The Death of Amateurism; Stanford FB Alums Step Up; Rodgers Redux

The NCAA's long, futile quest to preserve amateurism and its "student-athlete" facade has officially ended.

As of Friday night, the NCAA  and its members finally acknowledged that college sports is no longer an "extracurricular activity," but a multi-billion dollar business.

That the athletes who generate massive TV rights fees for college football and basketball should be granted a share of that revenue.

And perhaps most stunningly, that it's perfectly acceptable, rather than a rules violation, for schools to pay athletes directly.

This new era began when Claudia Wilken, the presiding judge in California's Northern District, gave final approval to the NCAA's landmark settlement of three antitrust cases, known as the "House Settlement." 

The agreement, which was reached 13 months ago and survived multiple hearings, 600 objections and a few revisions, was made between the named defendants (the NCAA and the Big Ten, SEC, ACC, Big 12 and Pac-12 Conferences) and the plaintiffs (dozens of athletes seeking more compensation for players).

The death of amateurism was a protracted one, spread over several court losses spanning the past 11 years, including O'Bannon (NIL), Alston (academically related benefits), an appeal to the Supreme Court, the three anti-trust suits included in the House Settlement, and several others still pending.

As a result, NCAA grudgingly allowed an expansion of athletic scholarships to include the full "cost of attendance" and up to $5,980 in Alston payments. Then, after a 9-0 rebuke from the Supreme Court, followed by over 20 states approving compensation for the use of an athlete's name, image and likeness (NIL) four years ago, it caved on NIL.

But through it all, the NCAA clung to its mantra disallowing "pay for play," even as NIL compensation quickly degenerated into a recruiting and transfer inducement.

Fearing another courtroom debacle that could cost an estimated $10 billion, the NCAA last spring agreed to the House settlement, named after Arizona State swimmer Grant House, one of the plaintiffs.

Here's what the agreement means:

• Thousands of former athletes who were not allowed to sign NIL deals dating back to 2016 will receive $2.8 billion in damages. Funding will come from the NCAA and its member conferences. Some 85,000 athletes have filed claims for the lost NIL compensation. The bulk of the money is expected to go to former power-conference football and men's basketball players.

• Starting July 1, schools will be permitted to share annual revenues with their athletes, up to an estimated $20.5 million cap. The cap, which represents 22% of the average annual revenue of power conference schools from ticket sales, TV rights and sponsorships, will rise on built-in escalators in Years 2 and 3, and then be re-calculated every third year. 

• Though the revenue share is not required, any school that wishes to stay competitive will have to fund as much of the rev-share as it can afford. Almost every power conference school has already opted in for the full amount. The Ivy League has opted out.

• Most schools are planning to give approximately 75% of the rev-share to football players, 15% to men's basketball, 5% to women's basketball and 5% to Olympic sports.

• The NCAA is out of the enforcement business, other than determining eligibility. Some 153 rules relative to paying athletes have been eliminated from the organization's rule book.

• A new enforcement entity, the College Sports Commission, will oversee payments and enforce rules related to the revenue-share agreement. The commission is charged with ensuring that schools remain under the revenue cap and has the authority to levy stiff penalties.

• In addition to the revenue-share from their schools, athletes may still receive NIL compensation from third parties such as boosters, businesses, sponsors and collectives.

• Any new contract between an athlete and a third party entity worth over $600 must go through a clearinghouse run by Deloitte. The clearinghouse, charmingly called "NIL Go," is charged with evaluating NIL deals and ensuring their legitimacy, i.e., that the athlete will actually do something for the money and the payment represents "fair market value." 

• Good luck with that.

• The settlement imposes new limits on team sports rosters, which initially resulted in schools planning to eliminate roster spots for thousands of walk-ons. Judge Wilken demanded a revision in the settlement that mitigated those lost spots. The compromise was an amendment allowing schools to "grandfather in" athletes on existing team rosters or those who were cut this year, for the remainder of their eligibility.

• Despite this landmark agreement, the NCAA's legal troubles are far from over. I expect numerous legal challenges in the not too distant future relative to the revenue share cap, the NIL clearinghouse, Title IX, and the basic question of whether or not athletes are employees. 

• Contracts and collective bargaining could also be right around the corner. 

• And finally, the question no one seems to want to address, or answer: "How does any of this relate to higher education?"

  
  

Stanford FB Alumni Launch Support Group: A few hours before the House Settlement approval came down, Stanford announced the formation of Stanford Football Alumni United (SFAU), a coalition of former players committed to restoring the football program to national prominence.

A worthy endeavor. And one that's needed if Stanford is to challenge the likes of powerhouses like Ohio State, Oregon, Texas, Michigan, Penn State, Alabama and Georgia.

The press release and website introduced a leadership team headlined by Stanford football icons Christian McCaffrey, Richard Sherman, and John Lynch.

Their stated goal is "supporting today's team in the following ways:

• Unmatched Mentorship and Career Development

• Elevated Visibility and Connectivity

• Fresh Financial Approach"

It all looks good and sounds good, but the reality is that the only category that matters right now (see House Settlement) is the third one.

The first category--mentorship and career development--has been Stanford's strength for many years, back before the days of NIL and the transfer portal.

(The second--Elevated Visibility and Connectivity--is a little more problematic given Stanford's poor home attendance and limited national TV exposure).

There's nothing new about promoting Stanford's "40-year Difference" and what a degree from the University will mean for a student-athlete's future. Stanford has been selling mentorship, career development and networking quite effectively for decades.

But today's college football star isn't thinking about 40 years, or five years, or even next year. 

When someone is waving a million dollars at a player to get him to sign or transfer, he's thinking about that car he wants, how he can help his family financially, and which program will give him an opportunity to play in the College Football Playoff.

So let's be real.

SFAU's main goal has to be to raise money and spend it on player recruitment and retention.

It's a sad commentary on where we are in college football.

But it's the only way Stanford can return to national prominence.

Rodgers Returns: The Aaron Rodgers Circus has apparently been renewed for another season.

The Pittsburgh Steelers, who should know better, signed Rodgers to a one-year deal last week, three months after he was released by the New York Jets and a year and a half after he tore his Achilles.

So, we can look forward to another season of Rodgers disrupting his team's chemistry by finger-pointing and criticizing his teammates, coaches and management, and appearing on the Joe Rogan and Pat McAfee shows to promote his latest conspiracy theories.

Then there's his age, 41. The problem with aging quarterbacks, as the Steelers have learned previously with Russell Wilson and late stage Ben Roethlesberger, is that the occasional flashes of brilliance tend to wane as the season wears on, often finishing in a total collapse.

This is not going to end well.