VI. Important “Threads” in the Timeline
The Power 5’s and NCAA’s campaign to secure the Iron Throne of college sports regulation operates through several separate but interconnected pathways. These pathways have moved along at roughly the same pace and have influenced each other. The Power 5 and NCAA have managed these pathways through a well-coordinated and sophisticated overall strategy.
1. “Voluntary” Rulemaking on NIL
An important thread in the Timeline is the NCAA’s false promises of voluntary NCAA rules changes on NIL. Beginning with the formation of the NCAA Board of Governors Federal and State Working Group in May 2019, the NCAA led stakeholders and the public to believe it would change its rules to ease the restrictions on NIL compensation contained in NCAA bylaws.
The Working Group’s October 23rd, 2019, Interim Report (see Timeline entry for October 23rd, 2019) and the Board of Governors’ adoption of its recommendations on October 29th, 2019 (see Timeline entry for October 29th, 2019) were lauded in the media as actual rules changes.
They were not.
Indeed, to this date, the NCAA has not changed a single word of a relevant NIL bylaw.
The NCAA lost its last-minute bid in the Senate (see Timeline entry for June 9th, 2021) for emergency preemption to prevent six state NIL laws from going into effect on July 1st, 2021. Only then, in the last hours of June 30th, 2021, did the NCAA adopt the “Interim Policy” (see Timeline entry for June 30th, 2021).
The Interim Policy was not a rules change. It is “interim” until one of two things happens : (1) the NCAA actually changes its NIL rules, or (2) the NCAA receives protective federal legislation that would allow it to regulate the NIL market in any way it sees fit.
2. Lobbying
While the NCAA promised voluntary rule changes for public consumption, it embarked on an aggressive backdoor lobbying campaign by some of Washington, DC’s most powerful lobbying firms to obtain extraordinary federal protections and immunities that would have allowed the NCAA to do nothing on NIL.
Eight lobbying firms and approximately forty lobbyists work for the Power 5 and NCAA. The Timeline shows when these lobbyists were onboarded. They have coordinated their messaging to achieve maximum impact with federal lawmakers.
(For a detailed discussion of lobbying on college sports issues, see the Lobbying Tab in the Explore Menu)
3. Congressional Elections
The NCAA and Power 5 have built their Congressional campaign around Republican legislators, and they started their campaign on February 11th, 2020, in the Senate, not the House.
The demographics of the Senate are ideal for the Power 5 and NCAA—white, male, and seasoned. Additionally, most Senators are very well-off financially.
This demographic aligns more with Power 5 and NCAA interests and values and is more susceptible to NCAA/P5 scare tactics. Opinion polls on college sports issues show that Americans with similar demographic traits as Senators align with NCAA/P5 interests.
The Senate held four NCAA/Power 5-friendly hearings in the summer of 2020.
In the 2020 elections, the NCAA and Power 5 hoped the Senate would remain with the Republicans. However, after the Georgia special elections on January 5th, 2021, the Democrats achieved technical control in an evenly split Senate.
The 2022 midterm elections had a similar impact. The Power 5 and NCAA desperately hoped for a Republican Senate and House and believed both were within reach. However, the Democrats retained control of the Senate, and the House flipped to the Republicans.
If both chambers went to the Republicans, the NCAA and Power 5 would have had a clear path to protective legislation. Bills like Jerry Moran’s (R-KS) or Roger Wicker’s (R-MS) would likely have moved forward aggressively.
It is no coincidence that the Power 5’s and NCAA’s initial engagement in Congress began in 2019 in a Republican-controlled Senate, and their re-engagement in 2023 started in a Republican-controlled House.
4. Federal Litigation
The Alston suit was also a crucial thread because the Power 5 and NCAA sought judicially created antitrust immunity. Alston materially influenced the Timeline when the US Supreme Court decided on December 16th, 2020, to hear the NCAA’s appeal.
As noted above, after the November 2020 elections and Georgia special elections, the NCAA and Power 5 unexpectedly lost their partisan Republican advantage in the Senate.
This, in conjunction with the Supreme Court’s acceptance of Alston, led the NCAA and Power 5 to reassess their chessboard and (1) temporarily suspend their congressional campaign and (2) abruptly cease voluntary rulemaking on NIL.
If the NCAA had achieved antitrust immunity in Alston, it could have enforced its compensation limits—including NIL—without any legal consequences.
5. Public Relations
Throughout its congressional campaign, the Power 5 and NCAA have utilized influential megaphones to convince the public and institutional stakeholders that athletes’ best interests are central to their value system and regulatory authorities.
Since 2015, the NCAA has paid a high-powered DC public relations firm at least $40 million to spin the NCAA’s messaging.
The Power 5 presidents, commissioners, and athletics directors have at the ready their own public relations machines. They are merely a text away from insinuating into the public sphere—often through complaint allies in the mainstream and sports media—whatever narrative they deem necessary to advance their goals.
The NCAA and Power 5’s relentless and sophisticated public messaging has been a crucial component of every aspect of the NCAA and Power 5’s quest for the Iron Throne of college sports regulation.
