The NCAA seems like it might be willing to draw another line in the sand with regards to NCAA regulations that might differ from state laws on NIL. Lawsuits to follow?
And the IRS may have something to say about donations to ‘independent’ NFPs that accrue priority points for seat assignment, too, and then there’s their recent ruling that NIL payments aren’t a ‘charitable purpose’.
Get the popcorn out, folks, gonna be interesting.
I agree.
The NCAA has the right to impose rules on those schools that are members of the organization.
It will be interesting to see what the courts think about state legislatures stepping on what the NCAA considers their turf.
There is value in this particular situation for the NCAA to be the national arbiter of rules.
But the NCAA’s only real leverage is to threaten to kick schools out.
So how would the conferences respond if the NCAA threatened to kick schools in Texas or Florida out because their legislatures gave them an advantage that other schools don’t have?
AND if the NCAA loses the right to regulate the whole NIL arena, doesn’t it ultimately become a race to the bottom between the states?
So I guess the ultimate question is Where is the bottom?
Jeff
Congress could do something, but will it, and would it hold up in court if some state decides the NCAA is being too restrictive? You think Congresscritters representing states in the southeastern US would have a vested interest in helping the SEC?
Is there a political upside (meaning votes or campaign contributions) to supporting the NCAA via legislation? I’m not sure.
A key question is the legal ability of the NCAA to pass rules or restrictions that violate local state rules . Basically the NCAA argument would be , if you want to play in our game ( association), you have to abide by our rules; you don’t like it , go elsewhere.
If an individual state passes rules that the Supreme Court has said the NCAA isn’t allowed to prohibit ,then presumably the state wins If they go beyond that one would think the NCAA would prevail ,at least temporarily ,until the Courts rule that theNCAA has overstepped their bounds (,as in SCOTUS ‘s ruling against their NIL prohibition )
At least Baker has been in the political arena and should be well schooled on how he might negotiate compromises with some of the states. Should be an interesting spectator sport
Harry
I think the NCAA has no authority, but I think the conferences do, which is why I think eventually the B1G and the SEC will come to a super conference understanding with 56+ teams.
I think the least permissible law/rule between federal-state-conference-school wins. The first 2 have legal power, the third contractual/media/$, and the last is yourself. Usually the last is the least restrictive, but schools like ours require literate and upstanding student athletes.
The reason why I think the NCAA has no authority is that it doesn’t have the power to punish Alabama. SMU death penalty will never happen again as the conferences will never allow it. NCAA has the policing power only until a big conference thinks the penalty is too extreme, which is why the penalties have become wrist slaps at best. Alabama can cheat as much as the rest of the SEC allows.
It seems unlikely that any conference would try any sanctions as extreme as the death penalty against a member school, even less likely that the SEC would do it against one of the biggest name in sports when everybody in the conference is effectively benefiting from those actions. (As the song goes: What’s good for General Bullmoose is good for the USA.)
So whether the conferences really have more sanctioning authority than the NCAA is likely to be something that will never be tested, much less get to a court.
I think the conferences sanction(quiet) a lot more you think.
I’m sure tOSU or Michigan had some crazy ideas during the 70s on and the threat of getting beaten down by the little 8 in every secret vote/negotiation has kept them in line.