By: Justin Lafleur

HANOVER, N.H. – Jenna Martin and Áine Ley of the Dartmouth women’s rowing team were recognized for their sensational seasons by being named CRCA honorable mention All-Americans. Martin and Ley were key members of the varsity eight that made history this season, with Ley garnering first team All-Ivy, with Martin receiving second-team recognition.
 
A fifth-year senior, Martin was in the two seat of the varsity eight at the Ivy League Championship. At Ivies, the Big Green varsity finished fourth, their best finish since 2014, and just 1.3 seconds out of a medal. In the heat, the Big Green beat Brown in an impressive performance, a crew that went on to make the grand final of the NCAA Championship. Martin and the varsity eight went on to finish fourth in the C final at NCAAs, marking Dartmouth’s first NCAA Championship appearance since 2011. The Big Green were fourth in their initial heat, but less than two seconds behind California in third and a spot into the A/B semifinals.
 
While also a member of the varsity eight, Ley was named to the United States Under 23 National Team last summer after impressing during camp that was held at the Friends of Dartmouth Boathouse. She was in the Big Green varsity’s stroke seat for much of the 2025 season and in the four seat during Ivies and NCAAs. The varsity eight also finished second overall amongst a strong field of teams at the Sarasota 2K to kick off the spring while the following weekend, beat eventual CAA Champion Northeastern, eventual Patriot League champion Boston University and MIT. The Big Green were perfect in racing at the Lake Morey Regatta while coming in fourth overall in a stacked field of teams at Women’s Eastern Sprints.
 
The Big Green enjoyed a historic 2025 season in finishing fourth in both the varsity eight, and in total team points at the Ivy League Championship, earning an at-large berth to the NCAA Championship. Dartmouth went on to place 16th at NCAAs.
 

In their first extensive comments since Judge Claudia Wilken approved the House v. NCAA settlement last week, the commissioners of the five listed defendants — the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC — expressed hope that the new revenue-sharing world it created will bring stability to what has been a tremendous period of upheaval within college athletics.

“There’s no question for any of us, the five of us, we’re in a much better place than we were 48 hours ago and certainly over the last several years,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said. 

Even within the hope and belief they all shared in what the House settlement means for college athletes came an acknowledgement there is still plenty of work left to be done. There are still plenty of big questions looming over college sports, including the legality of revenue sharing and NIL from Title IX and enforcement perspectives. 

Five hot takes from landmark House v. NCAA settlement: Parity boom ahead as big dogs may start to go hungry

Brad Crawford

Below are key takeaways from what the commissioners had to say on the past, present and future of college athletics as it prepares to take a monumental step forward beginning July 1 when universities can begin directly paying their athletes. 

Affiliation agreements not done yet

One of the more interesting aspects coming out of the House settlement is the Power Four conferences demanding their members sign affiliation agreements which will, in part, prevent them from suing the College Sports Commission (CSC) over NIL-related enforcement. 

The penalties of refusing are steep, ranging from fines and suspension to even expulsion, as CBS Sports previously reported. 

At the recent conference-level spring meetings, it has been a popular topic as the Power Four commissioners make sure that all of their constituents are on board. Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said Monday the affiliation agreements were still “a work in progress,” but he didn’t expect there to be any issues adopting them once they are. 

“No pushback,” Yormark said of his membership. “Effectively, it codifies the rules of settlement which they’ve signed up for. I look to get that executed here in short order, and I know across the board is going to be very necessary for all the conferences to execute as well.”

No sport-specific salary caps

All of the listed defendants in the House settlement — ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC — are leaving it up to the individual schools to determine how to spend that $20.5 million number. 

Many of the schools will follow a familiar formula: approximately 75% to football, 15% to men’s basketball, 5% to women’s basketball and 5% to the other sports. There is no requisite to spend in that fashion, however, and different schools may prioritize some sports over others.

That doesn’t mean sport-specific caps haven’t been discussed. At the SEC spring meetings in late May, there was a robust discussion around creating caps for the revenue sports for competitive balance reasons that ultimately wasn’t formalized. It was just yet another example that for as similar as many of the SEC schools are, the conference doesn’t operate as a monolith. 

“We took a deep look as a league in February and put that on hold,” Sankey said, “so (we) do not have a conference-level directive on percent allocations by sport.”

There is frustration amongst some SEC and Big Ten leaders about the Big East and other conferences able to wildly outspend in basketball, but to this point, it is up to each individual school to decide on what makes the most sense. Don’t be surprised to see it continue to come up as a discussion at the conference and national levels, though, even if multiple ADs CBS Sports has talked to expressed some doubt there could be sport-specific caps enforced. 

Why a MLB executive will run enforcement arm

Shortly after the Friday night news that Judge Wilken had approved the settlement, the College Sports Commission announced its new CEO — Bryan Seeley, a Major League Baseball executive who specialized in investigations. Seeley, the MLB’s executive vice president of legal and operations, investigated the sign-stealing scandal involving the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox, among other accomplishments during a decade-plus with MLB. 

Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti, who overlapped with Seeley but didn’t work closely with him while serving as MLB’s chief operating officer, raved about the person who has the arduous task of enforcing what has been an unregulated NIL industry the last four years.

“He clearly was a well-regarded, thoughtful executive,” Petitti said. “The times we did interact you saw that in the patience to make good decisions, to gather information. His experience is really unique. To have league experience was a big part of this, at least from the perspective of the Big Ten, to have somebody who worked in a league. The reason why I feel strongly about that is part of what we do is manage a lot of constituents, and in Brian’s role, you’re dealing with 30 clubs in very competitive areas that he’s involved in making decisions. That’s very similar to what he’ll have to do in this role.”

Said the Big 12’s Yormark: “It was unanimous amongst the commissioners that he was the right person at the right time for this role.”

Sankey meets with Trump

Sankey confirmed the Yahoo Sports report that he golfed Sunday with President Donald Trump at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey. Notre Dame athletics director Pete Bevacqua was also in attendance. 

The SEC commissioner was mum on specifics about his conversation with Trump but did say, “It was helpful for me and Pete to hear his thoughts and his perspective and share some of ours.” He said he “always appreciated” the president’s interest in college sports which has included attendance at a number of events including Alabama-Georgia and Army-Navy last year. 

What’s interesting is the timing of the golf outing, especially after the pausing of a proposed presidential commission on college sports last month that was expected to include former Alabama coach Nick Saban and Cody Campbell, the chairman of Texas Tech’s board of regents. As CBS Sports previously reported, the SEC and Big Ten both had considerable concerns around what Campbell’s goals for the commission might be and distanced themselves from it.

The SEC may not have been on board with a presidential commission, but Sankey and other college sports leaders believe Trump can be a powerful ally in achieving federal solutions. 

Leaders still want Congressional help

Related to Sankey’s time with Trump, the Power Four commissioners reiterated their need for Congressional help to codify the House settlement and alleviate issues that college sports can’t fix on its own. Chief among them is the current patchwork approach that allows for each state to pass laws that may give it an advantage over others. In many ways, it has been a race to the bottom, ranging from allowing athletes to not have to pay state income taxes on NIL earnings to laws that circumvent NCAA and conference rules. 

“We’re not going to have Final Fours and College Football Playoff and College World Series with 50 different standards,” Sankey said. “That’s the starting point.”

From the jump, there has been skepticism that Congress would ever coalesce around passing federal legislation that gives college athletics the antitrust protections it desperately desires. And despite millions of dollars spent on lobbying Capitol Hill, that skepticism has proven prescient so far. 

But Petitti said he thinks the House settlement is proof college athletics is willing — and able — to change, and that has resonated with Congressional leaders. He may have a point as The Washington Post reported Monday there is draft legislation that would seem to give them what they want, including a preemption of state laws and a prohibition of athletes being classified as employees. 

Fisher arrives in St. Charles, Mo. after spending 13 seasons on the staff at Penn State, including the last seven as the associate head coach of the Nittany Lions. Overall, Fisher has over 25 years of coaching experience between collegiate and junior hockey.

During his time at Penn State, Fisher guided the Nittany Lions to four NCAA Tournament berths (2017, 2018, 2023 and 2025) and a pair of Big Ten Championships (2017 & 2020). This past season, Fisher helped lead Penn State to its first ever Frozen Four riding the momentum of a second-half surge that saw the Nittany Lions go 13-4-4 down the stretch to earn the final at-large bid into the 2025 NCAA Tournament.

Fisher was named the 2020 Terry Flannagan Award winner, honoring the nation’s top assistant and their career body of work. In total, Fisher has coached three Big Ten Player of the Year winners with two coming on the defensive side, 12 All-Conference performers, a pair of All-Americans, and three NHL players while at Penn State.

Fisher spent 2005-11 on the staff at Princeton. With the Tigers, he helped lead the team to a pair of NCAA tournament berths (2008, 2009) and the 2008 ECAC and Ivy League Championships. The 2009 Princeton Tigers also set the school record for wins in a season with 22, a record which still stands to this day.

The Minnesota native headed up the Princeton recruiting efforts which saw three All-Americans, two Hobey Baker Award finalists, two ECAC Player of the Year recipients (the only two in the history of the program), one ECAC Rookie of the Year, one ECAC Defenseman of the Year and one ECAC Goaltender of the year.

Fisher’s teams also combined for 48 Academic All-ECAC players, five NHL players, four first-team All-ECAC players and three first-team All-Ivy players.

Fisher spent five years with the USHL’s Omaha Lancers’ coaching staff, helping the team to the Clark Cup championship in 2001. His team also was crowned the Anderson Cup regular-season champions in both 2002 and 2005.

In Omaha, he served as the team’s recruiting coordinator and academic advisor, in addition to other responsibilities of on-ice coaching, video breakdown and game analysis.

NHL first-round draft picks Keith Ballard and Nick Petrecki, 11 NHL players, including Matt Carle and Paul Stastny, and USHL Goaltender of the Year and USA Hockey Junior Player of the Year Jeff Lerg came through Omaha during Fisher’s time there. He also helped develop 54 NCAA Division I scholarship players and 12 NHL draft picks and served as associate coach for Team USHL at the USHL Prospects/All-Star game during his final season.

Fisher began his career at St. Cloud State University, serving as an undergraduate assistant coach for two seasons. During his two seasons with the Huskies, Fisher helped develop five players for the NHL. The 2000 season saw St. Cloud State advance to just their second NCAA Tournament in program history.

A graduate of St. Cloud State University, Fisher has a bachelor’s degree in communications. Prior to coaching, Fisher played two seasons at Hibbing Community College and participated in the NJCAA National Tournament.

 

ST. CHARLES, MO. — On Monday, Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics Jason Coomer announced the hiring of Keith Fisher as the next head coach of the Lindenwood men’s ice hockey program.

“Thank you to Dr. Porter and Mr. Coomer for the opportunity to lead the Lindenwood hockey program,” said Fisher. “It is an exciting time to be a Lion, and I look forward to building the program into a national contender.  I can’t wait to get started!”

Fisher arrives in St. Charles, Mo. after spending 13 seasons on the staff at Penn State, including the last seven as the associate head coach of the Nittany Lions. Overall, Fisher has over 25 years of coaching experience between collegiate and junior hockey.

“From the outset of our search, it was essential to find a leader who could elevate our program to the next level,” stated Coomer. “Coach Fisher has been immersed in winning cultures throughout his career and has consistently helped young men grow and compete at the highest levels of the game.”

During his time at Penn State, Fisher guided the Nittany Lions to four NCAA Tournament berths (2017, 2018, 2023 and 2025) and a pair of Big Ten Championships (2017 & 2020). This past season, Fisher helped lead Penn State to its first ever Frozen Four riding the momentum of a second-half surge that saw the Nittany Lions go 13-4-4 down the stretch to earn the final at-large bid into the 2025 NCAA Tournament.

“While Coach Fisher’s recent run to the Frozen Four speaks volumes, it’s his overall body of work that truly sets him apart,” Coomer continued. “He is widely respected across the college hockey landscape, and we couldn’t be more excited to have him behind the bench, guiding and developing our young men.”

Fisher was named the 2020 Terry Flannagan Award winner, honoring the nation’s top assistant and their career body of work. In total, Fisher has coached three Big Ten Player of the Year winners with two coming on the defensive side, 12 All-Conference performers, a pair of All-Americans, and three NHL players while at Penn State.

“Keith Fisher understands what it takes to build a successful culture on and off the ice,” said Wisconsin Head Coach Mike Hastings. “His work ethic and leadership skills provide a blueprint on how to accomplish your goals.”

Fisher spent 2005-11 on the staff at Princeton. With the Tigers, he helped lead the team to a pair of NCAA tournament berths (2008, 2009) and the 2008 ECAC and Ivy League Championships. The 2009 Princeton Tigers also set the school record for wins in a season with 22, a record which still stands to this day.

The Minnesota native headed up the Princeton recruiting efforts which saw three All-Americans, two Hobey Baker Award finalists, two ECAC Player of the Year recipients (the only two in the history of the program), one ECAC Rookie of the Year, one ECAC Defenseman of the Year and one ECAC Goaltender of the year.

Fisher’s teams also combined for 48 Academic All-ECAC players, five NHL players, four first-team All-ECAC players and three first-team All-Ivy players.

“Today Lindenwood hired an excellent coach and an even better person,” said Penn State Head Coach Guy Gadowsky. “Coach Fisher has been a great friend and a huge part of the success of the hockey programs at Penn State and Princeton.  Penn State Hockey, and me personally, will really miss Fish but we all look forward to seeing him build the Lindenwood hockey program with great integrity – just like him.”

Fisher spent five years with the USHL’s Omaha Lancers’ coaching staff, helping the team to the Clark Cup championship in 2001. His team also was crowned the Anderson Cup regular-season champions in both 2002 and 2005.

In Omaha, he served as the team’s recruiting coordinator and academic advisor, in addition to other responsibilities of on-ice coaching, video breakdown and game analysis.

NHL first-round draft picks Keith Ballard and Nick Petrecki, 11 NHL players, including Matt Carle and Paul Stastny, and USHL Goaltender of the Year and USA Hockey Junior Player of the Year Jeff Lerg came through Omaha during Fisher’s time there. He also helped develop 54 NCAA Division I scholarship players and 12 NHL draft picks and served as associate coach for Team USHL at the USHL Prospects/All-Star game during his final season.

Fisher began his career at St. Cloud State University, serving as an undergraduate assistant coach for two seasons. During his two seasons with the Huskies, Fisher helped develop five players for the NHL. The 2000 season saw St. Cloud State advance to just their second NCAA Tournament in program history.

“Coach Fisher’s character and integrity were recurring themes in every conversation we had during this process,” said Coomer. “It’s clear he’ll be deeply missed at Penn State, but we’re thrilled to welcome him as he builds a program that the St. Charles and St. Louis hockey communities can take great pride in.”

A graduate of St. Cloud State University, Fisher has a bachelor’s degree in communications. Prior to coaching, Fisher played two seasons at Hibbing Community College and participated in the NJCAA National Tournament.

 

The NCAA spent decades making sure student-athletes weren’t allowed to make a single penny off of their name, image, and likeness, but that changed in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling that ushered in the NIL Era in 2021. A lot of fans have had issues with the impact that pivot has had on the landscape of college sports, but there are more than a few sponsorship deals you have to respect based on how much of a no-brainer they were.

A lot of schools have harnessed NIL deals and the collectives that hand them out to create an environment where players are essentially paid to play without having to do too much in return, but there are also plenty of companies and brands that have taken advantage of the chance to launch some wildly organic partnerships.

That includes a number of NIL sponsorships that stemmed from a unique name and some others where the two parties were just a match made in heaven—including…

Decoldest Crawford And An HVAC Company

Decoldest Crawford’s name got some attention when he was making a name for himself as a high school football player in Louisiana; he claimed his middle name was ToEvaDoIt (sadly, it’s actually “Juan) and got his first taste of viral fame before heading to college.

Crawford initially enrolled at Nebraska in 2022 and didn’t waste much time signing an NIL deal with SOS Heating & Cooling, an HVAC company based in Omaha that had him film a commercial to promote its air conditioning maintenance services.

He was injured before his freshman season got underway and transferred to Louisiana Tech. However, he only had two receptions in 2023, didn’t play in 2024, and transferred to Grambling State ahead of the 2025 campaign.

Ga’Quincy “Kool-Aid” McKinstry And Kool-Aid

The man born Ga-Quincy McKinstry earned his nickname immediately after he was born thanks to his grandmother, who noted he had a ” big Kool-Aid smile” as soon as he came out of the womb.

McKinstry ended up playing cornerback at Alabama for three years and signed an NIL deal with Kool-Aid ahead of his freshman season.

He declared for the NFL Draft in 2024 and has been a member of the Saints since they selected him in the second round with the 41st overall pick.

General Booty And An Underwear Brand

In 2002, Abram and Amy Booty welcomed a new son into the world before he received a birth certificate emblazoned with the name  General Maximus Axel Booty.

They initially planned on calling him Axel, but he insisted on going by “General” and subsequently attracted plenty of attention for some fairly obvious reasons after he transferred to Oklahoma in 2022 after a season at a junior college.

The following year, Booty signed an NIL deal with Rock ‘Em Socks, which specializes in that particular form of apparel but also sold some underwear with his name on the back.

Booty ended up transferring to Louisiana-Monroe, and while he entered the portal after the most recent season, it doesn’t appear he’s found a new home.

Dieunerst Collin And Popeyes

If you’ve spent enough time on the internet, you’ve likely come across the GIF of a young Dieunerst Collin giving side-eye to a camera after being mistaken for the Vine star Terio while inside a Popeyes restaurant.

Collin ended up playing high school football in New Jersey and made it pretty clear he wanted an NIL deal with Popeyes after enrolling at Lake Erie College in 2021—one he was able to land shortly after making the request.

He was on the roster at UT-Permian Basin in 2024 but didn’t end up taking a snap.

Purchase, Moore, Hamann, Bacon And The Iowa Pork Producers Association

In 2023, Iowa State’s football team boasted a quartet of players named Myles Purchse, Tyler Moore, Tommy Hamann, and Caleb Bacon.

The Iowa Pork Producers Association seized on a golden opportunity by giving all four of those players an NIL deal to encourage people to “Purchase More Ham And Bacon,” which the Sports Business Journal rightfully named the best one to come out of 2023.

The association also added Alec Cook and Zach Lovett to the equation in an attempt to further its message, and the deal was renewed in 2024.

Jake Retzlaff And A Kosher Food Company

BYU is the nation’s preeminent Mormon university, and while every student-athlete has to sign its honor code, there have been plenty of players who weren’t members of the Church of Latter-Day Saints.

That includes Jake Retzlaff, the Jewish quarterback who embraced his “BY-Jew” nickname after earning the starting job in 2023.

Last season, he attracted the interest of Manischewitz, a kosher food company based in Cincinnati that signed him to promote products including matzo and potato latke mix.

Bijan Robinson’s Mustard Brand

Bijan Robinson reaped the benefits of being a big name at Texas, as his list of NIL deals included partnerships with Lamborghini, C4 Energy, and Raising Cane’s.

However, none of them were more unique than the one that led to the creation of the running back’s very own condiment—Bijan Mustardson—in 2022 to take advantage of the fact that his first name rhymes with “Dijon.”

Mohamed Ibrahim And Gushers

Plenty of athletes rely on small snacks to stay fueled during a game, and former Minnesota running back Mohamed Ibrahim garnered some attention when he was spotted gobbling down some Gushers on the sideline.

That led to the fruit snack brand giving him an NIL deal and his very own custom pack with a flavor dubbed “Touchdown Splash.”

Jeremy Roach And Darianna Littlepage-Buggs Link Up With Raid

We have our first non-football players courtesy of Jeremy Roach and Darianna Littlepage-Buggs, who both play basketball at Baylor (although the former was still at Duke when the deal in question was signed).

In 2024, the pest control brand Raid became the latest brand to execute an incredibly organic NIL agreement, and Roach and Buggs were both tapped for pretty obvious reasons.

John Daly II and Hooters

John Daly has famously spent close to three decades posting up in the parking lot of the Hooters down the street from Augusta National during The Masters, and his son ended up reaping the benefits.

In 2022, John Daly II (who plays golf at Arkansas) got an NIL deal from the chain a few years before it filed for bankruptcy after it signed him to serve as an official ambassador.