Ted Cruz, Maria Cantwell unveil bipartisan college athletics bill amid NIL chaos, lawsuits, 'Lane Kiffin Rule'

MIRAMAR BEACH, Florida -- Following years of trying to push the SCORE Act to the House floor to no avail, a new bipartisan bill called the 'Protect College Sports' Act has been agreed to in hopes of saving college athletics.

Since first getting involved last summer, President Donald Trump has signed two executive orders in an attempt to find some sort of unified solution that could help curtail the ongoing issues in college athletics pertaining to the transfer portal, NIL payments, eligibility rules and other problems that have led to a plethora of lawsuits filed against the NCAA.

The problem is that with Congress having a hard time agreeing to just about anything related to issues regarding the country, putting some type of legislation together that would appease both sides of the aisle has been an uphill battle, with the SCORE Act being the latest victim.

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After last week's debacle, with the National Black Caucus and NAACP coming out against the SCORE Act, that saw congressional leaders push back on any type of legislation that would involve states within the SEC footprint, hope was essentially lost on the Republican-pushed bill.

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So, Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) ramped up their work on putting together a bipartisan bill that could be seen as a win-win for both sides of the aisle.

The bill, which was finally agreed to by both sides, will not be introduced until next week, when the Senate is back in session.

"College sports are at a breaking point," Cruz said. "Fans can see their favorite teams being hollowed out by transfer chaos, fake NIL bidding wars, eligibility lawsuits, and a system that allows the richest programs to keep pulling away. The Protect College Sports Act is a bipartisan plan to restore order. Student athletes can profit from their name, image, and likeness, but college sports still needs real rules, competitive balance, rivalries, and a true connection to education. This bill protects athletes and fans and keeps college sports from becoming a two-conference minor league." 

Taking a few elements of the SCORE Act, while adding certain ideas from the Presidential Committee on college sports that was initiated by Donald Trump, there was hope that some sort of resolution could be agreed upon.

In a letter signed last week by members of the committee, chaired by New York Yankees President Randy Levine and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the panel had urged members of Congress to agree on this latest effort.

The problem for the Big Ten and SEC was that they claimed at the time that the reason for not signing the letter was based on the conferences not having seen any type of legislation.

While this was true, commissioners from both leagues were also hoping that the SCORE Act would make it to the House floor, which obviously isn’t the case now. On Tuesday, Greg Sankey hinted that while he knows certain elements of the new legislation, he had still not seen the actual bill.

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Now, as SEC presidents and chancellors gather inside the Hilton SanDestin Resort here in Florida, the timing of this legislation being introduced will certainly make for an interesting end to spring meetings.

New legislation has big aspirations toward NIL, Lane Kiffin Rule

One of the biggest issues facing any type of bill that is introduced is the likelihood that it's challenged through the court system.

The bill looks to protect the NCAA from antitrust litigation, while also codifying rules around the transfer portal, NIL payments through third parties and also an option for all conferences to pool their media rights.

"We’re seeing thousands of men’s and women’s athletic roster slots and a hundred athletic programs being cut," Cantwell said. "Collegiate athletics is a hallmark for human development. Let's not ruin it with out-of-control chaos. This bill puts new tools and new rules on the table to rein in runaway costs while still preserving NIL, revenue sharing, and women and Olympic sports."

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• The bill put into place strict standards prohibiting third-party NIL deals by granting legal protection for both the NCAA and the College Sports Commission. At the same time, the bill does not put athletes in a corner, allowing them the opportunity to collectively bargain or be deemed employees.
• There will be the option to pool media rights, which is on a voluntary basis, with the bill stating that a threshold of 75% of the more than 135 FBS schools has to be in agreement for this to take place. This will not play out within the SEC or Big Ten, unless both conferences agree to join negotiations, which would be a tall task.
• The Lane Kiffin Rule: Coaches would be forbidden to leave their current team until the season concludes, and schools are also not allowed to hire coaches before seasons end. That will obviously be a major talking point.
• A one-time transfer for athletes without having to sit out a season. Additional transfers may have consequences. A five-year calendar eligibility clock. Bars professional athletes from competing, no longer allowing G-League or NBA players to participate in the college game.
• Stops tampering, associations may prohibit inducements. The bill provides limited antitrust protection regarding this matter.
• Post-eligibility medical coverage.
• There is no salary cap, but schools have to stay within the House settlement guidelines.
• Protects whistleblowers from retaliation if they come forward with information.
• Protect women's and Olympic spots, protecting roster spots for these sports and athletes.
• The bill forbids the forming of a superleague (aka the SEC and Big Ten joining forces).
• Requires agents to register, caps NIL payouts to agents at 5%.

YOU CAN READ THE FULL 'PROTECT COLLEGE SPORTS ACT' HERE

Obviously, conferences like the Big Ten and SEC have no reason to join others in pooling together their media rights, given the amount of money each makes off their deals with FOX and ESPN. But for others, like the Mountain West or Conference USA for example, this could make financial sense once their current deals are complete.

The current spending problem in college football is a perfect example, with the price of putting together rosters exceeding $40 million this season, which is obviously above the $20.5 million 'cap' that is supposed to be abided by.

"If we don’t find a way to create some level of regulation in the market, a lot of people are going to go bankrupt pretty quick," Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko said Tuesday. "We’re two and a half years away from having an NIL budget that’s greater than the TV revenue for our entire university."

Now, with this bill mentioning that the House settlement 'cap' will be enforced at the federal level, I'm curious to see the pushback.

I can promise you, lawyers across the country who have been involved in recent litigation are licking their chops, as billable hours have been the true winners over the past few years.

What else stands out with new college sports legislation?

An important discussion point for those representing the actual athletes has centered around them having protections, with medical care afforded to them for a certain time period once their time in college is complete being a focal point of these talks.

In addition, college athletes having representation (agents) that are certified and part of a registry system has been something of note. In the bill,

Where this goes from here will literally be up for debate. From here, there will be arguments made, hearings held and amendments introduced.

This is only the start, and will be worth watching from a conference standpoint, where those within influential leagues like the Big Ten and SEC will take a very hard look to decide whether they will put their support behind this legislation.

Right now, conversations are being had inside both conferences on how to implement and enforce their own rules pertaining to compensation, eligibility and enforcement.

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As we've seen, relying on a federal bill to solve problems has led to college athletics running amok, with coaches openly admitting that there are zero guardrails to curtail them working outside the perceived lines.

Buckle up, folks. This is going to be an entertaining summer, with a lot on the line.

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