Diego Pavia Wins Case Against NCAA

Chief US District Judge William L. Campbell, Jr. issued an injunction yesterday to allow Pavia to play another year. The ruling argued the bylaws regulating who can play, specifically pertaining to JUCO transfers, is too restrictive.

The bylaw in question, NCAA Bylaw 12.02.6 is the rule the NCAA uses who is eligible to play and for how long. Until now the NCAA has included participation at JUCO programs even though they are not a part of the NCAA. Pavia’s case centered on NCAA rules that limited the amount of time athletes have to play. Historically, courts have ruled in favor of these rules, when college sports was not commercialized and a source of income.

A key aspect sighted by Judge Campbell was the inconsistency in policy within the NCAA rules. There are other exceptions to starting the NCAA clock - prep schools, for example, and examples such as military service or religious obligations that do not count against them.

This case shows the NCAA can no longer argue that academic outcomes are valid for regulating eligibility, and continues the evolution of D1 sports toward a pure professional league.

Portal Week 2 Update

Here are the highlights for week 2:

• According to On3, over 1900 players have entered the portal, with 325 committing to transfer.

• Marshall football opts out of their bowl game, after 36 players entered the tranfer portal, 29 of which were on scholarship.

• All 12 teams in the college football playoffs have lost players to the portal, with ASU at the top of the list with 12 players departing.

• Penn State QB Beau Pribula entered the portal and left the team, increasing the focus on how the current system creates challenges for players and teams.

Private Equity Wants In on College Sports

Marc Lasry, CEO and co-founder of Avenue Capital Group, recently commented on the opportunities in major college sports and stated that they are currently “bidding” on a couple of teams. Listen to the clip on X posted by @davebriggstv here.

Louisiana Schools using JUUL Settlement to Fund NIL Deals

Piper Hutchinson is reporting in the Louisiana Illuminator that the Louisiana AG Liz Murrill is launching a youth anti-vaping campaign in partnership with athletes from LSU and other colleges using NIL deals. The money is coming from a $10 million settlement brought by the state against JUUL.

Public records show the state has agreed to spend $281,000 on NL deals with athletes, with $225,000 going to LSU over the next three years. Other schools participating are Louisiana Monroe, Grambling, Notherwestern, Soutestern and McNeese.