It’s nothing personal, Falcons’ fans. But you kinda stink.

Don’t shoot the messenger. That’s merely the conclusion of two college professors, Michael Lewis and Manish Tripathi, from the marketing program at Emory’s business school. Lewis and Tripathi have ranked the NFL’s 32 fan bases by loyalty, according to their  chosen metrics, and the Falcons finished 31^st – just one spot ahead of the Oakland Raiders and four spots behind the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Dallas Cowboys fans ranked first in this NFL fan equity analysis.

“We’re not trying to insult anyone," Tripathi said. "Actually, we both hate the Cowboys. I’m a Redskins fan and Mike’s a Steelers’ fan.”

Personally, I find analyses like fan rankings to be mindless drivel. Here’s my analysis, based on 54 years of research: When teams win, fans show up. When teams lose, they don’t. Where’s my doctorate?

Lewis and Tripathi have done a series of fans analyses across different sports since last spring. How other local fan bases fared:

Georgia finished first among SEC football teams (yes, ahead of Alabama) and second nationally (behind Texas) in brand equity. Georgia Tech finished ninth among 14 ACC football schools (Clemson was first).

Georgia ranked eighth in SEC basketball (Arkansas was first, Kentucky second) and Tech ranked seventh in ACC basketball (Duke first, North Carolina second.

In baseball, Braves fans ranked 20^th out of 30 (Boston first).

In the NBA, the Hawks finished 29^th out of 30 (New York first; Brooklyn last).

Bottom line, said Lewis: “I don’t think what we’re saying is particularly shocking. Atlanta is more of an SEC town than a pro sports town.”

Now, about the metrics. Quoting from the NFL fans rankings: “The key idea is that we look at team box office revenues relative to team on-field success, market population, stadium capacity, median income and other factors.  The first step in our procedure involves the creation of a statistical model that predicts box office revenue as a function of the aforementioned variables.  We then compare actual revenues to the revenues predicted by the model.  Teams with relatively stronger fan support will have revenues that exceed the predicted values, and teams that under perform have relatively less supportive fan bases.”

You know. I read that 17 times and I still have no idea what it means.

In short, these two guys – who clearly need a second hobby – looked back at 11 years of data to build their statistical model. That data included team records, payroll, population, income in metro area, etc. They then used results from the last three years for each team to weigh against that data, determining what box revenue was generated vs. what should have been expected.

Lewis believes the Falcons ranked low because their box office revenue, despite announced sellouts, isn’t what it should be, relative to the team’s on-field success and the size of the Atlanta market. (I suspect that empty Georgia Dome club seats during announced sellouts also may have played a role.) “There are a lot of moving parts here, but my guess is the fact Falcons’ ticket prices are relatively low might be a factor,” he said.

So why exactly are two marketing professors doing these studies?

“That’s a heck of a question,” Lewis said. “I guess it’s an effort to turn our job into a hobby. Or maybe it’s turn our hobby into a job.”

So, is anybody buying?

•

Recent ramblings

-- MyAJC: Nationals' reign was short-lived; Will Braves' reign by longer?

-- Blog: Sports Illustrated ranks Georgia 12 (CBS: Georgia State 126th)

-- Blog: Braves' Chris Johnson tapes his mouth shut

-- MyAJC: Braves' Fredi Gonzalez is just enjoying the moment

-- Blog: Brian Banks: 'This is what I was waiting for'

-- My AJC: Early signs unchanged: Falcons need help on offensive line

-- Blog: Manziel story spurs NCAA autograph hysteria (even at Georgia)

-- MyAJC (subscription): Steven Jackson gives Falcons something they missed

-- MyAJC (subscription): Baseball can't move forward until cheaters like A-Rod exposed