The latest attempt to fix college athletics is already running into roadblocks thanks to the Power 2 duopoly of the Big Ten and the SEC.
Last week, Senators Ted Cruz and Maria Cantwell introduced the Protect College Sports Act, the latest congressional effort to enact a framework for the modern age of college athletics following the implementation of NIL compensation for athletes.
The proposal contains some solid ideas and seems reasonable enough, including limits on coaching moves, eligibility, and the protection of athletes’ rights. However, some provisions have proven to be non-starters.
Last week, the SEC came out against the bill because of the proposed pooling of media rights, in which conferences would negotiate their television deals collectively. On Tuesday, the Big Ten released its own joint statement with the SEC that complimented Cruz and Cantwell for their efforts, but opposed the overall framework.
The full statement reads as follows:
The Big Ten Conference and the Southeastern Conference support a sustainable national framework for college sports – one with an effective transfer portal, clear eligibility standards, and protections and benefits for student-athletes. While we appreciate the leadership of Senators Cruz and Cantwell in pursuing these shared goals, we do not support the Protect College Sports Act as drafted.
The bill leaves critical issues unresolved. It does not meaningfully preempt the patchwork of state laws or provide the protections needed to make and enforce consistent rules, both essential to long-term stability in college athletics. It also shifts ongoing rulemaking to Congress, limiting the ability to adapt quickly as the landscape evolves. Rather than reducing litigation, the bill likely expands it without offering clear alternatives for dispute resolution. Finally, the bill alters the House settlement revenue sharing framework in a way that may result in fewer student-athletes receiving direct revenue share payments.
We are committed to working with Senators Cruz and Cantwell and other members of Congress to improve this legislation so that it can provide lasting stability for college athletics.
While everyone knows that college sports, football in particular, are facing a series of destabilizing crises simultaneously, nobody seems able to do anything about it. It’s incredibly ironic that the Big Ten and SEC oppose Congress making rules for college sports when the NCAA has been begging politicians to clean up their own mess for years, completely frozen and unable to chart a path forward themselves. On the flip side, Donald Trump has promised executive action to implement his will, but that’s been equally as fruitless thus far.
As for the Big Ten and SEC, they have pretty much all the power they could ever want over the future of college football, at least. And that has left the College Football Playoff at an impasse, as the two sides can’t agree on how much to expand the postseason tournament and how to divide the massive revenue streams at stake. But when it comes to blocking anything that threatens their super-elite status, as Cruz says the bill aims to prevent the two leagues from merging and breaking away from the NCAA, they can’t seem to come together fast enough. As long as the Power 2 put their interests first, the impasse looks set to continue for the foreseeable future.
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