Home›Spending
Filed athletics finances

Who spends the most on recruiting

Every figure is read from the school's own NCAA financial report — the annual filing each Division I athletics department submits to the NCAA. Ranked by reported dollars, not by results.
151Schools ranked
FY2025Fiscal year
$164.07MCombined recruiting
831Reports parsed

Transportation, lodging, and meals for prospective student-athletes and for staff on official and unofficial visits.

Rank / schoolReported recruitingChange
01

Oklahoma

$6.23M · $6,231,259

no prior year
02

Alabama

$6.16M · $6,162,081

−13% YoY
03

Michigan

$6.11M · $6,105,020

+50% YoY
04

Texas

$5.79M · $5,785,192

flat
05

Clemson

$5.08M · $5,081,023

+6% YoY
06

Georgia

$4.98M · $4,979,749

−22% YoY
07

Texas A&M

$4.90M · $4,898,792

−23% YoY
08

Auburn

$4.45M · $4,451,401

+44% YoY
09

Florida

$4.40M · $4,400,799

−2% YoY
10

Rutgers

$3.54M · $3,544,574

−5% YoY
11

UCLA

$3.50M · $3,500,797

+34% YoY
12

NC State

$3.40M · $3,400,675

+14% YoY
13

Arizona

$3.40M · $3,399,514

flat
14

Mississippi State

$3.21M · $3,214,554

+30% YoY
15

Nebraska

$3.17M · $3,172,140

−9% YoY
16

UConn

$3.02M · $3,019,021

−3% YoY
17

South Florida

$2.99M · $2,987,918

+8% YoY
18

Texas Tech

$2.95M · $2,950,059

−17% YoY
19

Purdue

$2.92M · $2,924,097

no prior year
20

Virginia

$2.91M · $2,909,298

no prior year
21

Michigan State

$2.91M · $2,908,033

flat
22

Arizona State

$2.91M · $2,905,241

flat
23

Louisville

$2.74M · $2,740,473

−9% YoY
24

Indiana

$2.60M · $2,598,898

−16% YoY
25

Georgia Tech

$2.59M · $2,591,220

−14% YoY
26

Florida State

$2.58M · $2,577,842

no prior year
27

Oklahoma State

$2.45M · $2,453,087

+3% YoY
28

Kansas

$2.44M · $2,440,879

no prior year
29

Iowa

$2.30M · $2,304,738

flat
30

UCF

$2.23M · $2,226,660

no prior year
31

Army

$2.03M · $2,032,237

−3% YoY
32

UNLV

$1.94M · $1,941,095

+12% YoY
33

Oregon State

$1.79M · $1,789,712

−11% YoY
34

San Diego State

$1.51M · $1,510,132

+34% YoY
35

Memphis

$1.42M · $1,420,153

+4% YoY
36

University of Massachusetts, Amherst

$1.38M · $1,382,498

+25% YoY
37

Eastern Michigan

$1.35M · $1,347,309

+34% YoY
38

Boise State

$1.32M · $1,321,519

+23% YoY
39

Wyoming

$1.29M · $1,287,928

+17% YoY
40

Colorado State

$1.26M · $1,258,088

no prior year
41

Charlotte

$1.18M · $1,175,772

−10% YoY
42

East Carolina

$1.13M · $1,127,477

no prior year
43

Fresno State

$1.12M · $1,124,862

+29% YoY
44

Arkansas State

$1.05M · $1,050,732

+33% YoY
45

Texas State

$1.02M · $1,023,487

+20% YoY
46

Nevada

$988K · $987,821

flat
47

Florida International

$952K · $951,509

+88% YoY
48

Western Michigan

$881K · $880,602

−5% YoY
49

University of Hawaii, Manoa

$832K · $831,951

+5% YoY
50

South Alabama

$824K · $823,985

no prior year
51

Florida Atlantic

$821K · $821,430

+1% YoY
52

Southern Miss

$816K · $815,871

no prior year
53

UAB

$792K · $792,315

−2% YoY
54

UC Santa Barbara

$770K · $770,103

no prior year
55

Missouri State

$704K · $704,071

+12% YoY
56

Buffalo

$702K · $702,473

−20% YoY
57

Jacksonville State

$695K · $694,632

no prior year
58

California Polytechnic State University

$681K · $681,363

+14% YoY
59

North Dakota

$663K · $662,732

+9% YoY
60

Tarleton State University

$652K · $651,544

−33% YoY
61

Middle Tennessee

$637K · $636,681

no prior year
62

Austin Peay State University

$611K · $611,024

+21% YoY
63

Kennesaw State

$606K · $605,699

+20% YoY
64

Georgia State

$588K · $587,630

−1% YoY
65

Montana

$548K · $547,507

+15% YoY
66

University of California, Davis

$539K · $539,135

no prior year
67

Central Michigan

$532K · $531,909

−19% YoY
68

George Mason University

$526K · $525,587

+5% YoY
69

North Dakota State

$519K · $518,580

+6% YoY
70

Northern Illinois

$511K · $511,055

no prior year
71

San José State

$511K · $510,886

−26% YoY
72

South Dakota

$508K · $507,963

+14% YoY
73

VCU

$498K · $498,226

+12% YoY
74

Southern Illinois University at Carbondale

$492K · $491,702

+1% YoY
75

Montana State

$483K · $483,355

+12% YoY
76

University of Nebraska at Omaha

$471K · $471,062

no prior year
77

Stony Brook

$470K · $469,942

+12% YoY
78

Alcorn State University

$454K · $453,517

+353% YoY
79

Stephen F. Austin State University

$442K · $441,639

−23% YoY
80

Maine

$435K · $435,373

−8% YoY
81

Eastern Washington

$422K · $422,332

−2% YoY
82

Georgia Southern

$418K · $418,365

−29% YoY
83

Murray State University

$408K · $407,511

+10% YoY
84

Towson

$402K · $401,587

−2% YoY
85

Vermont

$383K · $382,513

+12% YoY
86

UAlbany

$370K · $370,108

+13% YoY
87

Indiana State

$366K · $365,848

−15% YoY
88

South Dakota State

$355K · $355,097

+30% YoY
89

Florida Gulf Coast University

$332K · $332,205

−9% YoY
90

William & Mary

$323K · $322,834

−22% YoY
91

Chattanooga

$320K · $320,404

−24% YoY
92

Sacramento State

$292K · $291,960

no prior year
93

Long Beach State

$291K · $291,304

+17% YoY
94

Lamar

$283K · $282,655

+17% YoY
95

Illinois State University

$274K · $274,208

no prior year
96

Ball State

$273K · $273,282

−28% YoY
97

Portland State University

$268K · $268,498

−2% YoY
98

California State University, Northridge

$264K · $263,560

+53% YoY
99

Eastern Kentucky

$257K · $256,779

−15% YoY
100

Northern Michigan University

$256K · $256,337

+10% YoY
101

Sam Houston

$252K · $252,374

−27% YoY
102

University of Northern Iowa

$241K · $240,908

−7% YoY
103

St. Cloud State University

$232K · $232,446

+1% YoY
104

University of Missouri-Kansas City

$229K · $229,400

+17% YoY
105

University of Wisconsin-Green Bay

$225K · $224,923

+36% YoY
106

Western Carolina

$225K · $224,832

−7% YoY
107

Binghamton

$223K · $223,402

+17% YoY
108

Oakland

$206K · $206,168

+10% YoY
109

The Citadel

$204K · $204,209

−21% YoY
110

California State University, Fullerton

$203K · $203,189

+45% YoY
111

Eastern Illinois

$203K · $202,794

−7% YoY
112

Longwood

$192K · $192,290

+2% YoY
113

North Alabama

$192K · $191,902

−1% YoY
114

Northern Kentucky University

$179K · $179,200

+48% YoY
115

Radford

$178K · $177,701

no prior year
116

Morehead State

$177K · $176,548

−10% YoY
117

Norfolk State

$170K · $170,006

+51% YoY
118

South Carolina State University

$166K · $165,964

no prior year
119

California State Polytechnic University,

$163K · $163,023

+18% YoY
120

Western Illinois

$158K · $157,979

+10% YoY
121

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

$143K · $143,065

−3% YoY
122

VMI

$141K · $140,648

no prior year
123

UC Riverside

$136K · $136,242

+76% YoY
124

Winthrop

$131K · $131,284

−17% YoY
125

University of Maryland Eastern Shore

$119K · $118,750

+19% YoY
126

University of South Carolina Upstate

$116K · $115,583

no prior year
127

Missouri Western State University

$94K · $93,514

+9% YoY
128

Texas Southern University

$92K · $91,845

no prior year
129

University of West Florida

$84K · $84,063

−17% YoY
130

California State University, East Bay

$81K · $81,394

−8% YoY
131

Morgan State

$81K · $81,294

−67% YoY
132

Prairie View A&M

$71K · $70,601

no prior year
133

South Dakota School of Mines &

$61K · $61,447

no prior year
134

North Carolina Central

$61K · $60,721

+30% YoY
135

Jackson State

$46K · $45,782

+159% YoY
136

California State University, Monterey Bay

$40K · $39,891

−31% YoY
137

Western Washington University

$33K · $33,031

−46% YoY
138

California State University San Marcos

$31K · $30,624

+44% YoY
139

University of North Georgia

$28K · $27,784

+35% YoY
140

Montana State University Billings

$28K · $27,723

−13% YoY
141

Sonoma State University

$21K · $20,542

−54% YoY
142

California State University, Los Angeles

$20K · $19,617

+44% YoY
143

Augusta University

$19K · $18,881

−38% YoY
144

Coppin State University

$9K · $9,000

flat
145

Mississippi Valley State University

$3K · $2,928

no prior year
146

University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff

$514 · $514

no prior year
147

University of the District of Columbia

$500 · $500

+37% YoY
148

Alabama A&M

$0 · $0

no prior year
149

Bowie State University

$0 · $0

no prior year
150

Florida A&M University

$0 · $0

no prior year
151

Chicago State University

$0 · $0

no prior year
How to read these rankings

These figures come from filed NCAA financial reports collected in our document corpus and parsed from the report text. 831 reports parsed cleanly; 56 could not be read and are absent from these rankings, so a school missing from a year has not necessarily reported nothing.

Football and basketball views come from the report's per-sport allocation tables. They cover recruiting and team travel, not aviation alone: commercial airfare, buses, hotels, meals, and other eligible costs share the same lines. A school can also leave some expenses unallocated.

Private universities have no public-disclosure obligation and generally do not appear. Fiscal years are not uniform — most close June 30, but some schools close on a different date, so a single “FY” column compares slightly different periods. Schools also categorize inconsistently between reports, so treat cross-school gaps of a few percent as noise rather than signal.