Charlie Baker explains NCAA’s flurry of new rules with help from Congress slow in coming
With help from Congress still uncertain, the NCAA is tackling its own problems. That was president Charlie Baker’s message in a memo he sent to member schools on Thursday. “NCAA membership is not waiting for others to act,” Baker said in the letter obtained by The Athletic .
College sports is in the midst of a dramatic evolution as amateurism is replaced by athletes receiving direct compensation from their schools and from third parties for their names, images and likenesses. College sports leaders have pushed Congress for help regulating the new landscape for several years, but that has yet to arrive, leaving the NCAA and conferences vulnerable to antitrust lawsuits and at the mercy of state lawmakers. While Baker acknowledges a federal law is still needed, the NCAA has been notably proactive recently.
In the past few months, the Division I Cabinet has briskly advanced two major rule changes and this week initiated discussions on another — age-based eligibility standards — that could redefine who is allowed to play college sports at the highest levels. In an interview with The Athletic , Baker credited the streamlining of Division I governance — fewer and smaller committees — with allowing for a more nimble and efficient legislative process. “We believe that the proposals we’ve made are consistent with current law,” Baker said.
The cabinet this week approved a set of pre-enrollment eligibility rules, including one that would make prospective college athletes ineligible if they allow themselves to be available for a professional draft. The cabinet also finalized a penalty structure that was a proactive attempt to discourage schools from accepting transfers who circumvent the portal process. Allowing such a so-called ghost transfer to compete would trigger a big suspension for a head coach and a fine equivalent to 20 percent of the program’s budget.
With numerous lawsuits targeting NCAA eligibility and updates badly needed now that college athletes can be paid, the next change in the pipeline could be the most significant. A plan to shift to age-based eligibility requirements was discussed by the cabinet this week and will now be circulated among the more than 350 Division I member schools for feedback. The idea is for an athlete’s college eligibility clock to start at the conclusion of high school or their 19th birthday, whichever comes first, and to last five years.
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