2025 roster limits.

[TNLAX]

The NCAA is trying to hang on before losing all of its power with Division 1 schools. Two things have changed.

1. NIL Collectives (full time organizations that find funding to pay to athletes or prospective athletes) -- they work with the school, but are not employees of the school).

2. The Case brought by the Men's Basketball Team at Dartmouth where the lower courts ruled that the basketball players are employees of the school and therefore entitled to all benefits given employees (on appeal).

I first got interested in watching WLAX based on a study (can't remember the citation for the study),which predicted a tremendous uptick in the interest in women's sports -- and indicated that WLAX is a sleeping giant because of its exciting game that folks can understand without being as knowledgeable as a player or coach.

So, the collective encourages alumni to give recurring pledges of money to generate income on one side and it seeks out corporate and business money on the other. This generates money for the collective to distribute as they see fit. I know of a college baseball team where each player was paid at least $25,000 along with full scholarships. I have seen many athletes sporting brand new luxury cars as long as the appear in a commercial or two for the dealership. A collective could easily give an athlete the cost of tuition, room and board, books, and spending money and have the student appear to pay her own way. She then could then participate in various sports as a walk on. I have also heard from a Clemson alumnus (I have no idea if he knows or doesn't know) who claims that Clemson expects WLAX to grow and they want in on the ground floor of that growth. If so, athletes may be in for much more than a scholarship to play there. Right now there are very few if any rules. Athletes have to be very careful -- because there have been several instances in football and basketball where athletes are approached by a collective and told that a school is interested in recruiting them. Verbal promises are made -- the athlete enters the portal and loses his scholarship at his present school. Unknown to the athlete is that the collective approached several players and took the best fit and left the others without a place to go.

I have no idea where any of this is going, but NIL is changing the landscape. Personally, I think it would be great for women's LAX because there are so many instances where the schools are trying their best to get around meeting the requirements of Title Nine. I also have no idea what will happen in the Darmouth case. I have no inside info there and I am not an attorney.

What I find so attractive about WLAX is the character, talent, integrity, and mission all these athletes are on. They are all driven to succeed and to be the best they can be. That is rare. I hope after all the dust settles, that aspect will remain.

A fully funded D1 baseball program is limited to 11.7 scholarships. So if you know a team where every player was on a full scholarship, it must have been a real small roster. So I have to question the $25k to each player as well.

[cdb]

There is no limitation for students to play sports as walk ons in baseball. Anyone can get NIL -- so, if someone wants to pay $25K to each baseball player as part of NIL, they can and they do. That is outside the purview of the NCAA. Moreover, NIL money can be given to athletes to pay their own tuition and expenses and join the team as walk ons.

Therefore, the 11.7 scholarship rule is now, in effect, worthless. Moreover, it is doubtful that the NCAA would have any power to do anything about it -- especially with the larger Power 4 Conferences who seemed determined to create their own governing body more suited to their needs.