The presidential college sports commission is gone. There was one?
There wasn’t, but there was going to be. Now, it’s not happening.
Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports, citing unnamed Congressional sources, reports that the White House is “pressing pause” on the planned commission. Dellenger explains that the move is possibly rooted in the potential impact of the commission on Senate negotiations regarding legislation that would address the current chaos in college sports.
Separately, Amanda Christovich of FrontOfficeSports.com reports that plans for a commission are on hold, and that the White House has made no final decisions regarding efforts to reform college sports.
Even without a commission, it appears that the federal government remains intent on “fixing” college sports. That task should fall to the universities. Decades of blatant antitrust violations have come home to roost, and the current problems flow from the NCAA and its members: (1) making the current mess; and (2) refusing to clean it up on their own.
They want it both ways. They crave the antitrust-exemption benefits of having a nationwide union without having to deal with the duties and responsibilities of unionized players.
Through it all, will the players’ interests be properly represented? A commission co-chaired by Nick Saban undoubtedly would have steamrolled player rights under the guise of pretending to know and protect their “best interests.” Congress may end up doing the same thing.
The overriding question remains. Why does college football need a Hail Mary from Uncle Sam? Doesn’t Congress have better things to do than to help restore the imbalance that previously existed?
Apparently not. College football has created this problem through greed, and it has now bootstrapped it into a crisis that requires Congressional intervention.
That intervention undoubtedly will limit player compensation and freedom of movement. Without altering in any way the unfettered ability of coaches to maximize both their revenue and their ability to jump from job to job to job.
It’s hypocritical. It’s wrong. For the schools who have had their oxen gored by the belated application of antitrust laws to a corrupt system, it’s just what the doctor ordered.
English (US) ·