Robert Morris University baseball tops the list of highest grossing programs in Illinois, reporting more than $1.3 million – or $10,678 per athlete – in 2016, followed by Bradley University ($1.2 million), and University of Illinois at Chicago ($980,248), according to a Higher Education Tribune analysis of the latest federal data.
The U.S. Department of Education Office of Postsecondary Education compiles athletics data annually from more than 2,000 schools receiving federal financial aid.
In Illinois, 87 schools have baseball programs, grossing nearly $24.8 million in 2016.
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Top Illinois baseball programs by revenue
| School | Division | Total Undergraduates | Baseball players | Baseball team revenue | Revenue per athlete |
| Robert Morris University Illinois | NAIA Division II | 2,253 | 126 | $1,345,435 | $10,678 |
| Bradley University | NCAA Division I without football | 4,278 | 36 | $1,197,127 | $33,254 |
| University of Illinois at Chicago | NCAA Division I without football | 16,408 | 35 | $980,248 | $28,007 |
| Illinois State University | NCAA Division I-FCS | 17,420 | 41 | $893,216 | $21,786 |
| Northern Illinois University | NCAA Division I-FBS | 12,323 | 35 | $861,772 | $24,622 |
| Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | NCAA Division I-FCS | 10,509 | 34 | $768,992 | $22,617 |
| Benedictine University | NCAA Division III with football | 2,687 | 105 | $742,910 | $7,075 |
| Eastern Illinois University | NCAA Division I-FCS | 5,117 | 35 | $680,739 | $19,450 |
| Quincy University | NCAA Division II with football | 1,035 | 62 | $666,160 | $10,745 |
| Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville | NCAA Division I without football | 9,883 | 34 | $663,777 | $19,523 |
| Western Illinois University | NCAA Division I-FCS | 7,482 | 32 | $609,074 | $19,034 |
| Judson University | NAIA Division I | 786 | 45 | $540,106 | $12,002 |
| McKendree University | NCAA Division II with football | 1,820 | 41 | $538,716 | $13,139 |
| Saint Xavier University | NAIA Division II | 2,599 | 37 | $497,594 | $13,448 |
| University of St Francis | NAIA Division II | 1,320 | 33 | $493,664 | $14,960 |
| Lewis University | NCAA Division II without football | 3,741 | 34 | $482,781 | $14,199 |
| Chicago State University | NCAA Division I without football | 1,464 | 23 | $406,348 | $17,667 |
| Olivet Nazarene University | NAIA Division II | 3,019 | 30 | $393,492 | $13,116 |
| Concordia University-Chicago | NCAA Division III with football | 1,355 | 31 | $370,188 | $11,942 |
| University of Illinois at Springfield | NCAA Division II without football | 1,896 | 40 | $360,548 | $9,014 |
| University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | NCAA Division I-FBS | 32,126 | 35 | $360,506 | $10,300 |
| Trinity Christian College | NAIA Division II | 903 | 31 | $357,918 | $11,546 |
| Trinity International University-Illinois | NAIA Division I | 631 | 24 | $337,542 | $14,064 |
| North Central College | NCAA Division III with football | 2,534 | 48 | $333,327 | $6,944 |
| Southwestern Illinois College | NJCAA Division I | 3,860 | 33 | $330,866 | $10,026 |
| Northwestern University | NCAA Division I-FBS | 8,249 | 31 | $307,866 | $9,931 |
| John A Logan College | NJCAA Division I | 1,899 | 34 | $302,450 | $8,896 |
| Kankakee Community College | NJCAA Division II | 1,064 | 28 | $299,530 | $10,698 |
| Lincoln College | NJCAA Division III | 727 | 24 | $297,115 | $12,380 |
| Augustana College | NCAA Division III with football | 2,514 | 59 | $270,835 | $4,590 |
| South Suburban College | NJCAA Division II | 1,328 | 37 | $251,477 | $6,797 |
| Rockford University | NCAA Division III with football | 909 | 48 | $248,865 | $5,185 |
| Lincoln Trail College | NJCAA Division I | 386 | 35 | $245,949 | $7,027 |
| North Park University | NCAA Division III with football | 1,884 | 40 | $239,204 | $5,980 |
| Rend Lake College | NJCAA Division I | 1,135 | 31 | $224,519 | $7,243 |
| Wabash Valley College | NJCAA Division I | 464 | 36 | $222,712 | $6,186 |
| Roosevelt University | NAIA Division II | 2,250 | 25 | $219,187 | $8,767 |
| Parkland College | NJCAA Division II | 2,978 | 38 | $217,246 | $5,717 |
| Wheaton College | NCAA Division III with football | 2,400 | 34 | $215,267 | $6,331 |
| Heartland Community College | NJCAA Division II | 2,107 | 37 | $208,387 | $5,632 |
| Lincoln Land Community College | NJCAA Division II | 2,269 | 23 | $208,001 | $9,044 |
| University of Chicago | NCAA Division III with football | 5,956 | 35 | $205,692 | $5,877 |
| Olney Central College | NJCAA Division I | 479 | 45 | $205,315 | $4,563 |
| Lake Land College | NJCAA Division I | 2,261 | 24 | $201,342 | $8,389 |
| Lewis and Clark Community College | NJCAA Division I | 1,731 | 28 | $199,052 | $7,109 |
| Aurora University | NCAA Division III with football | 3,302 | 46 | $197,054 | $4,284 |
| Illinois Central College | NJCAA Division II | 3,082 | 36 | $191,911 | $5,331 |
| Kaskaskia College | NJCAA Division I | 1,233 | 27 | $189,574 | $7,021 |
| Millikin University | NCAA Division III with football | 1,796 | 46 | $186,997 | $4,065 |
| Frontier Community College | NJCAA Division I | 257 | 26 | $177,174 | $6,814 |
| Danville Area Community College | NJCAA Division II | 973 | 26 | $168,985 | $6,499 |
| Illinois College | NCAA Division III with football | 949 | 44 | $166,698 | $3,789 |
| Dominican University | NCAA Division III without football | 2,101 | 25 | $157,674 | $6,307 |
| Joliet Junior College | NJCAA Division III | 4,988 | 29 | $157,542 | $5,432 |
| Illinois Institute of Technology | NCAA Division III without football | 2,709 | 26 | $149,443 | $5,748 |
| Knox College | NCAA Division III with football | 1,325 | 36 | $145,932 | $4,054 |
| Carl Sandburg College | NJCAA Division II | 929 | 28 | $143,167 | $5,113 |
| Greenville College | NCAA Division III with football | 913 | 30 | $139,784 | $4,659 |
| Illinois Wesleyan University | NCAA Division III with football | 1,760 | 39 | $138,623 | $3,554 |
| Black Hawk College | NJCAA Division II | 1,909 | 32 | $133,738 | $4,179 |
| John Wood Community College | NJCAA Division II | 965 | 25 | $122,233 | $4,889 |
| College of DuPage | NJCAA Division III | 6,335 | 37 | $121,644 | $3,288 |
| Blackburn College | NCAA Division III without football | 569 | 26 | $118,887 | $4,573 |
| Southeastern Illinois College | NJCAA Division I | 457 | 31 | $116,154 | $3,747 |
| Kishwaukee College | NJCAA Division II | 1,570 | 26 | $114,962 | $4,422 |
| Shawnee Community College | NJCAA Division I | 739 | 20 | $106,764 | $5,338 |
| Morton College | NJCAA Division II | 1,253 | 25 | $104,108 | $4,164 |
| Elmhurst College | NCAA Division III with football | 2,682 | 28 | $104,016 | $3,715 |
| Moraine Valley Community College | NJCAA Division II | 6,186 | 26 | $101,567 | $3,906 |
| Oakton Community College | NJCAA Division II | 2,596 | 37 | $100,350 | $2,712 |
| MacMurray College | NCAA Division III with football | 531 | 42 | $97,817 | $2,329 |
| McHenry County College | NJCAA Division II | 1,944 | 32 | $97,127 | $3,035 |
| College of Lake County | NJCAA Division II | 3,808 | 23 | $94,666 | $4,116 |
| Monmouth College | NCAA Division III with football | 1,124 | 42 | $91,957 | $2,189 |
| Elgin Community College | NJCAA Division III | 3,008 | 29 | $91,238 | $3,146 |
| Triton College | Other | 3,107 | 32 | $85,573 | $2,674 |
| Illinois Valley Community College | NJCAA Division II | 1,256 | 24 | $80,756 | $3,365 |
| Eureka College | NCAA Division III with football | 644 | 34 | $79,474 | $2,337 |
| Spoon River College | NJCAA Division II | 727 | 27 | $74,960 | $2,776 |
| Prairie State College | NJCAA Division II | 1,400 | 18 | $67,148 | $3,730 |
| Highland Community College | NJCAA Division I | 823 | 36 | $63,523 | $1,765 |
| Lincoln Christian University | NAIA Division II | 357 | 14 | $63,115 | $4,508 |
| Sauk Valley Community College | NJCAA Division I | 792 | 15 | $62,473 | $4,165 |
| City Colleges of Chicago-Olive-Harvey College | NJCAA Division II | 781 | 13 | $61,782 | $4,752 |
| Waubonsee Community College | NJCAA Division II | 3,101 | 27 | $58,294 | $2,159 |
| Rock Valley College | NJCAA Division III | 2,999 | 25 | $34,561 | $1,382 |
| William Rainey Harper College | NJCAA Division III | 4,331 | 25 | $32,887 | $1,315 |
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