NCAA Volleyball: Top Spending vs. Ranking 2024 2025

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Dec 12, 2025; Lincoln, NE, USA; The Nebraska Cornhuskers cheer after a point against the Kansas Jayhawks during the second set at Bob Devaney Sports Center. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

With all the talk about money, and certain universities throwing money at certain sports, I thought it would be interesting to look at the numbers regarding this question: How does a top budget for a given sport compare to how the team ranked at the end of the season? Is more money translating into a higher ranking?

We’re staying away from football here. When I look over the abyss into the football money pit, all I see is bottomless darkness. It’s a void that I am not prepared to venture into, and we’re going to stay away from that.

What I am doing is selectively looking at some of the so-called minor sports – baseball, softball, volleyball, and women’s basketball. If I find something worthwhile, I’ll look at men’s basketball as well, what with all the talk about what Oregon is spending or not spending on basketball. But to be fair, the same talk surrounds these other sports as well. Just this last week, that was the talk concerning Ducks baseball players transferring out of the program. Also, this isn’t just an Oregon Ducks phenomena – it’s everywhere, so there’s a lot of tongue wagging on the subject.

What I’m doing is listing some base numbers as a starting reference, and we’ll see where that takes us. The budget numbers are only what is publicly available, and some are estimates. Most private universities – USC, Notre Dame, Duke, etc. – are not included.

2024

Here are the 12 biggest spenders in volleyball in 2024:

Top 12 Largest Women’s Volleyball Budgets (FY24)

1. University of Nebraska-Lincoln: $5,911,267
2. University of Texas at Austin: $5,426,338
3. University of Wisconsin-Madison: $4,679,469
4. University of Tennessee, Knoxville: $3,969,120
5. Michigan State University: $3,871,687
6. University of Florida: $3,790,022
7. Texas A&M University: $3,747,561
8. Penn State University: $3,563,587
9. University of Minnesota: $3,541,055
10. Colorado State University: $3,224,595
11. University of Kentucky: $3,210,000 (approx.)
12. University of Washington: $2,990,000 (approx.)

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Half of the top 12 spenders listed are from the Big Ten (end of season rank is in parenthesis): Nebraska (4), Wisconsin (6), Michigan State (89 – this is RPI, they were not ranked and did not receive votes), Penn State (1), Minnesota (14), Washington (41). Woe to Michigan State, Colorado State, and Washington – all that money to end up ranked 89, 46, and 41, respectively.

2025

This is the most recent information on the 12 biggest spenders in 2025:

The Top 12 Reported Operating Budgets from recent disclosures feature the following programs:

1. University of Nebraska-Lincoln: $7,030,000 (FY25)
2. University of Texas at Austin: $5,426,338 (FY24)
3. University of Wisconsin-Madison: $4,679,469 (FY24)
4. University of Tennessee, Knoxville: $3,969,120 (FY24)
5. Michigan State University: $3,871,687 (FY24)
6. University of Florida: $3,790,022 (FY24)
7. Texas A&M University: $3,747,561 (FY24)
8. Penn State University: $3,563,587 (FY24)
9. University of Minnesota: $3,541,055 (FY24)
10. Colorado State University: $3,224,595 (FY24)
11. University of Louisville: Est. $2.8 – $3.2 Million (Top-Tier ACC)
12. Stanford University: Est. $2.8 – $3.1 Million (Top-Tier ACC)

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Michigan State and Colorado State still appear to get no bang for their buck. Both are unranked and had no votes, so their RPI final standing is listed.

Tennessee and Florida do not get much ranking benefit resulting from their budget. Really, the top three that are listed – Nebraska, Texas, and Wisconsin – are falling within the top seven in 2024 and 2025, which means that they are getting reasonable shots at getting into the Final Four.

This has been an interesting exercise. I had not idea when I went in what teams were spending the big money, other than Nebraska and Texas. I am even more curious about what we find as we dive into the other “minor” sports.

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