Author:
Purp 1 - Buff News
| [ Next Thread |
Previous Thread |
Next Message |
Previous Message
]
Date Posted: Saturday, March 01, 10:12:04am
Author Host/IP: syn-074-070-140-050.res.spectrum.com/74.70.140.50
As they decided whether to opt into the House settlement, a revenue-sharing plan that dictates how colleges would directly pay current and former athletes, Bill Maher and Canisius University took two things into consideration:
• Compliance with roster limits. If Canisius were to opt into the House settlement, it would have to eliminate 11 roster spots for male athletes.
• Uncertainty. A decision on the House settlement is not expected to be finalized until April 7. A lot has to unfold regarding the settlement, whether it’s how it will impact athletes, athletic departments or institutions, or if and how exceptions will be made.
Canisius, therefore, decided not to opt into the House settlement for the 2025-26 school year.
“We think the most prudent thing to do is to take the year and make sure how it all shakes out, if the settlement is approved, and what the best course of action is,” said Maher, Canisius’ athletic director.
The House, Carter and Hubbard antitrust settlement – commonly referred to as the House settlement – is a revenue-sharing plan that details not only how colleges would directly pay current athletes and athletes who competed between 2016-24 for the first time, but how colleges could take on even more costs in the form of more scholarship athletes per team, as roster limits would be introduced.
Division I schools and athletic programs had to decide by Saturday their initial intent to opt into the House settlement. If it is approved by U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken, who presides over the Northern District of California, the House settlement will require the NCAA and member institutions to pay nearly $3 billion to current and former athletes for use of their NIL rights.
UB athletic director Mark Alnutt told The Buffalo News in January that UB will opt into the House settlement. He added in February that specific plans for fundraising efforts will be unveiled as the settlement approaches, if it is approved. Niagara athletic director Simon Gray said the school will opt into the House settlement, and St. Bonaventure announced Friday that it intends to opt in.
“The one benefit for us is the fact that we have a mechanism in place to allow rev-share-slash-NIL, or whatever you want to call it, in place to enhance our student athletes’ experience at UB,” Alnutt said. “When that takes place, July 1, we have a plan together. A lot of it is going to be based on philanthropy, which gives us an opportunity, with our alumni, donors and fans, more of a comfort level to give to the university, rather than give to an outside collective.”
Schools and athletic programs that opt into the House settlement determine how payment is distributed among athletes. For schools that do not opt in, athletes must be compensated by name, image and likeness (NIL) proceeds from external sources, as opposed to being paid by the school.
Canisius’ decision not to opt into the House settlement comes with some nuance: Maher said Canisius could opt into the House settlement for the 2026-27 school year.
Niagara’s decision to opt in came as a means of evolution.
“We felt the need to adapt to the modern era of college athletics and align ourselves with the most competitive sector of Division I,” Gray said.
Why opt into the House settlement?
UB is a member of the Mid-American Conference, and its member schools are expected to opt into the House settlement. Canisius and Niagara are members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, and St. Bonaventure is a member of the Atlantic 10. Schools in the MAAC and A-10 decided individually whether to opt in.
A new settlement means one thing for Big 4 schools: More change is coming. But what will it look like?
A new settlement means one thing for Big 4 schools: More change is coming. But what will it look like?
Potential budget shortfalls are just the beginning of a complex, multilayered series of events that promise to reshape the future of college sports.
Schools at Power Four conferences will opt in, but the Ivy League has opted out. So has the University of North Dakota, which, like Canisius, will opt out for the 2025-26 school year and will revisit revenue-sharing at a later date, either as soon as April 7 or as far away as a year from now.
The challenge for schools that opt in: How to pay for it all? Each school that opts in is permitted to share up to a little more than $20 million annually. That number will vary for each school, and it hinges on several factors, including the number of Division I teams each school sponsors, and the amount of athletic aid distributed by each school.
St. Bonaventure’s athletic department said Friday it will contribute an estimated $263,000 a year over the next 10 years to the payout fund and adhere to new roster and scholarship limits to fulfill its part of the financial settlement.
"From both a branding and historical perspective, remaining competitive in a league with the footprint and reputation of the Atlantic 10 is important for us," St. Bonaventure president Jeff Gingerich said in a statement. "Maintaining the status quo just didn't make sense because the decision to opt in is essentially a procedural change. We're focusing primarily on the method in which benefits are delivered to student-athletes rather than the level of investment the university makes in athletics."
The Atlantic 10 Presidents Council also voted in November to provide a $1.4 million supplemental distribution from the conference’s sustainability fund to its member institutions to enhance basketball revenue and/or to offset potential lost revenue "due to the House settlement back damages payment model assessment assigned to every Division I institution."
UB is again leaning on its fundraising efforts, as is Niagara, which is also exploring other forms of income and revenue generation.
“We’re cognizant of what’s happening, and we’re thinking creatively, of innovative ways we can find resources,” said Gray, Niagara’s athletic director. “Primarily, though, it’s going to be fundraising and activating those that are passionate about Niagara athletics and willing to step up and help us be competitive.
“Any form of revenue generation is on the table, but we’ve got to do this within the mission of Niagara. That is not up for debate.”
Other schools are already getting resourceful in creating revenue streams.
Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel told 247Sports that Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor could host more non-football events as revenue generators. Michigan Stadium has a capacity of 107,601 and already has one concert scheduled: Zach Bryan and John Mayer on Sept. 27.
Tennessee announced in September it is adding a 10% surcharge on single-game and season tickets for football, part of what athletic director Danny White labeled “a talent fee.”
"It's going to our student-athletes as part of this new world order in college sports," White told On3Sports. "So I know our fans will embrace it.”
Will the House settlement actually happen?
There’s some consternation as to why schools had to announce their intentions to opt in or opt out of the House settlement by Saturday, when the decision date for approval happens more than a month later.
“Here's the odd part,” North Dakota athletic director Bill Chaves wrote in a letter posted Feb. 20 to the department’s website. “The NCAA is requiring that we declare whether we plan to opt in by March 1, while the lawsuit's settlement will not occur until April 7.
“Here's the other odd part: Schools such as UND had no voice in the settlement, yet we would still have to pay damages, whether we 'opt in' or not.”
Sports Business Journal, though, reported Saturday morning that the NCAA clarified that guidance. Schools must formally opt in by June 15, unless the House settlement is not approved.
Front Office Sports reported that last month the NCAA distributed an “educational resource” memo to schools, which stated that schools that opt in would be subject to new roster size limits outlined in the settlement.
“The NCAA gave limited information to the membership because they can’t,” said Maher, Canisius’ athletic director. “They don’t know definitely until it’s done, and from a legal standpoint, information isn’t allowed to be given out.”
It's possible that Wilken, the presiding judge, may not approve the House settlement. Objections to the House settlement also need to be considered in the decision-making process.
Front Office Sports also reported in February that at least 250 athletes have opted out and have filed objections to various aspects of the proposal, with the goal of receiving a higher payment than what the House v. NCAA settlement offers. A list of opt-outs is expected to become public Monday.
If the House settlement is approved, schools will begin making payments July 1. They can make financial offers to current and prospective athletes contingent on final settlement approval.
“There’s no requirement of spending money, once you opt in,” Gray, Niagara’s athletic director, said of the March 1 deadline. “We are showing what we plan to do, but we’ve allowed ourselves, or until this is approved, to plan and be ready. And if there are changes, then we will address that.
“When and if the settlement is approved, we’ll execute a plan that’s being determined and will be put in place on how we can maximize those opportunities.”
[
Next Thread |
Previous Thread |
Next Message |
Previous Message
] |
Feedback: 