Tulane “will receive” $8.1M from the CFP, win or lose its Dec. 20 rematch with Ole Miss, the “highest of any CFP first-round participant,” according to Jeff Duncan of the New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE. That number dwarfs the $6M it received for the 2023 Cottom Bowl. Tulane will receive $6.1M of the CFP’s $8M payout to the American Conference and another $2M for “travel and operational expenses from the CFP.” Unlike most conferences, which divvy up postseason revenue equally among member schools, the American has a performance-based revenue-sharing system, which “rewards programs for their individual success.” If Tulane upsets Ole Miss and advances to the quarterfinal round against Univ. of Georgia in the Sugar Bowl, it “will mean another” $6M to $7M payday. It “remains to be seen how Tulane will utilize the extra resources,” but much of it is “expected to be reinvested into the football program, particularly the school’s Green Wave Talent Fund,” which funds NIL opportunities for the school’s athletes. The “ancillary benefits of media exposure, prestige and Q rating enhancement might be even more significant” than the CFP payout. The value of the media exposure alone is “expected to be in the millions.” Tulane officials also expect the “excitement of the Green Wave’s CFP appearance to generate more season-ticket and merchandise sales” (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 12/11).
American Conference revenue model puts Tulane atop CFP payouts, $8.1M guaranteed
