June monthly column: Don’t mistake momentum for merit in college sports reform
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By U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville
I spent nearly 40 years coaching football, including more than two decades as a head coach in the SEC, the Big 12, and the American Athletic Conference. I recruited thousands of student-athletes, worked with university presidents, athletic directors, conference commissioners, and NCAA officials. Along the way, I learned a thing or two about the rules and regulations around govern college sports.
When I retired from coaching in 2016, I thought my days of working in college athletics were over. But now in my role as Alabama’s senior U.S. Senator, I’m in meetings almost every day about the future of college sports. The current buzz in D.C. is around the Protect College Sports Act, a bipartisan bill put together by Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA). I have read the bill. I have read the letters its sponsors cite as “support.” Unfortunately, I don’t believe this bill is the answer to the many problems facing college athletics today.
To be clear, Congress does need to act – we can all agree on that. Since the Supreme Court ruling in 2021, college sports have been operating under a fragmented and often conflicting set of rules as states have enacted their own laws governing how athletes can profit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL). At the same time, federal courts have issued rulings that reshape the boundaries of what schools and conferences can do, and new settlement agreements are redefining how revenue may be shared with athletes. The result is a confusing and unstable environment where athletes, schools, coaches, and conferences are forced to navigate shifting rules that vary by state, institution, and circumstance.
That instability is not limited to NIL. One of my main concerns facing college athletics today is the out-of-control transfer portal. The current environment allows student-athletes to transfer basically at any time and for any reason. Not only is this horrible for team morale, but it is catastrophic for education – and the academic fallout is being ignored. Credits don’t transfer, degree paths get derailed, and graduation timelines keep slipping. What should be an education is turning into a revolving door with no clear finish line. It’s a damn shame and we need to do a better job of making sure student-athletes are set up for success in life beyond sports.
That is why any federal legislation in this space should be judged on whether it actually brings stability, protects student-athletes, and preserves educational opportunity. Unfortunately, the Protect College Sports Act falls short on all three – and in some cases, could make these problems worse. For starters, it is way too broad of a bill and gives the government too much control. It gets too deep into the business of universities, conferences, and athletic departments, while doing far too little to give student-athletes the stability and clarity they actually need. It opens the door for endless lawsuits by creating new avenues for student-athletes to sue schools, conferences, and the NCAA. It also sets a permanent cap on revenue sharing for student-athletes, something that the federal government has no business getting involved in.
The bill claims to fix the transfer portal and eligibility – but it includes so many waivers and loopholes that would allow student-athletes to still transfer anytime they want. It also doesn’t do enough to protect women’s sports. Dozens of states have already passed laws protecting women’s sports, but the Protect College Sports Act would potentially override some of those state laws, hanging female athletes out to dry.
Beyond what the bill fails to fix, I am just as concerned about what it puts Washington in charge of. This bill drags the federal government into decisions that should be made by schools and conferences – not D.C. bureaucrats – including how conferences are structured, how games are scheduled, how media rights are managed, and how athletic departments are run. In other words, it is a 111-page federal government takeover of college sports.
I’ve had dozens of conversations with coaches, athletic directors, university presidents, and conference commissioners about this bill over the past few weeks, many of whom share my concerns. The two biggest conferences in college athletics – the SEC and the Big Ten – have issued statements slamming the legislation. So, why is the public being led to believe that the majority of stakeholders in college sports are 100% behind this bill?
I know many of the institutions and organizations whose letters are being cited as evidence of “support.” Heck, I spent decades in the system and know how these people and conferences operate. I have read those letters carefully. Some clearly support the legislation, and others express support for federal action generally. Some offer feedback, concerns, or suggestions for further discussion. But that is not the same thing as support.
Congress should not rush to pass a bill based on supposed “support,” fluffed-up news coverage, or the desire to tell people back home you are doing something to “fix college sports” during an election year. People need to understand that laws passed up here are hard to undo. If we’re going to successfully pass a law to help save college athletics, we don’t just need a playbook, we need a winning gameplan.
I sincerely appreciate my colleagues’ efforts to get something done, but this bill isn’t the answer. College athletics deserve real reform, not rushed legislation that will only make the problems worse.