College athletics is big business, and football is the granddaddy of them all.
In 2004, the top 10 NCAA Division I-A football programs raked in a combined $417.87 million in total revenue, according to the U.S. Department of Educationââ?¬â?¢s Office of Postsecondary Education. The University of Texas topped the list with $47.5 million, but even mid-tier Division 1-A schools like the University of Oregon, Boston College, and Stanford University generated well more than $10 million in revenue last yearââ?¬â?enough to make any university president salivate.