Football and Men’s basketball will account for close to 90% of revenue sharing payments at most Power Conference schools. The remaining 10% results in an average payout of around $ 4,306 per athlete in all other sports including cross country:
Revenue Sharing Estimates
Power 4 Schools: 2026-27 *Revenue
Share %
Allocation
to Team ($)
# of eligible
Athletes *Average per
Athlete ($)
Football 75% 15,600,000 105 148,570
Men's Basketball 15% 3,120,000 15 208,000
All Other Sports 10% 2,080,000 483
4,306
Power Conference Average 100% $ 20,800,000 603
These are averages, a few athletes will receive much more, while most will receive less. These estimates are for revenue sharing payments only (Institutional NIL), they do not include third-party NIL compensation. Most sports will likely receive no revenue sharing allocation, but will be eligible for greater scholarship awards.
* In almost all cases, the maximum $ 21.3 million revenue sharing distribution for 2026-27 will be reduced by a $ 500,000 offset for additional scholarships. Eligible athletes are based on the new roster limits effective July 1, 2025.
Athletic scholarship limits removed for NCAA I Cross Country teams:
While cross country runners will not receive substantial revenue sharing payments, most will be eligible for significantly higher athletic scholarship awards. As part of the House v NCAA settlement, scholarship limits have been removed, and roster limits have been established for each sport. For participating schools this would result in every player being eligible for a full scholarship. For cross country, the roster and athletic scholarship limit is now 17 per participating team, significantly increasing the available scholarship money at most NCAA I schools:
2025 Scholarship Awards *
Men's Cross Country Teams Conference 2025
Roster Average X-C/T&F
Award 2025 ($)
Potential X-C
Award 2026 ($)
Roster
Limit **
Akron MAC 11 15,810 35,268 17
Alabama SEC 29 31,181 66,125 17
Albany Coastal 14 22,661 40,639 17
Appalachian State Sun Belt 21 12,641 32,108 17
Arizona Big 12 9 24,588 62,723 17
Arizona State Big 12 15 18,096 67,576 17
Arkansas SEC 16 21,603 50,376 17
Binghamton America East 11 8,050 41,763 17
Boise State Pac-12 11 38,873 44,202 17
Bowling Green MAC 12 3,750 36,359 17
Buffalo MAC 19 6,261 51,624 17
Cal Poly Big West 25 7,912 39,057 17
Cal State Northridge Big West 11 9,234 41,276 17
California ACC 18 16,716 69,819 17
Central Connecticut Northeast 20 4,726 33,720 17
Central Michigan MAC 14 7,500 31,628 17
Charlotte American 25 9,424 31,532 17
Chicago State Northeast 10 13,028 35,341 17
Cincinnati Big 12 11 23,016 49,454 17
Clemson ACC 12 37,688 82,226 17
Colorado Big 12 21 32,765 65,905 17
Colorado State Pac-12 17 14,968 51,748 17
Coppin State MEAC 12 17,204 25,700 17
Eastern Illinois OVC 19 5,363 31,882 17
Eastern Michigan MAC 17 19,558 40,538 17
Eastern Washington Big Sky 11 12,867 36,013 17
Florida SEC 20 13,697 70,448 17
Florida Gulf Coast ASUN 13 12,699 41,040 17
Florida State ACC 17 13,524 39,706 17
Fresno State Pac-12 9 - 31,120 17
Georgia SEC 15 22,302 52,351 17
Grambling State SWAC 5 9,414 23,271 17
Houston Big 12 16 9,460 40,842 17
Idaho Big Sky 13 25,332 42,045 17
Illinois Big Ten 17 22,563 48,881 17
Illinois - Chicago MVC 13 7,633 47,031 17
Illinois State MVC 21 9,535 32,307 17
Indiana Big Ten 19 24,405 58,399 17
Iowa Big Ten 15 16,078 48,734 17
Iowa State Big 12 25 15,532 42,054 17
Kansas Big 12 22 16,373 50,420 17
Kansas State Big 12 13 17,230 39,973 17
Kennesaw State CUSA 9 10,396 34,470 17
Kent State MAC 11 9,388 38,335 17
Lamar Southland 19 14,292 34,889 17
Long Beach State Big West 9 5,889 35,386 17
Louisiana Monroe Sun Belt 15 12,542 29,145 17
LSU SEC 12 26,714 45,797 17
Marshall Sun Belt 17 15,256 30,332 17
Maryland Eastern Shore MEAC 5 18,224 31,685 17
Massachusetts MAC 15 9,720 59,521 17
McNeese State Southland 14 11,419 23,606 17
Miami of Ohio MAC 18 20,425 50,811 17
Michigan Big Ten 30 30,513 86,131 17
Michigan State Big Ten 33 22,548 64,830 17
Minnesota Big Ten 17 18,763 51,913 17
Mississippi SEC 14 20,553 55,220 17
Mississippi Valley State SWAC 9 8,164 17,663 17
Missouri SEC 31 30,694 53,321 17
Missouri - Kansas City Summit League 15 12,106 55,421 17
Montana Big Sky 13 8,406 44,116 17
Montana State Big Sky 14 17,567 44,558 17
Nebraska Big Ten 12 17,141 44,411 17
Nevada Mountain West 15 5,757 49,244 17
New Hampshire Coastal 18 8,890 53,236 17
New Mexico Mountain West 9 20,276 50,539 17
New Mexico State CUSA 14 10,805 39,619 17
New Orleans Southland 8 8,837 27,946 17
Nicholls State Southland 13 3,288 23,829 17
Norfolk State MEAC 7 25,676 36,985 17
North Carolina ACC 21 18,903 45,931 17
North Carolina A&T Coastal 9 9,095 17,178 17
North Carolina State ACC 20 15,378 44,314 17
North Dakota Summit 14 24,722 32,145 17
North Dakota State Summit 22 7,967 29,892 17
North Florida ASUN 20 8,838 33,951 17
North Texas American 18 12,940 29,869 17
Northern Arizona Big Sky 19 16,166 41,162 17
Northern Iowa MVC 11 8,082 27,479 17
Northwestern State Southland 6 29,354 33,403 17
Oakland Horizon 15 14,796 38,281 17
Ohio MAC 19 6,013 41,249 17
Ohio State Big Ten 15 16,489 60,509 17
Oklahoma SEC 11 21,391 60,504 17
Oklahoma State Big 12 18 5,984 39,353 17
Oregon Big Ten 23 28,423 65,586 17
Penn State Big Ten 21 19,922 63,133 17
Portland State Big Sky 16 10,328 37,085 17
Purdue Big Ten 14 23,020 50,795 17
Purdue Fort Wayne Horizon 20 6,574 30,857 17
Rhode Island Coastal 6 13,320 56,870 17
Rutgers Big Ten 28 16,736 71,187 17
Sacramento State Big West 8 4,839 32,240 17
Sam Houston State CUSA 15 9,908 31,587 17
San Jose State Mountain West 13 12,271 39,541 17
South Dakota State Summit 20 4,561 22,911 17
South Florida American 10 17,747 38,375 17
Southeast Missouri State OVC 18 8,438 24,777 17
Southeastern Louisiana Southland 9 12,017 29,912 17
Southern SWAC 9 9,036 19,482 17
Southern Illinois MVC 8 9,454 31,341 17
Southern Utah WAC 19 11,174 30,048 17
Stephen F. Austin Southland 18 8,197 36,588 17
Stony Brook Coastal 23 12,865 46,632 17
Tarleton State WAC 14 9,440 30,778 17
Tennessee SEC 15 34,128 92,131 17
Texas SEC 18 14,761 49,964 17
Texas A&M SEC 13 18,726 50,075 17
Texas A&M Corpus Christi Southland 15 12,979 29,695 17
Texas at Arlington WAC 9 10,486 38,061 17
Texas Rio Grande Southland 9 14,750 35,230 17
Texas State Pac-12 14 20,268 37,058 17
Texas Tech Big 12 16 14,286 33,528 17
Toledo MAC 13 40,570 44,058 17
UC Davis Mountain West 13 6,106 45,210 17
UC Irvine Big West 11 10,066 46,857 17
UC San Diego Big West 16 7,711 47,033 17
UCLA Big Ten 15 26,399 62,537 17
UMBC America East 22 3,169 43,763 17
UNC Greensboro Southern 18 6,000 25,388 17
UNC Wilmington Coastal 9 3,107 27,869 17
Utah State Pac-12 23 6,474 33,560 17
Utah Tech Big Sky 12 4,260 23,895 17
Utah Valley WAC 28 6,936 33,679 17
UTEP Mountain West 14 28,148 40,479 17
UTSA American 11 19,530 34,328 17
VCU Atlantic 10 15 17,780 60,151 17
Vermont America East 21 - 67,006 17
Virginia ACC 25 35,460 75,988 17
Virginia Tech ACC 25 32,735 65,734 17
Washington Big Ten 17 27,970 69,130 17
Washington State Pac-12 16 21,432 55,210 17
Weber State Big Sky 21 8,688 30,328 17
Western Carolina Southern 14 3,691 20,932 17
Western Illinois OVC 8 11,384 27,154 17
Western Kentucky CUSA 14 8,999 33,683 17
Wichita State American 14 10,937 45,178 17
William & Mary Coastal 23 7,850 60,765 17
Winthrop Big South 15 7,211 46,367 17
Wisconsin Big Ten 16 40,183 63,378 17
Wisconsin - Green Bay Horizon 14 7,339 22,974 17
Wisconsin - Milwaukee Horizon 19 9,897 33,685 17
Wright State Horizon 20 3,102 30,184 17
Wyoming Mountain West 17 17,549 42,337 17
Youngstown State Horizon 21 7,593 26,045 17
Average - 145 teams * 16 $ 14,818 $ 42,978 17
2025 Scholarship Awards *
Women's Cross Country TeamsConference 2025
Roster Average X-C/T&F
Award 2025 ($)
Potential X-C
Award 2026 ($)
Roster
Limit **
Akron MAC 12 11,723 35,268 17
Alabama SEC 31 39,855 66,125 17
Albany Coastal 21 17,193 40,639 17
Appalachian State Sun Belt 20 14,174 32,108 17
Arizona Big 12 14 30,171 62,723 17
Arizona State Big 12 14 25,220 67,576 17
Arkansas SEC 20 18,980 50,376 17
Ball State MAC 12 12,130 39,029 17
Binghamton America East 17 9,130 41,763 17
Boise State Pac-12 22 23,552 44,202 17
Bowling Green MAC 16 32,745 36,359 17
Buffalo MAC 31 19,833 51,624 17
Cal Poly Big West 24 11,735 39,057 17
Cal State Bakersfield Big West 18 15,090 37,576 17
Cal State Northridge Big West 5 9,702 41,276 17
California ACC 17 27,664 69,819 17
Central Connecticut Northeast 20 5,503 33,720 17
Central Florida Big 12 16 29,023 43,593 17
Central Michigan MAC 28 8,790 31,628 17
Charlotte American 34 11,250 31,532 17
Chicago State Northeast 19 21,523 35,341 17
Clemson ACC 12 48,835 82,226 17
Cleveland State Horizon 12 3,877 36,462 17
Colorado Big 12 17 41,795 65,905 17
Colorado State Pac-12 21 27,217 51,748 17
Connecticut Indep 16 16,323 48,203 17
Coppin State MEAC 8 13,051 25,700 17
Eastern Illinois OVC 15 5,997 31,882 17
Eastern Michigan MAC 22 17,915 40,538 17
Eastern Washington Big Sky 18 14,596 36,013 17
Florida SEC 23 23,280 70,448 17
Florida Gulf Coast ASUN 10 28,451 41,040 17
Florida State ACC 24 27,143 39,706 17
Fresno State Pac-12 15 19,056 31,120 17
Georgia SEC 14 27,779 52,351 17
Georgia Southern Sun Belt 12 21,620 44,971 17
Georgia State Sun Belt 8 29,241 43,044 17
Grambling State SWAC 5 11,443 23,271 17
Hawaii Mountain West 15 22,644 46,404 17
Houston Big 12 16 13,617 40,842 17
Idaho Big Sky 16 21,373 42,045 17
Illinois Big Ten 15 30,601 48,881 17
Illinois - Chicago MVC 14 7,240 47,031 17
Illinois State MVC 12 9,815 32,307 17
Indiana Big Ten 24 28,832 58,399 17
Iowa Big Ten 23 21,525 48,734 17
Iowa State Big 12 28 21,274 42,054 17
James Madison Sun Belt 21 22,926 45,615 17
Kansas Big 12 24 26,770 50,420 17
Kansas State Big 12 10 20,802 39,973 17
Kennesaw State CUSA 21 13,346 34,470 17
Kent State MAC 12 16,344 38,335 17
Lamar Southland 14 10,306 34,889 17
Long Beach State Big West 18 10,398 35,386 17
Louisiana Monroe Sun Belt 10 11,536 29,145 17
LSU SEC 24 20,036 45,797 17
Marshall Sun Belt 11 14,221 30,332 17
Maryland Big Ten 19 39,788 65,294 17
Maryland Eastern Shore MEAC 8 24,059 31,685 17
Massachusetts MAC 24 25,631 59,521 17
McNeese State Southland 7 10,353 23,606 17
Miami of Ohio MAC 13 19,323 50,811 17
Michigan Big Ten 38 35,277 86,131 17
Michigan State Big Ten 51 23,571 64,830 17
Minnesota Big Ten 23 28,354 51,913 17
Mississippi SEC 15 20,174 55,220 17
Mississippi State SEC 17 24,266 53,993 17
Mississippi Valley State SWAC 10 4,972 17,663 17
Missouri SEC 19 26,379 53,321 17
Missouri - Kansas City Summit League 15 15,042 55,421 17
Missouri State CUSA 22 11,268 32,353 17
Montana Big Sky 13 8,764 44,116 17
Montana State Big Sky 19 14,867 44,558 17
Nebraska Big Ten 12 19,220 44,411 17
Nebraska - Omaha Summit League 17 6,182 35,794 17
New Hampshire Coastal 15 22,302 53,236 17
New Mexico Mountain West 38 20,230 50,539 17
New Mexico State CUSA 16 18,971 39,619 17
New Orleans Southland 8 18,808 27,946 17
Nicholls State Southland 15 9,733 23,829 17
Norfolk State MEAC 12 34,164 36,985 17
North Carolina ACC 24 21,794 45,931 17
North Carolina A&T Coastal 8 12,238 17,178 17
North Carolina State ACC 20 26,640 44,314 17
North Dakota Summit 18 21,136 32,145 17
North Dakota State Summit 17 9,699 29,892 17
North Florida ASUN 17 13,157 33,951 17
North Texas American 15 12,803 29,869 17
Northern Arizona Big Sky 20 19,316 41,162 17
Northern Illinois Horizon 10 25,230 33,988 17
Northern Iowa MVC 13 6,771 27,479 17
Northwestern State Southland 7 31,189 33,403 17
Oakland Horizon 20 13,494 38,281 17
Ohio MAC 26 14,774 41,249 17
Ohio State Big Ten 22 24,600 60,509 17
Oklahoma SEC 20 17,684 60,504 17
Oklahoma State Big 12 60 12,010 39,353 17
Oregon Big Ten 20 22,577 65,586 17
Oregon State Pac-12 29 20,064 46,740 17
Penn State Big Ten 30 25,781 63,133 17
Portland State Big Sky 11 13,845 37,085 17
Purdue Big Ten 21 28,587 50,795 17
Purdue Fort Wayne Horizon 14 9,009 30,857 17
Rhode Island Coastal 20 23,204 56,870 17
Rutgers Big Ten 18 24,229 71,187 17
Sacramento State Big West 12 11,013 32,240 17
Sam Houston State CUSA 15 9,195 31,587 17
San Diego State Pac-12 13 23,069 44,937 17
San Jose State Mountain West 17 11,832 39,541 17
South Carolina SEC 32 41,180 66,856 17
South Dakota State Summit 26 6,719 22,911 17
South Florida American 14 16,842 38,375 17
Southeast Missouri State OVC 13 11,187 24,777 17
Southeastern Louisiana Southland 7 15,678 29,912 17
Southern SWAC 8 11,017 19,482 17
Southern Illinois MVC 12 10,479 31,341 17
Southern Miss Sun Belt 10 18,163 31,345 17
Southern Utah WAC 20 12,517 30,048 17
Stephen F. Austin Southland 14 11,069 36,588 17
Stony Brook Coastal 20 16,105 46,632 17
Tarleton State WAC 12 10,545 30,778 17
Tennessee SEC 37 28,820 92,131 17
Texas SEC 25 24,383 49,964 17
Texas A&M SEC 24 22,630 50,075 17
Texas A&M Corpuse Christi Southland 6 15,704 29,695 17
Texas at Arlington WAC 6 14,746 38,061 17
Texas Rio Grande Southland 14 12,458 35,230 17
Texas State Pac-12 9 23,490 37,058 17
Texas Tech Big 12 27 14,494 33,528 17
Toledo MAC 24 44,052 44,058 17
Towson Coastal 13 14,645 44,027 17
UC Davis Mountain West 23 18,145 45,210 17
UC Irvine Big West 31 5,977 46,857 17
UC San Diego Big West 20 7,670 47,033 17
UCLA Big Ten 15 34,163 62,537 17
UMBC America East 13 7,545 43,763 17
UNC Greensboro Southern 12 4,650 25,388 17
UNC Wilmington Coastal 9 5,846 27,869 17
UNLV Mountain West 35 22,372 42,072 17
Utah Big 12 20 32,202 60,192 17
Utah State Pac-12 23 7,669 33,560 17
Utah Tech Big Sky 16 5,662 23,895 17
Utah Valley WAC 31 8,101 33,679 17
UTEP Mountain West 13 31,234 40,479 17
UTSA American 15 23,267 34,328 17
VCU Atlantic 10 9 23,526 60,151 17
Vermont America East 49 7,311 67,006 17
Virginia ACC 18 29,954 75,988 17
Virginia Tech ACC 14 38,992 65,734 17
Washington Big Ten 17 40,189 69,130 17
Washington State Pac-12 23 25,721 55,210 17
Weber State Big Sky 17 12,998 30,328 17
West Virginia Big 12 21 18,960 52,200 17
Western Carolina Southern 14 4,404 20,932 17
Western Illinois OVC 16 10,037 27,154 17
Western Kentucky CUSA 10 10,308 33,683 17
Western Michigan MAC 18 18,711 33,199 17
Wichita State American 25 10,061 45,178 17
William & Mary Coastal 25 16,139 60,765 17
Winthrop Big South 9 10,077 46,367 17
Wisconsin Big Ten 27 37,142 63,378 17
Wisconsin - Green Bay Horizon 14 7,158 22,974 17
Wisconsin - Milwaukee Horizon 14 10,608 33,685 17
Wright State Horizon 22 4,030 30,184 17
Wyoming Mountain West 27 18,048 42,337 17
Youngstown State Horizon 19 12,081 26,045 17
Average - 167 teams * 18 $ 18,615 $ 43,176 17
These are potential increases as athletic scholarship awards are optional. Schools can fully fund a sport, or award less than the maximum allowed. While Football and Men’s basketball will receive close to 90% of revenue sharing payments at most FBS schools, conversely, about 90% of the new potential scholarship awards will go to athletes in Women’s and Men’s sports other than football and basketball.
* These averages are for NCAA I public Universities for which we have compiled data from available reporting. Average 2025 athlete award is for cross country and track & field teams combined.
** Roster limits are not mandatory. However, schools opting not to be subject to roster limits must adhere to the prior (lower) scholarship limits which is a maximum of 5 for men’s teams and 6 for women’s teams at schools without track and field teams. Prior scholarship limits for combined cross country & track & Field teams were 12.6 for men’s teams and 18 for women’s teams. Participating schools must submit certified rosters to the College Sports Commission.
Number of US College Cross Country teams:
NCAA I teams represent about 22% of all US college cross country teams. There are also many opportunities to compete at schools in other divisions and athletic associations:
Intercollegiate Cross
Country Programs 2025-26Men's
TeamsWomen's
Teams
NCAA I 327 360
NCAA II 266 286
NCAA III 400 416
NAIA 201 205
NJCAA 198 206
CCCAA 62 65
Other Associations 54 60
Totals 1,508 1,598
We didn’t just make this stuff up … see our page on methodology and sources of information. Questions on our data? Contact us at: NIL-NCAA.com Statistics compiled & edited by Patrick O’Rourke CPA, Washington, DC 
