigger schools, and bigger than men’s basketball at many small schools.</p>
<p>2007/2008 top sports revenue U’s:</p>
<p>[Top</a> revenue producers in college athletics](<a href=“http://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/article/62825]Top”>http://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/article/62825)</p>
<p>BC has a very weak fan base, and I think its football and basketball attendance figures easily bare that out. It has extremely weak coverage in Boston (as reported about [here](<a href=“http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/dan_shaughnessy/09/06/northeast.college.football/]here[/url]”>http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/dan_shaughnessy/09/06/northeast.college.football/)</a>). It is way second fiddle to the city’s pro teams like no other urban BCS school. If you are looking for an exception to the urban rule, I think you’d have to go with UW in Seattle.</p>
<p>BTW, on the issue of just the best football/basketball combinations, there have been three separate rankings that I know of by the media on this topic in the past year alone. CBS Sports [Flourishing</a> Five](<a href=“http://brian-de-los-santos.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/5814661/23674449]Flourishing”>http://brian-de-los-santos.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/5814661/23674449), CollegeFootballNews.com’s [annual</a> Hoops and Helmets ranking](<a href=“http://cfn.scout.com/2/847928.html]annual”>http://cfn.scout.com/2/847928.html), and Rivals.com [BCS</a> era Best of Both Worlds](<a href=“http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1090378]BCS”>http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1090378). There is plenty to argue about with each one, but at least they are independent opinions.</p>
<p>Highest average home attendance, 2008, Men’s Ice Hockey:
- Wisconsin 14,133
- North Dakota 11,709
- Minnesota 9,943
- Colorado College 6,932
- Michigan 6,619
- Nebraska-Omaha 6,305
- New Hampshire 6,007
- Denver 5,933
- St. Cloud State 5,872
- Boston College 5,592
- Michigan State 5,507
- Maine 5,231
- Boston U 5,171
- UMass 5,017
- Minnesota Duluth 4,652
- Minnesota St. Mankato 4,269
- Ohio State 4,261
- Dartmouth 4,203
- Cornell 4,191<br>
- Vermont 3,962</p>
<p>Highest average home attendance, 2008, baseball:
- LSU 7,590
- Arkansas 6,968
- Mississippi State 6,008
- Texas 5,976
- Florida State 4,918
- South Carolina 4,758
- Mississippi 4,712
- Clemson 4,668
- Alabama 4,454
- Nebraska 4,391
- Texas A&M 4,208
- Wichita State 4,168
- Rice 3,726
- Tulane 3,600
- Southern Mississippi 3,421
- East Carolina 3,116
- Florida 3,104
- Baylor 3,072
- Arizona State 3,052
- Hawaii 2,640</p>
<p>A distinct regional cast to both these sports, but college hockey draws a bigger attendance in the Northeast and Upper Midwest than college baseball does in its strongest regions, the Southeast, Texas, and the southern Great Plains.</p>
<p>Duke may not have a good football team but we make up for it by having a really fun tailgate where students dress up in themes Halloween-like costumes and get really drunk. If we’re talking about the amount of “fun and enjoyment” these sports add to a school’s atmosphere, then Duke doesn’t suffer since we use our lack of a good football team as an excuse to party like crazy.</p>
<p>However, Duke Football is headed on a serious upswing under the helm of David Cutcliffe (who coached both the Manning brothers in college) and should be making regular bowl appearances from here on out. This week’s Alabama game should be fun since it’s the first football game in a long time that Duke has been nationally televised in.</p>
<p>Also, out of the four top revenue-generating sports, Duke WON NATIONAL TITLES in TWO of them this year. Our football team was a respectable 5-7 last year and we don’t even have an ice hockey program so it’s silly to be penalized for that. How are we not top 5 in this ranking, let alone top 10? We’re a medium-sized private school so obviously we can’t pack in a 100,000+ students in a football stadium like a UF or UM can.</p>
<p>Also, why isn’t Sparty top 10? It gets my vote OVER Wisconsin for being the most consistent Big 10 team in both basketball and football.</p>
<p>Wisconsin and Ohio State are both better at football and bball combined than Wisconsin.</p>
<p>As far as Duke goes, I think you’re underestimating the impact that a historically bad football team has on a schools overall athletic reputation. Lets not forget, Duke hasn’t had a winning season in football since 1994 and was last in the ACC in attendance last year. It will take a lot more than a few 5-7 seasons for Duke’s football reputation to improve. Once that happens, then I can see including Duke in the top 10, but the football team has to improve dramatically first.</p>
<p>Also, Cutcliffe is good, but I wouldn’t get too ahead of myself with the “regular bowl appearances from here on out” idea. Without Thad Lewis this year, Duke will be lucky to make a bowl, although your easy schedule might be able to help you somewhat. Still, there is a lot of work that Cut has to do.</p>
<p>One last thing-The list is in alphabetical order, so there is no “top 5” right now. Perhaps we could work together and create our own top 5?</p>
<p>For private schools, Syracuse is definitely up there.</p>
<p>Syracuse football is an embarrassment to the Big East…which isn’t an easy task currently.</p>
<p>Anyways, just stumbled onto this article.</p>
<p>[America’s</a> Top College Football Towns - Budget Travel](<a href=“http://www.budgettravel.com/bt-dyn/content/article/2010/09/08/AR2010090802916.html?hpt=Mid]America’s”>http://www.budgettravel.com/bt-dyn/content/article/2010/09/08/AR2010090802916.html?hpt=Mid)</p>