The Texas Tech softball team nearly won a national championship with a lot of pitching, running and defense and a smidgen of slugging.

The Friday news dump to end all Friday news dumps came last week at roughly 6:15 p.m., when U.S. District Court Judge Claudia Wilken approved the settlement terms of the landmark House v. NCAA antitrust lawsuit that begins a new era for major college sports.

The ensuing hours brought a series of statements and responses from various conferences, schools and industry stakeholders.

At 9:05 p.m., Washington chimed in.

The Huskies unveiled Dawgs Unleashed, described by athletic director Pat Chun as “an internal business unit” designed “to assist our student-athletes with maximizing their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) opportunities.

“The potential number of valid business-purpose NIL opportunities for our student athletes, both locally and globally,” Chun added, “will be unmatched.”

Chun was referring to his school, which shares a metropolitan area with Starbucks, Microsoft and Amazon. But he could have easily been speaking to the collective might of Washington’s institutional brethren in the Big Ten.

No conference is better positioned for the era of revenue sharing and legitimate NIL. That includes the SEC, which used its fan passion and proximity to talent to dominate the sport for years. But the creation of the transfer portal and the rise of booster-run NIL collectives this decade have reshaped the roster construction process.

Since that point, the playing field has leveled out. The Big Ten won the national championship in 2023 (Michigan) and 2024 (Ohio State) and bolstered its success at the top with quality depth. The conference went 5-1 against the SEC in bowl games last season, with two playoff victories (both courtesy of Ohio State).

The post-settlement world could supercharge the recalibration of the competitive landscape and herald a golden age for Big Ten football.

“And it’s not happenstance,” a conference source noted.

Every major strategic move made by the conference for the past 20 years — from the creation of the Big Ten Network to the bicoastal expansion — has positioned the Big Ten for the post-House world.

Two pillars of the settlement are rooted in real-time economics:

— Schools are allowed to share up to $20.5 million with athletes in the upcoming fiscal year, with the number expected to climb over time as revenues increase.

Most athletic departments in the Big Ten, SEC, ACC and Big 12 will devote approximately $15 million to football. The schools with the largest revenue streams (media rights revenue, ticket and merchandise revenue, philanthropic revenue) are best equipped to absorb that massive expense without rolling back key resources like recruiting budgets and coaching staff salaries. The Big Ten’s TV deal, worth about $1 billion annually, is the largest in the country.

— The power conferences created the College Sports Commission to enforce “valid business-purpose NIL opportunities” (Chun’s phrasing) and eliminate the pay-for-play deals negotiated by booster-run collectives. Any agreement of $600 or more must be reported to NIL Go, a technology platform designed by Deloitte that will determine whether deals fall within a reasonable range for the service performed.

Legitimate NIL deals offer a means for schools to surpass the $15 million in revenue-sharing allocated to football rosters. To exceed the cap, in other words.

How far above the cap could they go? Some schools might use their in-house NIL units — their versions of Dawgs Unleashed — to broker $3 million or $4 million in valid NIL opportunities for football players; others might arrange for deals worth a total of $10 million.

The outcome hinges, to a large extent, on the local and regional business communities that will serve as the source of NIL opportunities.

And therein lies the Big Ten’s structural advantages: the depth and scope of its alumni base, the wealth of its communities and the size of its media markets.

In all regards, it seemingly owns a decisive advantage over its rival:

— The Big Ten’s 14-state footprint (and Washington, D.C.) features 235 companies listed in the Fortune 500. The SEC footprint has 130.

(Notably, publicly-traded companies are not subject to the reasonable compensation provision in the settlement, although their status can be changed if the College Sports Commission determines they are an associated entity of the school.)

— The Big Ten footprint features 12 of the top 25 media markets in the country, including four of the top five (New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Philadelphia). The SEC footprint features five of the top 25.

— Big Ten schools have a combined current enrollment of approximately 825,000 undergraduates compared to the SEC’s 600,000, an indication of the comparative size of the alumni bases.

— And perhaps most tellingly, the gross domestic product of the Big Ten states was $12.5 trillion last year, while the GDP of the SEC states totalled $8.4 trillion.

(We did not include the state of New York when calculating the GDP of the Big Ten footprint or Fortune 500 companies. However, we included New York City as a media market for the conference because the Big Ten Network is available on a basic, in-market tier on the cable systems. If you add New York’s GDP, the total for the Big Ten footprint jumps to $14.8 trillion. Adding Fortune 500 companies in New York would increase the Big Ten’s total to 287.)

On the foundation of roster construction in the post-House world, a source noted: “The last environment was about billionaires writing checks. This era will be about business opportunities.”

In theory, at least.

Legal experts question the validity of the NIL Go system used to determine whether deals fall within what the College Sports Commission (CSC) calls “a reasonable range of compensation.”

Paul Finebaum Warns House NIL Ruling Is a “Ticking Time Bomb” originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

Just days after the groundbreaking House Settlement cleared a major hurdle in court, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum is raising red flags, again.

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During a sharp segment on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning, the SEC Network veteran didn’t mince words: The agreement may offer temporary clarity in the chaotic world of Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) compensation, but the legal fight is far from over.

“Today they [Power Four commissioners] did [win],” Finebaum said. “But what’s behind the curtain is what always concerns and keeps people that run college athletics up at night.”

For fans celebrating what seemed like a turning point in college sports, Finebaum’s comments are a sobering reminder: This ruling might be just the beginning. While the House Settlement unlocks a future that includes backpay for past athletes, new NIL regulations, and even revenue sharing for current players, it also opens the floodgates to legal chaos.

Judge Claudia Wilken’s 76-page decision explicitly stated that every element of the agreement remains challengeable in court. That, according to Finebaum, is where things get dangerous.

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“If something is challengeable… it will be challenged,” he added. “I know attorneys are actively moving, trying to figure out where the best route is, where the best lawsuit lies.”

Finebaum didn’t just point fingers at the legal system, he lit it up. He criticized lawyers for prioritizing profit over fairness and warned fans to watch out for the same players who filed this case to begin with.

“There will be a bevy of lawsuits,” Finebaum said. “And that’s where this is gonna get uncomfortable.”

He’s not alone in his skepticism. The House ruling contradicts NIL-friendly laws in states like Tennessee, which still allow schools and collectives to exceed the proposed compensation caps. It also introduces a new enforcement body, the College Sports Commission, whose effectiveness remains untested.

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Meanwhile, a potential federal solution seems stalled in the same gridlock that’s frustrated college administrators for years.

“I don’t believe we’re any closer to that than we were… three years ago,” Finebaum said. “Congress is not a body made to make decisions.”

As the dust settles on the House Settlement, fans and athletes alike are left to wonder: Is this the long-awaited stabilization of college sports, or just the calm before another legal storm?

For now, the Power Four conferences are touting a win. But Finebaum, with his finger on the pulse of college athletics for decades, warns this could be a “ticking time bomb” waiting to explode.

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Related: The NCAA is Dead, Long Live the Game

Related: The Last Great Underdogs: College Football’s Top 10 Most Legendary Walk-Ons

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 11, 2025, where it first appeared.

Louisville basketball’s 2025-26 roster isn’t completely set, but what the fans do know is that the Cardinals are back. Louisville had a historic season last year, as the Cards’ broke multiple records, made their first ACC Championship game appearance, returned to the NCAA Tournament, and set this program up for future success.

Head coach Pat Kelsey put this program back on the map, and the Louisville Cardinals are just getting started. Mark Packer of the ACCN recently stated that Louisville is the team to beat and his way-too-early prediction to win the ACC next season.

Louisville has been earning National Title recognition all offseason, and they just got more praise from another college basketball expert. CBS Sports’ Isaac Trotter recently ranked the ACC, and Louisville is sitting exactly where it belongs, as he has them in the perfect position to earn the program’s first National Championship since 2013.

Related: Louisville basketball’s monster offseason raises 7 burning questions

Louisville basketball already holds perfect blueprint to steal ACC crown from Duke

Trotter went ahead and listed the ACC in four tiers, with tier one being “Title Contenders,” tier two being “Top 25 caliber club”, tier three being “Bubblicious,” and tier four being “The basement.” The ACC was dominated by Duke last season, making them a massive target for the rest of the conference next season. In Trotter’s vision, he sees only the Cardinals with a chance to end the Duke Blue Devils’ ACC dynasty.

Louisville was the first team mentioned in these rankings, implying that they are ranked No. 1 in his eyes. The Cardinals and the Blue Devils are the only teams in tier one, once again making it clear that the two blockbuster showdowns between these two teams next season are going to have a lot at stake.

Trotter really likes the roster Kelsey has built, as he gives high praise to the Cardinals’ additions as well as key returners. He also adds that Louisville will have six players 21 years or older, implying the Cardinals have elite experience, as well as NBA talent.

Related: Louisville basketball sharpens claws for sweet revenge after dream matchup reveal

“Louisville’s offense is going to turbo-smash. Pat Kelsey has endless lineup versatility after building a backcourt that is the envy of everyone in college basketball circles. Brown is a five-star freshman who is a terrific playmaker, and he’s surrounded by two special shot-makers in Conwell and McKneely. 100 3-pointers apiece for those two studs? It’s not impossible in this 3-point-happy scheme. If paint touches are hard to come by, Kelsey can insert Wooley, who is going to get to the rim by land or by sea.

The Cardinals can rotate dudes throughout this frontcourt. Fru is no typical freshman. The 21-year-old German import is armed with 7-foot-5 wingspan, and figures to be an impact defender. Five-out offense with Pryor or Khalifa (when he gets eligible)? Sure. Four-out, one-in with Fru? Sure. Scheme versatility is everything these days, and Louisville has it. Oh, and Hadley is also back to do all the winning stuff. There’s just a beautiful mix of veterans (six of Louisville’s top-eight players are 21+) and the NBA talent you need to go big-game hunting.

Louisville looks like Louisville again, and that’s a beautiful sight for this sport.”

Isaac Trotter

His projected starting five is somewhat different, as he predicts Ryan Conwell to start at shooting guard and Isaac McKneely to start at small forward. He also has J’Vonne Hadley at power forward and Sananda Fru at center. The starting five is impossible to predict right now, but Trotter laid down a perfect blueprint for the Cardinals on how to defeat Duke: take advantage of Duke’s lack of experience.

Multiple freshmen will lead Duke, and while they have the best 2025 recruiting class, it is crucial to have key veterans on the roster to win big-time games. Louisville has the better roster from top to bottom, and the Cardinals will need to utilize their experience to win the big games against Duke and claim the ACC crown from Jon Scheyer’s Duke Blue Devils.

Related: Projected 2025-26 Louisville basketball starting lineup with and without Aly Khalifa

The ACC will see a massive upgrade from the past season, and the Cardinals are expected to lead the pack with this stacked roster. Louisville fans are already counting the days to tip-off, as this upcoming season is expected to be another historic one. However, this time, the Cardinals are expected to cut down some nets and hang some banners.

For all the latest on Louisville basketball’s offseason and recruiting, stay tuned.

Buckeye fans at the national championship celebration on Jan. 26. Ohio State announced the creation of Buckeye Sports Group Monday. Credit: Carly Damon | Lantern Photo Vault

Name, image and likeness will have a new look at Ohio State.

Just days after the landmark House v. NCAA court settlement was approved, allowing colleges to share revenue directly with athletes, Ohio State’s department of athletics and its partner, Learfield, unveiled the Buckeye Sports Group, also known as BSG, a sweeping new initiative that redefines the university’s approach to name, image and likeness.

“Ohio State has always been a leader in college athletics, and this initiative is another step forward to build upon our strong NIL foundation,” said Carey Hoyt, Ohio State’s deputy director of athletics. “By combining the power of our athletic brand with Learfield’s expansive network, we are creating an innovative, full-service approach to NIL that directly benefits our student-athletes.”

Under the House settlement agreement, schools may now distribute up to $20.5 million per year directly to athletes. Previously, schools had to rely on third-party resources, such as NIL collectives, to aid and assist athletes to garner NIL opportunities, as universities were not allowed to pay-for-play.

Until now, Ohio State has operated under two primary collectives: The Foundation, a nonprofit established in 2022 by former Buckeyes quarterback Cardale Jones and Brian Schottenstein to facilitate charitable partnerships; and The 1870 Society, a for-profit collective launched in 2023 to focus on football branding, content and monetization.

BSG represents a formal merger of these efforts. While both collectives will continue to function in advisory roles and maintain their donor bases, according to Ohio State’s official athletics website, BSG will now serve as the university’s NIL command center. 

“We’re incredibly thankful for everything our NIL collectives’ leadership, businesses and donors have done to support our student-athletes,” Ross Bjork, Ohio State’s senior vice president and Wolfe Foundation–Eugene Smith Endowed Athletics Director, said in a statement. “Their commitment has helped shape the landscape in powerful ways. As we move forward with a more unified approach, we’re excited to combine efforts and further strengthen the NIL success of our student-athletes.”

Bjork will hold a press conference today to discuss the settlement and its implications on Ohio State athletics. 

Learfield Impact, the athletics department’s partner, is an industry leader in collegiate sports marketing, according to its website. It will provide a suite of services to Ohio State through BSG, including the Compass platform, which streamlines NIL operations and ensures compliance. Learfield will also embed a full-time NIL team on campus to give athletes hands-on guidance through branding, contracts, and deal navigation, while opening doors to Learfield’s expansive network of brand partners and media studios to grow athlete visibility and value.

“As we enter a new era for college athletics, we’re excited to build on our past successes and create even more meaningful NIL opportunities for Ohio State student-athletes,” Vice President & General Manager of Learfield’s Ohio State Sports Properties Todd Knisley said in a press release. “With the strength of Buckeye Nation behind us, we’re able to unlock incremental opportunities for partnerships on a local, regional, and national scale.

Ohio State has been leading the charge in maximizing opportunities in the NIL space. Since the start of NIL in 2021, athletes from all 36 teams have inked more than 500 brand partnerships, with Buckeyes Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs both currently ranking in the top 15 of football NIL valuation, according to On3 Sports.