Big Money, We All Want It - College Athletic Money - NIL

Big Money, We All Want It - College Athletic Wealth - NIL

This is part three in a series that I have been discussing today.

    Colleges and universities run by money, another part or sector of our market economies. There are many expenses in higher education: from providing for the campus and grounds itself, the buildings and facilities, the professional teachers and professors, janitors, and often times sharing money for extra-curricular activities and programs, to include sports. Major sports can generate income, especially football and basketball programs. Most schools depend on government subsidies and donations from private sponsors, too. Each educational institution has a budget to consider, like any corporation and business. Some colleges are very dynamic with their budgets. Harvard is the richest that I know of, and they have quite a few student athletes.

    Until the last year (2021) the NCAA ruled that college athletes could not earn money while competing, while sometimes receiving full scholarships, partial scholarships, or voluntarily walking on and playing in a sport. But since the change of ruling this past year they can ear money, and in some cases a lot. College athletics has changed and is changing. Now there are deals that a student athlete can earn small or larger amounts of cash for being a part of teams. It is known as NIL, the acronym for Name Image and Likeness. 

    This is making some individuals, and perhaps their agents and business associates, a lot of money. It is changing how young people in college programs are choosing their schools and how long they play or stay at those programs. Plus, the NCAA has given players easier transfer rights, through a thing called the "portal", and more players than ever are switching one school for another. It is harder to track programs and teams now. A few short years ago a player had to sit out a season of play before play time for the new school, but transfers are pretty immediate as to playing now.

    College athletics have changed, and now the conferences continue to do so, much of it driven by power and money.

    Back to the Big Ten. 

    It added Rutgers, the state school of New Jersey, which covers a lot of the New York City market, and Maryland, the flagship university of that state, close to D.C. and Baltimore, a few years ago, entrenching its footprint on the middle eastern seaboard. But now it has added the University of Southern California and the University of California -Los Angeles, and the neighborhood has expanded beyond any other known extensive geography.

The Southeastern Conference, the best in football, had dipped further west into Missouri and Texas A & M, and now more so with the giants Oklahoma and Texas. They had surpassed the Big Ten with 16 teams. But now the Big Ten has surged again, with a coast to coast foot print. Truly ground breaking, or busting a geographic model. East and West, the Big Ten is best. 

    As supposed by me in the last post, perhaps the Big XII (12) had provoked such a move by recently adding BYU (located in Utah, Mountain Time Zone) to a conference with east coast ties, in West Virginia and Florida, plus Ohio; the majority of the programs being in the Central Time Zone. That is, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Iowa.

So, what are the next dominoes to fall? Notre Dame aligning with anyone would be huge, but most people think that they will not.

When it comes to money, power, and influence, which are natural to seek, we have:

Big Ten: 16 teams by 2024, the best sports attendance and money contracts for broadcasting.

SEC:  16 teams by 2023, best football attendance and success on the field

Big X11: 12 teams by 2023. Potentially the best basketball conference, but still behind the ACC in roundball.

ACC: 16 team across the East Coast, arguably the best basketball conference, but now looking at the top two football conferences with some envy or fear of being poached from. Clemson or Florida State, or the other two Florida schools might be worth taking.

PAC-10: (again): down to 10 teams by 2024. Many are concerned that Washington, Oregon, or others may bolt. Some think that the Big XII might scoop up four of them.

These are the former top five Power Conferences, but thinks are wobbly now.

What other conferences could make any moves? 

Mountain West: 12; American Athletic: 11 (but will have 8 in 2023); Conference USA 11 (are some jumping to AAC? I think so); MAC: (12 teams) the Sun Belt (14, some newly added, created from smaller division); and the Independents (7, while BYU will and a couple others may join other conferences)

The P5 or Power Five Conferences, the biggest and wealthiest, are changing and affecting others below them. Others are making their way up to the FBS, the Bowl playing programs, like James Madison this year and Old Dominion recently, and others before them.

    Everybody wants slices of an ever growing pie. And with higher numbers of attendees, and longer living alumni, the pie or pies are getting bigger and sweeter.

And now there is even more money with the NIL contracts.

The way of the world.

Will it help out more struggling youth, and benefit more side money makers, even the gambling and gaming industries?

The magic 8 ball says: all indicators say "yes".