On April 21, the Division I Board of Directors (Board) greenlit major National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rule changes that are contingent on court approval of the $2.8 billion House v. NCAA settlement. If the settlement is approved, these changes would eliminate more than 150 rules, many of which conflict with the settlement’s terms, and create new rules related to enforcement and oversight of the school distributions and student-athletes’ name, image, and likeness (NIL) payments.
What’s Changing:
- Direct Pay to Athletes: Schools opting in by June 15 can distribute up to $20.5 million annually to student-athletes, including compensation for their NIL. This change is the NCAA’s official step away from the traditional amateurism model.
- Roster Limits: Sport-specific scholarship caps will give way to roster limits. The roster-limit rule has been framed by the NCAA as permitting schools to provide full scholarships to all student-athletes on a declared roster and giving schools greater flexibility in providing athletics aid and doubling the scholarships available in women’s sports.
- Student-Athlete Eligibility Requirement: To receive benefits, student-athletes must be enrolled full-time, meet Division I progress-toward-degree requirements, and remain within the NCAA’s five-year eligibility rule (e.g., five years to complete four years of competition).
- NIL Compliance and Enforcement:
- NIL Agreements Valued Above $600 Are Subject to Review. Athletes would be required to disclose NIL agreements valued at $600 or more, and third-party NIL agreements between student-athletes and school-associated entities would undergo independent review to prevent circumvention of the financial cap.
- Power 4 Enforcement Entity. An enforcement entity — created and operated by the Power 4 Conferences — will oversee the rules related to the House settlement, including third-party NIL and the annual benefits cap. This entity would coexist with the new NIL clearinghouse to ensure fairness, transparency, and compliance with the new NIL rules.
- Technology Platforms for Monitoring Payments. The conditionally approved rules will allow for the creation of a technology platform for schools to monitor their payments to student-athletes and for student-athletes to report their third-party NIL agreements.
What’s on the Horizon:
The Board also considered two other changes to its structure and membership requirements.
- New Committee Structure: The Board considered concepts for a new Division I committee structure that would reduce the number of committees and allow the NCAA to quickly respond to the new changes to college sports. The final proposal for the committee restructuring is incomplete, and the Board is not expected to vote on a proposal until June. In the interim, the Board is awaiting broader membership feedback on the concepts.
- Rules Creating Temporary Flexibility for Conference Realignment: The Board discussed changes to NCAA conference membership requirements that would allow schools to move between conferences as they adjust to the settlement-related rule changes. The Board’s discussion underscored a need for Division I to maintain stability relating to conference alignment while also being adaptable to major changes in college sports.
What’s Next:
The Board’s conditional adoption of these rules changes is a preparatory step toward a seamless implementation of the settlement. The press release also shows the Board is conducting its own internal processes review to modernize and streamline its processes in anticipation of the next seismic shift in college sports.
The settlement is still pending approval after the court chose not to issue a ruling from the bench at the April 7 settlement approval hearing. At the hearing, the court ordered the parties to provide additional briefing on several issues raised by the objectors. A week later, the parties filed a third amended proposed settlement for the court’s consideration and approval. This amended settlement clarified provisions related to future class members’ notice and opportunity to object to the settlement, and defined an entity being released under the settlement: “College Football Playoffs.” A motion to strike the third-amended settlement was filed by one objector. A hearing on that motion to strike is currently set for May 22.
Division I schools have until June 15 to opt-in to the new system or elect to continue operating under the NCAA’s current structure (all of which assumes that the current version of the settlement or some version thereof will be approved). If the House settlement is approved, the newly adopted rules will go into effect on July 1.
