The NCAA and five of the nation’s most powerful college conferences have reached a historic agreement to compensate their athletes. This marks a major milestone in college athletics as the longstanding concept of amateurism is being dismantled. The ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC, and Pac-12 have agreed to the general terms of a settlement that will see the NCAA pay nearly $2.8 billion in damages over 10 years to almost 14,000 athletes from 2016 to now. Additionally, a new system will be established that allows schools to use up to $21 million a year to compensate student athletes in any sport beginning in 2025.
Pat Forde, a senior writer for “Sports Illustrated,” joins the discussion to provide insights into this groundbreaking deal. According to Pat, this marks the end of the amateur college athlete as we know it. This latest agreement represents a major acceleration of the gradual erosion of amateurism that began years ago with the approval of name, image, and likeness payments three years ago. However, this settlement not only provides back damages to athletes who have already completed their college careers but also establishes a framework for compensation for the next decade.
The money that was traditionally allocated to athletic administration, coaches, directors, and facilities will now be directed straight into the hands of the players by the schools themselves. This marks a fundamental shift in the landscape of college sports as schools will now have more control over how they compensate their athletes. It remains to be seen how schools will allocate this newfound resources and whether it will lead to increased gender equity in sports compensation.
