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President Trump intends to sign an executive order in the coming days establishing national standards for the NCAA’s Name, Image and Likeness program, which has reaped millions of dollars in revenue for top college athletes, according to multiple people familiar with his plans.

College athletes can now make millions before ever going pro thanks to a set of NCAA rules enacted in 2021 that relaxed previous restrictions on being compensated for playing or accepting endorsement deals. Student athletes can now profit from merely showing up to play, or from jersey sales, autographs or serving as spokespeople for companies ranging from global brands to car dealerships near campus.

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Mr. Trump is engaging on an issue that has quickly reshaped and, in many ways, roiled college athletics after a House subcommittee on Tuesday advanced a bill along party lines that would establish national standards for sponsorships. The legislation, called the “SCORE Act,” would supersede a patchwork of state laws regulating Name, Image and Likeness, or NIL.

While the bill has bipartisan support, there is also bipartisan concern it would give too much power to the NCAA and do little to protect the interests of college athletes.

The NCAA’s decision in 2021 to let athletes earn money from NIL deals followed years of political and legal pressure on the collegiate sports giant. For decades, the NCAA imposed steep limits on compensation for student athletes, which it argued were necessary to insulate college athletics from commercial pressures. But opponents — including many college athletes — had long argued the rules unfairly cut them out of the millions in revenue that sports like football and basketball can bring in for universities.

Last month, in a massive shakeup, a federal judge signed off on a legal settlement in which the NCAA agreed to let schools pay student athletes directly.

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Trump has regularly engaged with professional and college sports of all sorts since and even before retaking office. Whether attending the storied Army-Navy football game last December or stealing the spotlight at last Sunday’s Club World Cup championship, the future of sports is a frequent presidential concern.

The White House didn’t immediately return requests for comment late Tuesday.

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MACON, GA — The SIAC, a Division II HBCU football conference, is feeling the ripple effects of the NCAA transfer portal, NIL, and House settlement decisions. During the league’s annual football media day, it seemed like everyone was talking about it.

As Commissioner Dr. Anthony Holloman noted, the realities of modern college football have officially reached the SIAC’s front door.

“The House Settlement. The transfer portal. NIL payments. And you might say, what does that have to do with Division Two?” Holloman asked. “The reality of it is a trickle down effect. We’re not immune. We lost players to Division I programs like Purdue University, Duke University, North Carolina A&T, Alabama A&M just to name a few.”

Now more than ever, roster management is one of the most critical responsibilities for SIAC coaches.

A New Era at Miles College

That kind of talent loss is something Miles College head coach Chris Goode knows all too well. After taking over the defending SIAC champions this offseason, he inherited a roster nearly unrecognizable from the one that won the title. Many players followed former head coach Sam Shade to Alabama A&M, while others transferred elsewhere.

“It’s a brand new team,” Goode said. “We had a lot of guys that were seniors that left, got a lot of guys that went in the transfer portal. But one of the things I always tell the players—I’m not going to complain about it—because the thing is, we still got to go on the field and play to compete.”

Goode is relying on a veteran coaching staff with championship experience. But even with that support, managing constant roster turnover has become the new normal.

Tuskegee Faces Rebuild Year After Year

Tuskegee head coach Aaron James echoed that sentiment, saying rebuilding a team now feels like starting from scratch each season.

“It’s a different team every year,” James said. “Because like I said, the transfer portal going on, you not able to rebuild—you actually build your team. It’s a rebuilding roster every year.”

Even with Tuskegee’s rich football tradition, James said that doesn’t stop players from seeking bigger stages.

“Every year, they’re looking for that ladder,” he said. “Other schools, they’re looking at us like we the JuCo of the leagues now. If we have an All-American, all-conference guy, those guys are going to be going up.”

Roster Management Becomes Year-Round Priority

The challenge of roster management at an HBCU isn’t just about replacing players. It also requires building relationships and recruiting current team members to stay.

Allen University head coach Cedric Pearl put it plainly:

“The number one thing in today’s game is to recruit your own roster. Roster management is important.”

The veteran HBCU coach stressed the importance of maintaining strong internal relationships.

“Now it’s kind of a dual recruiting relationship where you have to continue to constantly recruit those guys on the inside,” Pearl said. “Even though we’re coaching them every day, staying engaged with them.”

But Pearl also acknowledged that some transfers are about more than football.

“We understand the power of the dollar,” he said. “Power of the dollar, for a lot of young men, changes lives, changes family situations.”

“Anybody that gives an opportunity to go to another university and better themselves and make a little money at the same time—we’re all for that,” he added. “That’s just today’s game and where it’s going. So you either get on board, or you get ran over.”

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Three years have now passed with three straight finishes outside of the NCAA Tournament for Virginia Tech. The Hokies are coming off their worst season since head coach Mike Young took over in 2019. This team was pretty rough during a really down season for the ACC, though there’s hope that Young can get them back to the Big Dance for the first time since 2022’s ACC Tournament title.

The first good news is the return of leading scorer Toibu Lawal, a rising senior forward from England who was the only double-digit scorer for the Hokies. Lawal was also the top rebounder and a major piece to build around this season, though there’s a lot of new faces around him. Underclassmen like Jaden Schutt and Tyler Johnson return for bigger roles, but the Hokies will miss starters like Mylyjael Poteat and Jaydon Young.

A slew of freshmen talent enters the fold, including a pair of 4-star frontcourt players, but we’re looking more closely at the transfer portal haul. Young and his staff lost half a dozen names into the mix but aren’t leaning as heavily on new veteran talent. Former UNLV guard Jailen Bedford is the backcourt’s newest veteran while Izaiah Pasha comes to town after success with Delaware, though the third and final name will attract more attention.

Amani Hansberry is a 6-8 forward from Baltimore who was a Top 75 prospect back in the Class of 2023. He began his collegiate career at Illinois but saw mostly backup minutes as a freshman before transferring to West Virginia. Hansberry established himself in a more significant role with the Mountaineers, averaging 9.8 points and 6.5 rebounds last season, with decent efficiency especially on defense.

He wasn’t a notable prospect for no reason and the Hokies are hoping that he can take another big step forward now as an upperclassman. Hansberry pairs nicely with Lawal and could form one of the most viable frontcourt duos in the ACC. With the slew of new bodies in the backcourt, it’s even more important for Hansberry to take that measured step forward, becoming a reliable scorer, rebounder, and defender in the paint.

You could certainly argue that Bedford will be more important with all the moving pieces at guard, but Hansberry is the one new athlete who can elevate Virginia Tech back to where they want to be. Not many people are heading into this season and expecting the Hokies near the top of the league standings. Could Hansberry and the rest of this new talent surprise folks around the country? If so, they’ll need him playing like a Top 75 athlete.