1. SEC – 9,498,368
2. Big Ten – 8,270,591
3. Big-12 – 7,838,888
4. ACC – 7,320,046
5. Big East – 5,680,285 (note 16 team b-ball conference, so arguably unfair)
6. Pac 10 – 5,191,988
7. Mountain West – 3,263,756
If this numbers included baseball the SEC would be even further ahead....as the top 3 NCAA Division 1 schools in fan attendance that year were all from the SEC. They were Mississippi State, LSU and Arkansas.
To put it simply....college sports is a religion in this part of the country.
Now for more recent information: This year ESPN sign a 15-year 2.25 Billion dollar deal with the SEC. This deal would pay the league $2.25 billion, or about $150 million per year. Combined with the 15-year deal with CBS, which will reportedly pay the SEC $55 million per season, the SEC can be expected to earn over $200 million per year from television rights alone. Just further proof of the dominance of the SEC.
I am a Mississippi State Bulldog fan and while I may hate the other 11 teams in the conference....I do want to see the SEC do well in the post season play. With the exception of Ole Miss, of course.
John R-7577
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