Longhorn Riches
Texas Longhorns still the richest team in college football
UT's football team still has claim to at least one No. 1 title this year.
According to Forbes' most recent report, the University of Texas still houses the richest college football team, valued at $131 million — that's 7 percent more than any other team.
While you may be experiencing sticker shock, the 2014 valuation is actually $8 million less than 2013 when the Longhorns had an estimated value of $139 million. Before fans start cursing the new coaching strategies, the decrease in value has less to do with the team's performance than it does with the acquisition of Charlie Strong. According to Forbes, UT paid $4.4 million to buy Strong out of his previous contract with the University of Louisville. On top of that, the university must also pay severance to Mack Brown's previous couching staff.
Team values are determined by how much revenue they generate for their university overall as well as how much they financially contribute to local economies during home games. Longhorn ticket sales raked in about $34 million, while $31 million came from "football-related contributions" (usually meaning wealthy donors).
The next richest college football team is University Notre Dame with a $122 million valuation, followed by University of Michigan, University of Alabama and Louisiana State University. The University of Oklahoma ranks No. 8 at $93 million, while Texas A&M claims No. 13 at $78 million.