Pay-for-play has been among the most controversial and widely talked about subjects in college sports, and it may now be on the way.
This seems very much out of the norm for the NCAA, which has always in the past taken measures to keep college athletes from being paid before bending under pressure in recent years to allow them to profit from Name, Image and Likeness without direct school involvement.
According to multiple reports Tuesday, NCAA president Charlie Baker is set to introduce a new proposal this week within Division I that would grant programs more liberty in creating policies and allow directly compensating athletes.
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College sports subdivision proposal
Baker's letter sent to Division I members included a new "forward-looking framework" that would allow schools to opt in or out of a new subdivision, though they would be required to adhere to a strict standard in athlete investment.
Those within the new subdivision would be able to strike NIL deals with their own athletes, something that deviates quite a bit from the current structure.
Schools will also be able to compensate athletes directly through a trust fund. The schools in the new subdivision would also be required to "distribute thousands of dollars in additional educationally related funds without limitation," according to the original report by Yahoo Sports. There is not a cap on the funds.
“It kick-starts a long-overdue conversation among the membership that focuses on the differences that exist between schools, conferences and divisions and how to create more permissive and flexible rules across the NCAA that put student-athletes first,” Baker writes in the letter. “Colleges and universities need to be more flexible, and the NCAA needs to be more flexible, too.”
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How the new NCAA subdivision will work
To enter the subdivision, a school must invest $30,000 per year per athlete into what is known as an “enhanced educational trust fund” for at least half of a school’s countable athletes.
For four-year athletes, that will be total no less than $120,000. The school determines when the athletes receive the amount. Title IX also comes into play, as 50 percent of the investment must be in female athletes.
Schools in the new subdivision would also be given autonomy surrounding the topics of scholarship limits and countable coaches.
Programs in both Division I subdivisions would compete against one another for NCAA championships across most sports, though FBS football will be excluded. That will all still remain under the structure of the College Football Playoff.
According to Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic, each school would have to opt into the new subdivision, though a conference could mandate league-wide adoption. It would not be limited to the existing power-conference schools; any Division I school willing to make the investment could join the new subdivision.
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What the new NCAA subdivision means for college athletics
Put simply, what's being put in motion is to start a conversation about serious changes regarding one of the biggest, most polarizing topics in college sports. It will be a highly costly investment for athletic departments, though. The most notable change is that schools would be permitted to directly enter an NIL deal with their own athlete, something that is not currently permitted.
Schools have the ability to buy the NIL rights of their own student-athletes, though the trust fund is a different concept in itself.
There is also the thought that moving forward with a model like this could help to avoid some of the legal challenges regarding NIL, which have been a constant throughout its existence.
