College Football HQ

College Football Playoff finalists absent from most valuable programs rankings

Neither Miami nor Indiana approaches the top 10 in CNBC's college football valuation list
Joe Cox|
Mario Cristobal has led Miami into the College Football Playoff title game, but neither the Hurricanes nor Indiana rank anywhere near the most valuable programs.
Mario Cristobal has led Miami into the College Football Playoff title game, but neither the Hurricanes nor Indiana rank anywhere near the most valuable programs. | Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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While success pays in the valuation of college athletic programs, short term success doesn't always pay. Neither Miami nor its apparent CFP title game foe Indiana (comfortably leading in the second half at the time of writing) ended up anywhere near the most valuable college athletic programs.

CNBC valued college athletic programs and while its top 10 included four College Football Playoff members, neither of the national title participants reached the list. For that matter, none of the four CFP semifinalists reached the list either. Oregon ranked 16th at a value of $880 million to lead the group.

Miami is ranked 29th in the rankings at an estimated value of $760 million. Indiana came in two spots higher at 27th, valued at $775 million. CNBC estimated 13 college athletic programs as exceeding the $1 billion barrier.

Half of the top 10 teams on CNBC's valuation list came from the SEC, including Texas at the top overall spot with a value of $1.48 billion. The Big Ten boasted four of the top 10 members, led by Ohio State, which ranked second with a value of $1.35 billion. A year ago those teams switched spots in the top two, with the Buckeyes coming out on top.

The only non-SEC and Big Ten team in the top ten is Notre Dame, an Independent in football and a member of the ACC in most sports. Notre Dame ranked sixth with a valuation of $1.13 billion.

The top ACC program on the list is Clemson, estimated at a value of $860 million, which ranks 18th overall. The Big 12's valuation leader was significantly down the list, with Kansas ranking 39th at a valuation of $620 million. The top ranked non-power four school is Oregon State, coming in 61st overall with a valuation of $440 million and about to spear-head the revamped Pac-12.

Surprisingly, neither Miami nor Indiana even came in very high on the list of the programs with the greatest value increase from the previous year. Both Miami and Indiana came in at 19% over the past year, well behind South Florida (57% increase from the previous year) and Arizona State (54% increase).

On the other side of the list, Texas Tech, despite a brilliant football season, came in next to last with an 8% decrease in valuation over the past year. The only program with a worse return over the past year was Washington State, which took a 23% drop.

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Joe Cox
JOE COX

Joe is a journalist and writer who covers college and professional sports. He has written or co-written over a dozen sports books, including several regional best sellers. His last book, A Fine Team Man, is about Jackie Robinson and the lives he changed. Joe has been a guest on MLB Network, the Paul Finebaum show and numerous other television and radio shows. He has been inside MLB dugouts, covered bowl games and conference tournaments with Saturday Down South and still loves telling the stories of sports past and present.

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