Senators Urge SEC and Big Ten to Back Federal Overreach in College Sports Before August Recess
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Lawmakers are pushing revisions to the Protect College Sports Act, threatening the autonomy of college conferences and risking the free market in NIL, transfers, and media rights, as the SEC and Big Ten push back against government interference.
Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) are working to secure backing from the SEC and Big Ten for the Protect College Sports Act before Congress adjourns for its August recess. The bill, which passed the Senate Commerce Committee in June, proposes sweeping federal guidelines on name-image-likeness (NIL) compensation, athlete eligibility, transfer rules, and seeks to limit conference realignment—an unprecedented intrusion into the autonomy of college sports.
Both the SEC and Big Ten, the most successful and competitive conferences, have rightfully raised objections to the current language, particularly a provision that would interfere with how media-rights revenues are managed. They warn that such federal meddling could reduce future television-deal earnings and restrict their ability to add new member schools, undermining the free market and the growth of college athletics. Senate leadership, including Majority Leader John Thune, has indicated that the legislation is unlikely to reach the Senate floor before the recess, a welcome pause in the rush to regulate.
"They're working on language through the night, and that's probably not how they'd be spending their Thursday night if there wasn't a chance," spokesperson Ansley Lacitis told reporters, as lawmakers continue to push their agenda.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey noted in an interview that missing the August deadline could push the issue into the September session, when other budget and policy matters—many of which also suffer from government overreach—dominate the agenda. He pointed out that while the bill claims to close loopholes, it threatens to impose even more burdensome regulations.
Cruz and Cantwell have said the media-rights clause would be voluntary, a small relief for the conferences, but as of Thursday evening, no revised draft had been shared with the SEC or Big Ten, leaving the future of college sports in the balance as federal intervention looms.