Multiple hurdles remain on path to paying college athletes despite concessions in new NCAA proposal

LAS VEGAS — After making his first public appearance since Tuesday’s earth-shaking player compensation proposal, NCAA president Charlie Baker slipped out a side door and down a service elevator as a few media members attempted to ask questions.

“It’s just a start,” he said of his plan before hitting the “down” button.

That much was obvious on Day 1 post-proposal, which signals a new NCAA age — if the changes can get traction. Baker was short on specifics speaking Wednesday at the Sports Business Journal Intercollegiate Athletic Forum. But that wasn’t entirely the point. We’re still in the afterglow phase of a plan that would essentially edge right up to a pay for play model.

That idea itself takes some getting used to. The “how” to get there is something else. We’ve come a long way since former NCAA president Mark Emmert proposed a $2,000-per-student stipend in 2011. That suggestion was looked at sideways before it finally became the basis for modest cost-of-attendance increases.

Baker’s proposal gets the conversation started when it comes to sharing revenue … but not exactly revenue sharing. The idea is so bold some commissioners and administrators were upset Baker didn’t update them as he was formulating his plan. The NCAA CEO has showed himself to be a veteran politician who can work behind the scenes. Who needs updates when you’re reconfiguring the world?

The model will begin to be shaped next month at the NCAA Convention. Baker called the pace of change an “urgent patience.” Lawsuits are closing in from every angle. If the NCAA doesn’t fix itself there are predators on the horizon. An investment fund giant suggested Wednesday that college athletics is so undervalued the Michigan football program would be worth $1 billion if…

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Author : Dennis Dodd

Publish date : 2023-12-07 16:54:22

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