On Monday, Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation that allows New York college athletes to receive compensation for their name, image, and likeness without the risk of forfeiting their scholarships or eligibility to participate in college sports. "Our collegiate student athletes are heroes on the field - and they deserve to be treated like heroes... Continue Reading →
UCLA to the Big Ten? – Not so Fast..
Today, November 17, the University of California Board of Regents (“Board of Regents” or “Board”) will meet to discuss a variety of issues, including UCLA’s move to the Big Ten Conference.[1] Specifically, on June 30, 2022, UCLA suddenly announced its plan to leave the Pac-12 Conference and join the Big Ten Conference beginning in the... Continue Reading →
Jeff Bacon – Deputy Commissioner / Chief Operating Officer of the Mid-American Conference
Background Mr. Bacon began his legal career by pursuing a law degree at Akron University School of Law. Since the beginning, Mr. Bacon always knew that he wanted to work in college athletics. Initially, Mr. Bacon hoped to become a sports agent, as that was his first instinct when thinking about the intersection of sports... Continue Reading →
Montana State Senator Proposes an ESPN ‘College GameDay’ Bill
[1] Last week, Montana State Senator Ellie Boldman requested a bill be drafted with the intent of bringing ESPN’s pregame show “College GameDay” to Montana.[2] Ever since College GameDay premiered for Notre Dame-Florida State in 1993, the show has traveled across the US to different host schools each week during the college football season to... Continue Reading →
Big 12 Renews Media Rights Deal with ESPN and Fox Worth $2.28 Billion
[1] The Big 12 is finalizing a new six-year media rights package extension with its current partners, ESPN and Fox, worth $2.28 billion.[2] The Big 12 has two years remaining on its current deal, which runs through the 2024-25 season at an annual average of $220 million in its final years.[3] The new six-year extension,... Continue Reading →
Does the NBA Have a Tanking Issue?
The NBA’s current lottery system encourages teams who are struggling to do the least possible to be in the best position to select the draft prospect of their choice. The NBA lottery system works like this: The bottom 14 teams are put into a lottery and based on their standings at the end of... Continue Reading →
The NCAA Goes To Court Over CTE
A massive case regarding CTE and NCAA football has gone to trial for only the second time, as the widow (Alana Gee) of former USC linebacker Matt Gee is suing the NCAA for wrongful death in Los Angeles Superior Court.[1] Gee was the fifth linebacker from the 1989 USC football team to die before the... Continue Reading →
LeBron James’ son, Bronny, Headlines Nike’s Latest NIL Deals
[1] Nike Basketball announced last Monday that it has inked NIL endorsement contracts with five well-recognized high school and college basketball players including three top high school prospects – Juju Watkins, Bronny James, and DJ Wagner – and two standout women’s college basketball players — Stanford’s Haley Jones and Iowa’s Caitlin Clark.[2] In 2021, all... Continue Reading →
The Carousel Continues to Spin
Just last week I wrote about the decisions by Nebraska and Arizona State to fire their head football coaches only a few weeks into the 2022 regular season.[1] Less than a few hours after that post went live, on September 26, 2022, another major college football coach was relieved of his duties. Specifically, Georgia Tech... Continue Reading →
Will Notre Dame Save The ACC?
As I discussed in my article last week, The ACC has been left in an awkward spot in college’s conference realignment. The ACC has not lost or gained any members, largely because of its media rights deal and Grant of Rights Agreement with ESPN that runs through 2036. While the future of The ACC is... Continue Reading →