The clock struck midnight at March Madness. We're not coming back.
The Very Rev. Malachi Van Tassell is president of Saint Francis University in Loretto, Pennsylvania.
Each year, the NCAA basketball tournament crowns its Cinderella team, and I proudly serve as president of an institution many chose as this year's underdog. I was honored to cheer the Saint Francis Red Flash at their game in the Big Dance, something our institution had not experienced for 34 years. But I knew as I watched the game that our run would soon be ending in a bigger way: Our board of trustees had just voted to pursue reclassification of our intercollegiate athletics program from Division I to Division III, a nearly unheard-of decision but one I know will become more common for institutions such as ours.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
College sports commissioners laud $2.8B antitrust settlement, call for Congress to act
FILE - The NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis is seen on March 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File) Conference commissioners lauded a judge's approval of a $2.8 billion antitrust lawsuit settlement as a means for bringing stability and fairness to an out-of-control college athletics industry but acknowledged there would be growing pains in implementing its terms. In a 30-minute virtual news conference Monday, commissioners of the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC renewed their call for congressional action to supplement and even codify the settlement and emphasized that cooperation at every level of college sports would be necessary to make it work. Advertisement They said it was too early to address how violators of rules surrounding revenue sharing and name, image and likeness agreements would be punished and noted newly hired College Sports Commission CEO Bryan Seeley would play a major role in determining penalties. The new era of college athletics has arrived after U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken gave final approval Friday night to what's known as House vs. NCAA. Beginning July 1, each school can share up to about $20.5 million with their athletes and third-party NIL deals worth $600 or more will be analyzed to make sure they pay appropriate 'market value' for the services being provided by athletes. Some of the topics addressed Monday: Binding conferences to terms Advertisement The conferences drafted a document that would bind institutions to enforcement policies even if their state laws are contradictory. It would require schools to waive their right to pursue legal challenges against the CSC. It also would exempt the commission from lawsuits from member schools over enforcement decisions, instead offering arbitration as the main settlement option. Consequences for not signing the agreement would include risking the loss of league membership and participation against other teams from the Power Four conferences. Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark said the document remains a work in progress but that he's gotten no pushback from his schools. 'I look to get that executed here in short order,' he said, "and know it will be very necessary for all the conferences to execute as well.' Advertisement Directives on revenue sharing There has been no directive given to individual schools on how to determine the allocation of revenue-sharing payments, commissioners said. It's widely acknowledged that athletes in football and basketball are expected to receive the majority of the money. 'I know for all five of us no one is forgetting about their Olympic sports and continuing to make sure we've invested a high level for all of our sports,' ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips said. College Sports Commission CEO The commissioners said Seeley, as Major League Baseball executive vice president of legal and operations, was uniquely qualified to lead the CSC, which is charged with making sure schools adhere to the rules. Advertisement 'Culture doesn't change overnight," Seeley told The Athletic over the weekend. "I don't expect that to happen overnight, but I do think that the schools that have signed on to the settlement want rules and want rules to be enforced. Otherwise they wouldn't have signed on to the settlement. I think student-athletes want a different system. So I think there is a desire for rules enforcement. There's a desire for transparency.' Sankey said Seeley is well-versed in areas of implementation, development and adjustment of rules and in NIL disputes requiring arbitration. Yormark said: 'You want people not to run away from a situation but to run to a situation. He ran here, and he's very passionate to make a difference and to course correct what's been going on in the industry.' Skepticism about enforcement Advertisement Deloitte's 'NIL Go' program and LBI Software will track NIL deals and revenue-sharing contracts, and the commissioners shot down skepticism about the ability of those tools to enforce terms of the settlement. SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said football and basketball coaches he spoke with in February were unanimous in wanting regulation. 'They have the responsibility to make what they asked for work,' he said. Congressional action NCAA President Charlie Baker has been pushing Congress for a limited antitrust exemption that would protect college sports from another series of lawsuits, and the commissioners want a uniform federal NIL law that would supersede wide-ranging state laws. Advertisement 'We're not going to have Final Fours and College Football Playoffs and College World Series with 50 different standards,' Sankey said, 'so that's a starting point.' Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti said the willingness of administrators to modernize the college athletics model should prompt federal lawmakers to move on codifying the settlement. Sankey's meeting with Trump Sankey confirmed a Yahoo Sports report that he and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua played golf with President Donald Trump on Sunday. Sankey said he appreciates Trump's interest in college sports and that it was helpful to share perspectives on the path forward. Trump reportedly considered a presidential commission on college sports earlier this year. Sankey declined to disclose details of their talks. 'I think those are best left for the moment on the golf course,' he said. ___ AP college sports:
Associated Press
30 minutes ago
- Associated Press
College sports commissioners laud $2.8B antitrust settlement, call for Congress to act
Conference commissioners lauded a judge's approval of a $2.8 billion antitrust lawsuit settlement as a means for bringing stability and fairness to an out-of-control college athletics industry but acknowledged there would be growing pains in implementing its terms. In a 30-minute virtual news conference Monday, commissioners of the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC renewed their call for congressional action to supplement and even codify the settlement and emphasized that cooperation at every level of college sports would be necessary to make it work. They said it was too early to address how violators of rules surrounding revenue sharing and name, image and likeness agreements would be punished and noted newly hired College Sports Commission CEO Bryan Seeley would play a major role in determining penalties. The new era of college athletics has arrived after U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken gave final approval Friday night to what's known as House vs. NCAA. Beginning July 1, each school can share up to about $20.5 million with their athletes and third-party NIL deals worth $600 or more will be analyzed to make sure they pay appropriate 'market value' for the services being provided by athletes. Some of the topics addressed Monday: Binding conferences to terms The conferences drafted a document that would bind institutions to enforcement policies even if their state laws are contradictory. It would require schools to waive their right to pursue legal challenges against the CSC. It also would exempt the commission from lawsuits from member schools over enforcement decisions, instead offering arbitration as the main settlement option. Consequences for not signing the agreement would include risking the loss of league membership and participation against other teams from the Power Four conferences. Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark said the document remains a work in progress but that he's gotten no pushback from his schools. 'I look to get that executed here in short order,' he said, 'and know it will be very necessary for all the conferences to execute as well.' Directives on revenue sharingThere has been no directive given to individual schools on how to determine the allocation of revenue-sharing payments, commissioners said. It's widely acknowledged that athletes in football and basketball are expected to receive the majority of the money. 'I know for all five of us no one is forgetting about their Olympic sports and continuing to make sure we've invested a high level for all of our sports,' ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips said. College Sports Commission CEOThe commissioners said Seeley, as Major League Baseball executive vice president of legal and operations, was uniquely qualified to lead the CSC, which is charged with making sure schools adhere to the rules. 'Culture doesn't change overnight,' Seeley told The Athletic over the weekend. 'I don't expect that to happen overnight, but I do think that the schools that have signed on to the settlement want rules and want rules to be enforced. Otherwise they wouldn't have signed on to the settlement. I think student-athletes want a different system. So I think there is a desire for rules enforcement. There's a desire for transparency.' Sankey said Seeley is well-versed in areas of implementation, development and adjustment of rules and in NIL disputes requiring arbitration. Yormark said: 'You want people not to run away from a situation but to run to a situation. He ran here, and he's very passionate to make a difference and to course correct what's been going on in the industry.' Skepticism about enforcementDeloitte's 'NIL Go' program and LBI Software will track NIL deals and revenue-sharing contracts, and the commissioners shot down skepticism about the ability of those tools to enforce terms of the settlement. SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said football and basketball coaches he spoke with in February were unanimous in wanting regulation. 'They have the responsibility to make what they asked for work,' he said. Congressional actionNCAA President Charlie Baker has been pushing Congress for a limited antitrust exemption that would protect college sports from another series of lawsuits, and the commissioners want a uniform federal NIL law that would supersede wide-ranging state laws. 'We're not going to have Final Fours and College Football Playoffs and College World Series with 50 different standards,' Sankey said, 'so that's a starting point.' Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti said the willingness of administrators to modernize the college athletics model should prompt federal lawmakers to move on codifying the settlement. Sankey's meeting with TrumpSankey confirmed a Yahoo Sports report that he and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua played golf with President Donald Trump on Sunday. Sankey said he appreciates Trump's interest in college sports and that it was helpful to share perspectives on the path forward. Trump reportedly considered a presidential commission on college sports earlier this year. Sankey declined to disclose details of their talks. 'I think those are best left for the moment on the golf course,' he said. ___ AP college sports:
New York Times
2 hours ago
- New York Times
Iowa hires former NFL GM Scott Pioli as consultant following House settlement
Iowa's athletics department has hired former Kansas City Chiefs general manager and New England Patriots executive Scott Pioli as a consultant to help the football program transition into a new financial model. The move comes as universities prepare to pay athletes directly in response to the landmark House settlement approved last week. Advertisement Pioli, 60, worked alongside Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz with the Cleveland Browns and the Baltimore Ravens from 1992-96, and the two have fostered a close relationship over the last three decades. Pioli has attended Iowa football practices and was retained last fall in preparation for the athletic department sharing revenue with Iowa athletes. Pioli will continue to work with all of Iowa's programs, but his expertise lies with football. At New England, Pioli was the Patriots' vice president of player personnel when the team won three Super Bowls and was named the Pro Football Writers Association's executive of the year three times. Pioli was the Chiefs' general manager from 2009-12, and then served as Atlanta Falcons assistant general manager from 2014-19. He has since worked as an NFL analyst for SiriusXM, NBC Sports and NFL Network. Iowa will share the maximum allowable amount of money under the House settlement, which is $20.5 million, with as much as 75 percent going toward the football program. In addition to bringing on Pioli, Iowa has established a cap management structure that includes general managers for each sport. Marcus Wilson will serve as executive senior associate athletics director for cap management and administration, while Scott Brickman, the department's general manager for NIL and strategy through a partnership with Altius Sports Partners, will review and approve all agreements. Financial parameters related to the $2.8 billion House settlement, which was approved on Friday night by Judge Claudia Wilken, go into effect on July 1.
