ATHENS — Collegiate athletics is ready to move forward, needs to move forward, and is supposedly on the verge of moving forward via the House vs. NCAA settlement.
First things first, a catch-up on where House vs. NCAA sits.
The final ruling was expected on April 7, with the outcome expected to …
• include 10 years of backpay ($2.77 billion) to collegiate athletes,
• the elimination of scholarship limits,
• a $20.5 million allowance, or “cap” for schools to pay current student-athletes for the usage of their NIL,
• roster limitations
That last stipulation — for roster limitations — proved to be the rub, as Judge Claudia Wilken requested attorneys submit a brief that would address reducing rosters over time.
That happened last Wednesday after a meeting between power conference and NCAA leadership, and the clock has been ticking ever since.
As for the $20.5 million allowance schools would be allowed to pay student athletes, the settlement included a stipulation for players to be eligible to make additional “fair market” business deals outside the “cap” that would be evaluated/approved by third-party, independent auditor Deloitte.
Some clarity was gained on how Deloitte might evaluate such deals at the ACC spring meetings on Tuesday.
Per Yahoo reporter Ross Dellenger, Deloitte shared with ADs and coaches that “70 percent of past deals from booster collectives would have been denied,” and, “90 percent of deals from public companies would have been approved.”
Other news to come out of the ACC spring meetings included coaches telling YahooSports there’s a proposal for a new spring football calendar that would include six non-contact practices in May or June, in addition to the current allotment of 15 spring practices.
There is also discussion of a single portal window — the approval of which would not take place until after the House vs. NCAA settlement, per Dellenger’s Yahoo Sports reporting.
For now, the collegiate sports landscape continues to quake with the promise of more changes and a shifting landscape.
It was reported by ESPN that, according to sources, there’s “a continued focus on a 16-team CFP starting in 2026.”
There has been great speculation that, as part of the proposal for a 16-team playoff, the SEC and Big Ten would each get four automatic bids, with the ACC and Big 12 each getting two, a Group of Six team one, and the remaining three slots going to at-large selections based on the CFP committee’s rankings.
The SEC would be likely to approve moving to a nine-game schedule should the league be guaranteed four bids, which in turn would make its contract with ESPN worth more money and lead to bigger payouts for the schools.
But, first things first, the House vs. NCAA case must reach a settlement before the wheels of these most recent proposed changes go into motion.
More on House vs. NCAA Settlement
• Update on House v. NCAA settlement after April 7 hearing, judge speaks, direction revealed
• Michael Cunningham column: settlement not fix-all for NCAA problems
