Depends on the sport and the area. If you are comparing college soccer to Major League Baseball, then you are right. However, college football and college basketball are more popular than the pro teams in certain areas of the country. I am positive that the University of Tennessee football team routinely outdraws the Titans. The same could be said for the Florida Gators football team versus the Jacksonville Jaguars. USC football has always been more popular than whatever NFL team has been located in LA.
I generally find having pro sports teams to be rather overrated. I have lived in DC and in Miami. For the most part, the pro sports teams in both areas added little to what I found appealing to both metro areas. If anything, the sports teams in DC and Miami served as constant drains on the communities with their never ending demands for new arenas and stadiums.
Now, having said that, I wouldnt' mind ODU expanding their stadium and making the jump to Division I FBS division in ten years.