Ivy League Opts-Out of House v. NCAA Settlement

[DFW HOYA]

"The Ivy League will opt out of a pending NCAA settlement set to provide direct compensation to former and current college athletes, according to an email sent to Ivy League student-athletes on Jan. 21."

https://www.thedp.com/article/2025/01/ivy-league-opts-out-ncaa-settlement-prevents-direct-financial-compensation-athletes

[OhioHen]

"The Ivy League will opt out of a pending NCAA settlement set to provide direct compensation to former and current college athletes, according to an email sent to Ivy League student-athletes on Jan. 21."

https://www.thedp.com/article/2025/01/ivy-league-opts-out-ncaa-settlement-prevents-direct-financial-compensation-athletes
Now we just need the rest of the non-power conferences to do likewise and let the big boys pay their own bills.

[bonarae]

Same with NDSU, as well.

https://www.inforum.com/sports/bison-media-zone/mens-sports/ndsu-athletics-not-jk-ncaa-opt-in-financial-model

[DFW HOYA]

Now we just need the rest of the non-power conferences to do likewise and let the big boys pay their own bills.

Two different issues: the 10 years of assessments apply whether the conferences opt-in or not. Opting-in allows for direct payments but also reduces the rosters, something that is contrary to the "athletics for all" approach in the Ancient Eight.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

I thought Ivy League athletes were supposed to be smart. How much of 22% of perhaps $500,000 of Ivy League broadcast money did they think they were getting personally?

Similar math is going to keep most schools and conferences opting out of House.

[Go...gate]

Wondering if the Patriot League will follow suit in some form or manner.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

Personally the math of "House" has always struck me as strange. The Power 4 want to opt in, of course, because it shields them from liabilities. But 95% of the membership gets none of these benefits, and in fact it merely causes them to pay not just more money, but truckloads of it, money they will never see. The other conferences are then supposed to get excited about the prospect of distributing the couch change ESPN is giving them in broadcast rights to players? No wonder the Ivy League is telling the Power 4 to go pound each other.

I've hinted at a possible rift between the Power 4 and Ivy League now for quite some time, and perhaps now people will start listening. A break between the P4 and Ivy athletic departments (not just one sport) is a possible enormous deal that will not just affect college sports but also the Olympics.

[KnightoftheRedFlash]

Nostradamus himself!

[Ivytalk]

More power to them.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

https://www.columbiaspectator.com/sports/2025/02/03/ivy-league-rejects-class-action-lawsuit-settlement-fueling-nil-debate-in-college-sports/


Former Columbia women’s basketball phenom Abbey Hsu, CC ’24, who was drafted by the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun in spring 2024, understands the challenges of competing at a high level within the conference and the difficulties surrounding the league’s decision.

“It’s a disappointing one,” Hsu said on the decision. “I think as Ivy League athletes, we’re constantly trying to prove ourselves—that we’re at par with the Power Five and other schools.”



The Florida native, who helped clinch Columbia’s two Ivy League titles and its first NCAA tournament appearance last year, highlighted the desire for recognition among Ivy League student-athletes.

“We want to be treated the same as well,” she said.



Others view the decision through a different lens. Robert Boland, CC ’87, former athletics integrity officer at Pennsylvania State University and a current professor at Seton Hall Law School, pointed to the league’s long-standing approach to athletics as a potential factor.


“The House settlement imposes fairly stringent scholarship limits and roster limits for athletes,” Boland explained. “For the Ivy League, I don’t think they want to be under that draconian roster limit. I think the Ivy League looks at their rosters as a flexible opportunity to have more highly qualified athletes who they can admit in any given year and want to maintain control of that.”



Because the Ivy League does not offer athletic scholarships, teams don’t have the same financial incentives as other programs. However, they do benefit from the ability to admit more athletes who meet their academic and athletic criteria. By opting out, the league ensures it can continue operating under its own rules rather than conforming to external restrictions.



Boland also pointed to a separate key concern: the potential for unequal compensation among athletes. “The Ivy League doesn’t want to be in the business of compensating some athletes and not others,” he said. “They want to treat all their athletes with some egalitarian effect.”