Football will always be important, but it's actually just a fraction of the monies that the institution brings in to itself. Yes, it does bring in a tidy profit (over 50 million, and that was before the new NBC contract), but to put it into perspective:
The university has an operating budget of 1.8 billion dollars.
In terms of research dollars, the University of Notre Dame pulls in around a quarter billion dollars, and this shows steady growth.
Then on the pure academic side, it's the premiere Catholic institution, and I'm sure the $83+ K / year it costs to attend for resident students doesn't hurt the school's budget.
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