New study ranks Gophers as one of college basketball's most valuable programs

Minnesota has the 15th-most-valuable men's basketball program in the nation, according to a new study.

Gophers AD Mark Coyle (left) with new men's basketball head coach Niko Medved (right) | Picture via: @tonyliebert (X)

The University of Minnesota has one of the most valuable men's college basketball programs in the entire country, according to a new study.

The Gophers rank 15th in the study, which was conducted by Ryan Brewer, "an associate professor of finance at Indiana University Columbus." The results were published by the Wall Street Journal (subscription required).

According to Brewer's analysis, the Minnesota men's basketball program has an annual cash flow of $11.85 million, revenue of $22.1 million, and an enterprise value of $164 million. That latter number is the relevant one in the rankings, and it places the Gophers above programs like Villanova, Texas, Purdue, Alabama, Wisconsin, and Florida.

The Gophers rank sixth in the 18-team Big Ten, behind only Indiana, Ohio State, Illinois, Michigan, and Michigan State.

College basketball’s most valuable teams (WSJ)

1 UNC $378M
2 Duke $370M
3 Indiana $279M
4 Ohio St $262M
5 Louisville $260M
6 Zona $257M
7 Cuse $256M
8 Illinois $232M
9 UK $223M
10 Arkansas $217M
11 Kansas $191M
12 Michigan $189M
13 Mich St $183M
14 UConn $165M
15 Minn $164M

— Brad Crawford (@BCrawford247) April 8, 2025

"The numbers are the product of a regular study conducted by Brewer, who begins his research with a simple question: What would these teams be worth if they could be bought and sold like a pro sports team? He answers it by studying revenues and cash flows while making financial projections about the team’s sustainability. In a way, it’s not different than it would be if he were analyzing the value of any other business."

Frankly, on the surface, the Gophers are a lot higher in those rankings than most people would've probably guessed. The University of Minnesota is a massive public school with an estimated $6 billion endowment (as of 2024) and a relatively successful football program, but the men's basketball program has not been a high-quality one in recent history.

The Gophers were rumored to be towards the bottom in NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) budget among Big Ten men's basketball teams last season. Former head coach Ben Johnson lost several key players to bigger NIL deals in the transfer portal last offseason, which was a factor in the team's poor 2024-25 performance. Johnson was fired after the conclusion of the season and replaced by Niko Medved, who is believed to have a significantly bigger NIL budget to work with this year.

At some point soon, college athletic programs will likely be able to pay players directly. It's going to be fascinating to see how that works, and how power conference programs divide their spending on football, men's basketball, and other sports.

Brewer's study also published results on every Division I women's basketball program in the country. Minnesota WBB ranks 346th of 359 with an estimated $1 million in adjusted annual revenue and a $5 million enterprise value. That's a pretty stark difference.