At its meeting this week, the Board of Governors supported rule changes to allow student-athletes to receive compensation for third-party endorsements both related to and separate from athletics. It also supports compensation for other student-athlete opportunities, such as social media, businesses they have started and personal appearances within the guiding principles originally outlined by the board in October.<\/p>\n
While student-athletes would be permitted to identify themselves by sport and school, the use of conference and school logos, trademarks or other involvement would not be allowed. The board emphasized that at no point should a university or college pay student-athletes for name, image and likeness activities.<\/p>\n
The board directed all three divisions to consider appropriate rules changes based on recommendations from its Federal and State Legislation Working Group.<\/p>\n
\u201cThroughout our efforts to enhance support for college athletes, the NCAA has relied upon considerable feedback from and the engagement of our members, including numerous student-athletes, from all three divisions,\u201d said Michael V. Drake, chair of the board and president of Ohio State. \u201cAllowing promotions and third-party endorsements is uncharted territory.\u201d<\/p>\n
The board\u2019s recommendations now will move to the rules-making structure in each of the NCAA\u2019s three divisions for further consideration. The divisions are expected to adopt new name, image and likeness rules by January to take effect at the start of the 2021-22 academic year.<\/p>\n
The board is requiring guardrails around any future name, image and likeness activities. These would include no name, image and likeness activities that would be considered pay for play; no school or conference involvement; no use of name, image and likeness for recruiting by schools or boosters; and the regulation of agents and advisors.<\/p>\n
The board\u2019s action is the latest step by the Association to support college athletes and modernize its rules regarding name, image and likeness. In October, the board identified guiding principles to ensure that any changes support college sports as a part of higher education. Any changes adopted by the divisions must be in concert with the following principles and guidelines:<\/p>\n
Ensuring student-athletes are treated similarly to nonathlete students unless a compelling reason exists to differentiate.
\nMaintaining the priorities of education and the collegiate experience to provide opportunities for student-athlete success.
\nEnsuring rules are transparent, focused and enforceable, and facilitating fair and balanced competition.
\nMaking clear the distinction between collegiate and professional opportunities.
\nMaking clear that compensation for athletics performance or participation is impermissible.
\nReaffirming that student-athletes are students first and not employees of the university.
\nEnhancing principles of diversity, inclusion and gender equity.
\nProtecting the recruiting environment and prohibiting inducements to select, remain at or transfer to a specific institution.
\nThe board relied on a comprehensive report from the Federal and State Legislation Working Group to inform its recommendations.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe NCAA\u2019s work to modernize name, image and likeness continues, and we plan to make these important changes on the original timeline, no later than January 2021,\u201d said Gene Smith, Ohio State senior vice president and athletics director and working group co-chair. \u201cThe board\u2019s decision today provides further guidance to each division as they create and adopt appropriate rules changes.\u201d<\/p>\n
In its report, the working group recognized that the rules needed to accomplish the modifications may differ by division and stressed the need for appropriate regulation in the future.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we evolve, the Association will continue to identify the guardrails to further support student-athletes within the context of college sports and higher education,\u201d said Val Ackerman, commissioner of the Big East and working group co-chair. \u201cIn addition, we are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on higher education, college sports and students at large. We hope that modernized name, image and likeness rules will further assist college athletes during these unprecedented times and beyond.\u201d<\/p>\n
The board also discussed the potential challenges to modernizing rules posed by outside legal and legislative factors that could significantly undermine the NCAA\u2019s ability to take meaningful action. As a result, it will engage Congress to take steps that include the following:<\/p>\n
Ensuring federal preemption over state name, image and likeness laws.
\nEstablishing a \u201csafe harbor\u201d for the Association to provide protection against lawsuits filed for name, image and likeness rules.
\nSafeguarding the nonemployment status of student-athletes.
\nMaintaining the distinction between college athletes and professional athletes.
\nUpholding the NCAA\u2019s values, including diversity, inclusion and gender equity.
\nThe recommendations for federal engagement were provided by the Presidential Subcommittee on Congressional Action, which was formed as part of the Federal and State Legislation Working Group to provide input on the potential assistance the NCAA should seek from Congress.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe evolving legal and legislative landscape around these issues not only could undermine college sports as a part of higher education but also significantly limit the NCAA\u2019s ability to meet the needs of college athletes moving forward,\u201d Drake said. \u201cWe must continue to engage with Congress in order to secure the appropriate legal and legislative framework to modernize our rules around name, image and likeness. We will do so in a way that underscores the Association\u2019s mission to oversee and protect college athletics and college athletes on a national scale.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The NCAA\u2019s highest governing body has taken unprecedented steps to allow college athletes to be compensated for their name, image and likeness<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":146,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_spbk_hide_featured":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[401],"tags":[],"rumors":[],"typology":[],"posizionamento":[],"class_list":["post-145613","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ncaa"],"yoast_head":"\n