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Where do the Oklahoma Sooners rank in study of largest college football fan bases?

As a football program, few programs have had as much success or more than the Oklahoma Sooners in their history. They’ve been the powerhouse in the Big 12 for the last two decades, winning more conference championships than the rest of the programs combined.

Nestled in the heart of Oklahoma, the Sooners have built themselves into a blue blood program thanks in part to the work of Bennie Owen, Bud Wilkinson, Barry Switzer, Bob Stoops, and yes, even Lincoln Riley. They’re a team synonymous with winning, offensive football, and Heisman trophies.

They’ve never been a flash-in-the-pan program. While the Sooners have had short-lived periods of poor play on the field, they never lasted long, and rarely did it mean a losing season. According to College Football Reference, the Oklahoma Sooners have had just 11 losing seasons in their 114-year run. That’s a remarkable run of success. By comparison, the Texas Longhorns have had 17 losing seasons in their history.

That record of success has helped them build one of the largest college football fanbases in the country despite their home state’s small population.

Strategy analyst Tony Altimore underwent a process to analyze the fan bases  of Football Bowl Subdivision teams, and the Oklahoma Sooners came in at No. 17 in the study.

Here’s what they looked at in their study:

Includes inbound conference teams only, excluding some newly promoted FCS teams lacking prior data. Source: New York Times and NYT 538 studies of fanbases in 2011 and 2014 and of Vivid Seats ticket sales data in 2014, normalized with 2020 U.S. Census data and Google trends data and multiple studies of overall national CFB fan support. Inputs from each study are averaged based on number of inputs to avoid penalizing (primarily G-3) teams not included in all three studies. – Tony Altimore

Ohio State came in at No. 1, followed by Notre Dame at No. 2. Texas, with Oklahoma heading to the SEC, had the third-biggest fanbase in the study’s estimation. Coming in ahead of Penn State at No. 4 and Michigan to round out the top five.

The new-look SEC fared very well in the study as 15 of the 16 schools made the top 40 in estimated fan base. Vanderbilt, who has struggled in football in recent seasons, was tied at No. 63 with the Big Ten’s Northwestern, who was the only school in the new-look conference outside the top 50.

While Texas has a sizeable advantage in the fanbase size, one must also consider that the state of Texas has a much larger population than Oklahoma. It’s the age-old discussion about why Oklahoma has so many players from Texas on the roster. There’s simply a larger player pool to recruit from.

The study has certain limitations, which is why it’s an estimate. The studies used are nearly a decade old. However, it’s interesting to see how the teams and leagues stack up based on the numbers involved. It’s unlikely things have changed so radically in support that teams would drop off, but that’s not to say things might look different if they were based on more recent numbers, were they available.

It’s not surprising that the SEC leads the way in average fanbase per school, followed by the Big Ten. Those two conferences are considered one and two in unofficial rankings of the Power Five. It’s also not surprising to see the Big 12 fall to fifth among the Power Five, with Texas and Oklahoma shifting to the SEC.

Because this study came out before the moves of USC and UCLA to the Big Ten, it’s not been updated to reflect the recent realignment. However, when you add the former Pac-12 schools, they still lag behind the SEC.

And when you take out USC and UCLA from the Pac-12, they still rank ahead of the Big 12 in average fanbase per school by more than half a million.

The ever-changing landscape of college football has led to discussions about brand recognition and drawing power. With that, let’s take a look at the top 25 schools in estimated fan base according to this study.

Washington Huskies

Sep 28, 2019; Seattle, WA, USA; Washington Huskies quarterback Jacob Eason (10) celebrates with fans after a game against the USC Trojans at Husky Stadium. Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

2.46 million

Nebraska Cornhuskers

Sep 7, 2019; Boulder, CO, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers fans cheer at the end of the second quarter against the Colorado Buffaloes at Folsom Field. Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

2.55 million

Missouri Tigers

Nov 13, 2021; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers fans show their support against the South Carolina Gamecocks during the game at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

2.64 million

South Carolina Gamecocks

Sep 26, 2020; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks fans cheer against the Tennessee Volunteers at Williams-Brice Stadium. Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

2.69 million

North Carolina Tar Heels

Nov 6, 2021; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels fans celebrate on the field after the game at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

2.74 million

Florida State Seminoles

Nov 24, 2018; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles fans watch the game against the Florida Gators during the second half of action at Doak Campbell Stadium.  Glenn Beil-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

2.79 million

Miami Hurricanes

Sep 4, 2021; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Miami Hurricanes fans react after Miami turned the ball over on downs during the third quarter against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

2.99 million

Michigan State Spartans

Oct 30, 2021; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Michigan State Spartans fans celebrate after the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Spartan Stadium. Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

3.07 million

Oklahoma Sooners

Oct 9, 2021; Dallas, Texas, USA; Oklahoma Sooners fans during the game against the Texas Longhorns at the Cotton Bowl. Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

3.22 million

81.5% of the population.

Tennessee Volunteers

Nov 6, 2021; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Velus Jones Jr. (1) celebrates with fans after the game against the Kentucky Wildcats at Kroger Field. Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

3.27 million

Auburn Tigers

Oct 10, 2020; Auburn, Alabama, USA; Auburn Tigers fans brave the heavy rain and strong winds during the first quarter of the Auburn Tigers game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Jordan-Hare Stadium. John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

3.27 million

Syracuse Orangemen

October 18, 2008; Tampa FL, USA; South Florida Bulls quarterback Matt Grothe (8) gets tackled as he runs with the ball by Syracuse linebacker Mike Mele (50) during the first half against the Syracuse Orangemen at Raymond James Stadium. Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

3.45 million

Texas A&M Aggies

Nov 6, 2021; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies fans celebrate an Aggies score against the Auburn Tigers in the fourth quarter at Kyle Field. Texas A&M Aggies won 20 to 3. Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

3.87 million

Georgia Bulldogs

Dec 31, 2021; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Georgia Bulldogs fans celebrate with Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman Travon Walker (44) and offensive lineman Justin Shaffer (54) after defeating Michigan Wolverines in the Orange Bowl college football CFP national semifinal game at Hard Rock Stadium. John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

3.99 million

LSU Tigers

Sep 25, 2021; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; LSU Tigers fans cheer before the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. Matt Bush-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

4.02 million

USC Trojans

Sep 11, 2021; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans fans react during a game against the Stanford Cardinal at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

4.46 million

Wisconsin Badgers

Dec 7, 2019; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Wisconsin Badgers fans react to a touchdown against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the first half in the 2019 Big Ten Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

4.57 million

Alabama Crimson Tide

Oct 9, 2021; College Station, Texas, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide fans cheer against the Texas A&M Aggies in second half at Kyle Field. Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

5.34 million

Oregon Ducks

Nov 27, 2021; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Oregon Ducks fans sing during a time out during the second half against the Oregon State Beavers at Autzen Stadium. The Ducks won 38-29. Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

5.54 million

 

Florida Gators

Sep 18, 2021; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators fans cheer during the second half against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

5.89 million

Michigan Wolverines

Dec 31, 2021; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; A Michigan Wolverines fan reacts during the third quarter in the Orange Bowl college football CFP national semifinal game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Hard Rock Stadium. John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

6.26 million

Penn State Nittany Lions

Apr 23, 2022; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin high-fives a young fan prior to the Blue White spring game at Beaver Stadium. Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

6.36 million

Texas Longhorns

Sep 21, 2019; Austin, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns fans in the second half at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

7.82 million

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Sep 25, 2021; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish fans celebrate a touchdown by lifting each up during the first half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Soldier Field. Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

8.21 million

Ohio State Buckeyes

Sep 18, 2021; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes fans cheer from the stands against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane at Ohio Stadium. Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Total Number of Estimated Fans

11.26 million

Story originally appeared on Sooners Wire