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Round-up: NCAA Proposes New Subdivision and Paying Division I Athletes

In letter to Division I member presidents on Tuesday, NCAA President Charlie Baker laid out a plan to allow all Division I institutions to directly compensate athletes for use of their name, image and likeness while creating a new subdivision for the largest and most powerful athletic programs.
 
The plan would permit the programs “to create rules that may differ from the rules in place for the rest of Division I” on such things as “scholarship commitment and roster size, recruitment, transfers, NIL.”  At the same time, programs opting into the new subdivision would have to commit to putting at least $30,000 a year into a trust fund for at least half of their athletes, “within the framework of Title IX,” the federal law that requires gender equity in educational programs, including athletics.
 
The plan addresses a major issue facing the NCAA involving the compensation of athletes, which is the subject of multiple lawsuits and legislation in Congress. Baker asserts that by bringing the name, image and likeness payments under the colleges’ control would, among other things, “help level what is fast becoming a very unlevel playing field between men and women.”
 
A sampling of media coverage from across the country:
 
‘Revolutionary’ or ‘Reactionary’? NCAA Chief’s New Model for Big-Time Sports
Inside Higher Ed (December 6, 2023)
 
The NCAA’s Radical Proposal to Pay Division I Athletes
The Wall Street Journal (December 6, 2023)
 
N.C.A.A. Proposes Uncapping Compensation for Athletes
The New York Times (December 6, 2023)
 
NCAA Proposal Would Allow Schools to Pay Their Athletes Directly
The Washington Post (December 6, 2023)
 
NCAA President Charlie Baker Proposing New Subdivision That Will Pay Athletes Via Trust Fund
USA Today (December 5, 2023)
 
What Does the NCAA Proposal to Pay Players Mean for College Athletics?
USA Today (December 5, 2023)
  
Against All Odds, The NCAA Is Finally Trying To Do Something Smart - Commentary
The Washington Post (December 6, 2023)
 
NCAA's New Proposal Could Help Ensure Its Survival if Congress Gets on Board - Commentary
USA Today (December 5, 2023)
 
 

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