Republican governors from five states– including South Dakota– have sent a letter to NCAA President Charlie Baker regarding its settlement with student athletes on Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) sponsorships.
The letter points out that NIL sponsorships are more popular among “Power Five” athletic conferences, but the proposed settlement will hit colleges and universities outside of those five conferences (Big 10, Big 12, Atlantic Coast Conference, Pacific 12 and Southeastern Conference) with a nearly $1 billion financial obligation. The letter urges Baker to rework the settlement to “fix the undue burden on smaller athletic programs in more rural states.”
Along with South Dakota, the letter was signed by governors from Wyoming, North Dakota, Idaho and Montana. The letter says the proposed settlement is unfair to the colleges and universities in their states because those post-secondary athletic programs stand to lose hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. The governors say the dollars may not seem like much to larger athletic programs, but it’s a significant hit to the student-athletes and the athletic programs in those five states.
Earlier this month (Sept. 2024), a federal judge placed the settlement on hold and urged the NCAA to make revisions. Last week (Sept. 10, 2024), South Dakota filed a lawsuit against the NCAA seeking an injunction of this settlement so that the interests of smaller conferences “are duly considered when restructuring another proposed settlement.”
Comments