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 The new structure among the five biggest conferences hands them
broader authority to set their own rules and could potentially pave
the way for the 65 universities to offer compensation to
student-athletes.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I board of
directors approved the measure that would let the so-called power
five - the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big 10, Big 12, Pac-12 and
Southeastern Conference - self-govern in areas such as scholarships,
insurance and travel for athletes' families.
The conferences and the NCAA have faced legal, political and public
pressure to share its billions in revenue they generate from amateur
athletes and guarantee them stronger benefits.
"The new governance model represents a compromise on all sides that
will better serve our members and, most importantly, our
student-athletes," NCAA President Mark Emmert said in a statement.
The roughly 50,000 student-athletes would also get a voice in how
rules are created under the new self-governing structure, but they
would not have enough votes to hold up new regulations.
The new structure addresses the decades-old struggle between the
richest conferences and the rest of the NCAA member schools over
revenue generated in particular by football and men's basketball.
"Part of what's driving this is an effort to come to grips with a
dramatically different college sport ecosystem," said Ellen
Staurowsky, a sports management professor at Drexel University.
"For the power five conferences, this is a mass-entertainment
industry."
'AFTER A LOT OF PRESSURE'
Less powerful Division I schools have complained that the new model
increases the gap between the have and have-nots. But the wealthy
conferences have also grown frustrated with other colleges'
resistance to adopt costlier changes, such as increased scholarship
funds.
The NCAA, which does not allow students to earn money for their
athletic performance, has been sued by former and current athletes
in U.S. court seeking a share of profits.
Scholarship football players at Northwestern University near Chicago
are also fighting for the right to unionize and collectively bargain
in a closely watched matter.
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"It is important to note this has come after a lot of pressure," Ramogi
Huma, a former football player and now president of the National College
Players Association, said about Thursday's vote.
The NCAA grosses roughly $770 million per year in media rights for its
annual Division I men's basketball tournament, known as March Madness,
which are then shared with member schools.
The richest conferences, however, generate billions of dollars each year
exclusively for themselves through media contracts and their own cable
TV networks, primarily on the popularity of football and men's
basketball.
They are expected to consider easing regulations on agents, recruiting
and instituting a "cost of attendance" scholarship and other guarantees
that would help cover living costs for athletes that are not currently
offered.
The majority of college athletes do not go on to play professionally and
critics say the NCAA's current scholarship policy short-changes athletes
who risk injury and devote many hours to practice sessions, travel and
competition.
Many NCAA practices date back to a time when college athletics were not
the multibillion-dollar business they are today. At the same time,
students have become more vocal about the shortcomings of the system as
they see it.
One contentious issue often cited by critics concerns scholarship
athletes who lose financial support after suffering career-ending
injuries while playing for the school.
(Reporting by Eric Kelsey in Los Angeles; Editing by Mary Milliken and
Lisa Shumaker)
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