From the list of most watched teams in 2021. I have seen this several places now.
1. Ohio State — 5.22M
2. Michigan — 4.74M
4. Penn State — 3.87M
8. Michigan State — 2.89M
11. Wisconsin — 2.41M
12. Nebraska — 2.29M
20. Iowa — 1.64M
21. Purdue — 1.63M
24. Minnesota — 1.28M
26. Indiana — 1.24M
31. Illinois — 1.13M
39. Maryland — 971K
48. Northwestern — 716K
58. Rutgers — 488K
This really puts the new Big Ten media deal in perspective. The SEC might be better, but the Big Ten is more lucrative. And both are way more lucrative than ACC.
Louisville is #51 on this list, playing in a conference whose top team Clemson is #19. Florida St, another ACC flag ship, is right between Minnesota and IU. Money might not be Brohm's top priority, but Purdue will be able to match, possibly double, anything that Louisville can throw at him, and give him the chance to compete against the best in the country, as opposed to what will quickly become the college version of minor leagues. I believe that matters to him.
And despite what many might think, Purdue is not a bottom of the barrel situation. It is positioned right in the middle of an EXTREMELY profitable conference. We were never going to compete on a yearly basis with OSU or Michigan. Never have, never will. But we do now have a big advantage over schools like NC State or Iowa State. Everyone in the mega conference will get an opportunity to take a bite at the apple and to lure in plenty of 4* recruits. Those stuck in also ran conferences will not. That matters, too.
With the new media deal Purdue will be bringing in more money than Alabama or Georgia. Simply crazy to imagine, but true. The last piece of the puzzle is how to get a portion of this money to the student athletes, beyond the $6K academic stipend. It is starting to feel inevitable. And when it does, any imbalance in NIL opportunity will be a minor issue for 99% of recruits when you can offer $25k deals right out of pocket.
Now, back to the list. Just imagine Indiana's number if it didn't factor in 1, 2, 4, and 8. HA!