The study is conducted each year by Ryan Brewer, an assistant professor of finance at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus, according to the Wall Street Journal who reported his findings.
USC’s value is estimated at a mere $277.33 million, less than half that of Notre Dame at $723.59 million and well below fellow Pac-12 programs Washington and Oregon.
In fact, Washington checks in as the surprise most valuable team in the conference at $378.23 million, trailed just slightly by Oregon at $338.64 million.
This is the explanation of Brewer’s calculations:
Brewer analyzed each program’s revenues and expenses and made cash-flow adjustments, risk assessments and growth projections to calculate what a college team would be worth on the open market, if it could be bought and sold like a professional franchise.