CONFERENCES SHARE NEW AND SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS TOWARD IMPLEMENTATION OF HOUSE SETTLEMENT

WASHINGTON, March 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Pending final court approval of the proposed settlement in the House v. NCAA, Hubbard v. NCAA and Carter v. NCAA cases (collectively, "the House case"), the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, Pac-12 Conference, Southeastern Conference and NCAA are rapidly preparing to implement a new model for the future of college sports focused on stability and fairness.

The proposed settlement would facilitate meaningful opportunities for student-athletes to further benefit from their participation in intercollegiate athletics, while establishing a robust system of oversight and controls to ensure fair competition and protect the integrity of collegiate athletics and the best interests of student-athletes, participating institutions and fans.

The opportunities resulting from the proposed settlement would be in addition to the myriad benefits currently provided to student-athletes, including free tuition, room and board, educational grants, academic support and tutoring, medical and mental health resources and support, nutrition resources and support, life skills development, superior coaching and training, and extended medical coverage after they stop competing.

Following the final hearing scheduled for April 7, and if the court gives final approval to the settlement, the responsibility for its implementation and enforcement will fall primarily to the five defendant conferences and the NCAA. To oversee this process, the conferences and NCAA have formed a Settlement Implementation Committee, made up of ten athletics directors (two from each defendant conference) and the legal and compliance teams from the conferences and the NCAA. The athletics directors on the Committee are:

• Trev Alberts, Texas A&M
• Scott Barnes, Oregon State 
• Mitch Barnhart, Kentucky
• J Batt, Georgia Tech
• Ross Bjork, Ohio State
• Pat Chun, Washington
• John Cunningham, Cincinnati 
• Graham Neff, Clemson
• Anne McCoy, Washington State 
• Desireé Reed-Francois, Arizona

These athletics directors' extensive experience makes them particularly well-suited to ensure that the rules, systems, and processes put in place to implement the settlement anticipate potential issues and are ultimately effective in bringing order to chaos amid the current realities of college sports. They are actively gathering input from their peers in their conferences and are channeling that feedback back to the group. The Committee has been meeting numerous times per week for the past several months, dedicating countless hours to discussing the settlement's implementation and working diligently to ensure its short- and long-term success.

The Committee is divided into four working groups, each focused on a specific component of the settlement:

1. Drafting new and clarifying existing rules to facilitate consistent compliance with all aspects of the settlement;
2. Developing a digital platform for the reporting and measurement of payments made to student-athletes by their institutions to ensure compliance with the cap set forth in the proposed settlement;
3. Creating a system to ensure that third-party name, image and likeness (NIL) deals entered into with student-athletes are legitimate deals that will use the student-athlete's NIL to advance a valid business purpose; and
4. Forming a new entity to enforce these rules with an emphasis on efficient investigative procedures, timely decision-making, appropriate penalties, and ensuring accountability for bad actors.

To execute these directives, the Committee has engaged industry-leading experts to assist institutions participating in the settlement with its implementation.

LBi Software has been retained to develop a cap management and reporting platform that ensures accurate tracking, reporting and enforcement of rules related to direct payments from institutions to student-athletes. With extensive experience building and managing similar systems for the MLB, NWSL, NBA, and other leagues, LBi brings proven expertise to this transformative effort. LBi has already completed initial testing of the platform and will engage with institutions directly to roll out the new software.

The Committee has also been working closely with Deloitte* to create a system to track and evaluate all Division I student-athletes' third-party NIL deals valued at $600 and more, which would be required to be reported under the proposed settlement. The new enforcement entity will use the system to help it evaluate whether these deals are within a reasonable range of compensation and made with the purpose of using a student-athlete's NIL to advance a valid business purpose, as outlined in the proposed settlement. Deloitte has made significant progress in designing and testing the technology, incorporating feedback from student-athletes and on-campus personnel, in anticipation of a phased roll out of the system to all Division I student-athletes upon the final approval of the settlement.

If the settlement is approved, the Committee and members of the new enforcement entity, alongside Deloitte and LBi, will launch robust educational efforts to ensure that coaches, student-athletes, administrators and relevant third parties all fully understand the new model and are prepared to comply with the new rules and leverage these new opportunities.

ABOUT THE ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE

In its 72nd year, and 18 members strong, the ACC stands as one of the most competitive and revered intercollegiate conferences in the nation. ACC members including Boston College, Cal, Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami, North Carolina, NC State, Notre Dame, Pitt, SMU, Stanford, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Wake Forest are dedicated to upholding the league's founding values of academic excellence, athletic competition at the highest level, and integrity. The ACC supports 28 NCAA sports, with 15 for women and 13 for men, and its member institutions span 12 states. In August 2019, the ACC and ESPN partnered to launch ACC Network (ACCN), a 24/7 national network exclusively devoted to ACC sports and original programming. For more information, visit theACC.com and follow the ACC on Instagram (@accsports), Twitter/X (@theACC) and Facebook (facebook.com/theACC).

ABOUT THE BIG TEN CONFERENCE

The Big Ten Conference is an association of world-class universities whose member institutions share a common mission of research, graduate, professional and undergraduate teaching and public service. Founded in 1896, the Big Ten has sustained a comprehensive set of shared practices and policies that enforce the priority of academics in the lives of students competing in intercollegiate athletics and emphasize the values of integrity, fairness and competitiveness. The Big Ten Conference sponsors 28 official sports, 14 for men and 14 for women, and the broad-based programs of the 18 Big Ten institutions provide direct financial support for more than 14,000 student-athletes. For more information, visit www.bigten.org

ABOUT THE BIG 12 CONFERENCE

The Big 12 is in its 29th year as one of the nation's premier conferences in college athletics under the leadership of Commissioner Brett Yormark. Since joining the Conference in August 2022, Yormark has elevated the Big 12 to new heights, emphasizing marketing, brand building and instilling an innovative strategy that has resonated across the college athletics landscape. 

Starting Aug. 2, 2024, the Conference is composed of 16 universities spanning 10 states and four time zones. The Big 12 members include Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor, BYU, UCF, Cincinnati, Colorado, Houston, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas Tech, Utah and West Virginia.

ABOUT THE PAC-12 CONFERENCE:

The Pac-12 Conference is dedicated to developing the next generation of leaders by championing excellence in academics, athletics, and the well-being of its student-athletes. The league is composed of Oregon State University and Washington State University and has added six future members, including Boise State University, Colorado State University, California State University, Fresno, Gonzaga University, San Diego State University, and Utah State University, who are all set to join the conference for the 2026-27 season.

ABOUT THE SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE

A pioneer in the integration of higher education and athletic competition, the Southeastern Conference is a leader for intercollegiate athletics in the 21st century. Since its formation in 1933, the SEC has achieved stature and stability by designating governing/voting power to the presidents of the member institutions. These university leaders determine the policies of the conference and through the years this involvement has been the principal source of strength in the evolution of the SEC. Throughout its history, the SEC has provided leadership on the vital issues facing intercollegiate competition. Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Mississippi, Mississippi State, Tennessee and Vanderbilt have been in the SEC since its formation in 1933. The league has expanded three times, adding Arkansas and South Carolina in 1991, Missouri and Texas A&M in 2012, and Oklahoma and Texas 2024.

MEDIA CONTACT
Liz Breen
[email protected]
501-580-0181 

* As used in this document, "Deloitte" means Deloitte Consulting LLP, a subsidiary of Deloitte LLP. Please see www.deloitte.com/us/about for a detailed description of our legal structure. Certain services may not be available to attest clients under the rules and regulations of public accounting.

SOURCE Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, Pac-12 Conference, Southeastern Conference