I assumed that UVA Basketball would get a decent payday out of its appearance in the 2025 Greenbrier Tip-Off, which was announced this week.

Turns out, not.

Not even close.

I know because, of course, I FOIA’d the University of Virginia to get a copy of the contract.

The FOIA folks over there are onto me now. They’re charging me $9.20 for “Collection and/or Ingestion” and “Review.”

Guess they’re trying to get me to limit the number of FOIA requests I’m making by making me pay $9.20 for somebody to push a couple of buttons.

Cost of doing business to me.

I’ll get more than $9.20 of value out of this one.

ICYMI

The contract, between the University of Virginia and Intersport LLC, executed on March 14, gives UVA Athletics

• a signing bonus of $10,000 in “resort credits”
• a $133,375 travel stipend “for use on reasonable and traditional travel measures within the discretion of the Institution”
• 20 hotel rooms for three nights – to include “room and tax only and exclude any incidental charges”
• “the cost of breakfast, lunch, and dinner for up to thirty people at the Greenbrier Resort during Institution’s stay at the resort for Event.”

That’s it, as to what UVA gets for playing games at The Greenbrier on Nov. 21 and Nov. 23.

Left out of the press announcement is that there’s a third game, to be played at JPJ, on Nov. 17, “against an opponent determined by Intersport.”

And then there’s this line:

“Institution agrees to pay to Intersport thirty (30) days prior to the first game of the Tournament a fee of Ninety Thousand US Dollars ($90,000.00) (the ‘Tournament Fee’) for the game played at the Home Facility.”

I’d be curious to know if this is just a pass-through from Intersport to the school that will be the opponent for Nov. 17, or if UVA will also have to give another payout to the opponent.

Guess I’ll find out later, when we get word on who the opponent is, and I drop another $9.20 on a FOIA request.

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – After Tarleton State took care of business on Thursday morning shutting out California Baptist 5-0, the Texans now have a date with the No. 24 Lopes of Grand Canyon Friday afternoon where the winner between the top-two seeds moves straight into the Championship Saturday afternoon.
 
The Purple and White are 2-1 vs. the squad from Phoenix this season after handing the Lopes their first home series loss since 2022 and first conference loss since 2023. Tarleton State also shutout GCU for just the second time this season as they did so in Game 1 of the series back in late March. The Texans are the only WAC program to not only hand the Lopes a loss but handed them two marking their only drops in the WAC. The Purple and White also account for a third of the rivals Purple and White’s total losses as Grand Canyon sits at 44-6 on the season overall.
 
“I feel like we are a good matchup for Grand Canyon,” said head coach Mark Cumpian. “If we go in and take care of business early, we can put ourselves exactly where we want to be. This team really wants it and I think we have all the pieces to get the job done.”
 
In the last 27 games the Texans have outscored their opponents 138-65 averaging over five- runs per game. Across the 27 matchups, Tarleton State has scored five or more runs 13 different times.
 
Germain and Hill have been a constant power throughout this season both ranking nationally in multiple categories. Germain is currently second in doubles in the nation with 22 on the season putting her just two away from tying the programs single season record and three away from setting the new mark to beat. With her 22 doubles through 50 games, she is tied for first in doubles per game in the nation and leads the WAC. With all the offensive power from Germain, she is the sixth toughest to strike out in the nation as she strikes out just once every 53 plate appearances. Germain sits 28th in the nation in batting average hitting .440 and sits No. 2 in the WAC. She is also 34th in hits with 70 and ranks second among the WAC.
 
The senior third baseman through 50 games leads the team in eight different categories including batting average (.440), OPS (1.226), runs (44), hits (70), doubles (22), total bases (115), slugging % (.723) and on-base % (.503).
 
Hill who has caught 18 base runners stealing which puts her eighth in the nation and leads all of the WAC. She also sits fifth in the WAC in batting average hitting .390. Hill sits in the No. 3 spot in the WAC in hits with 64 thus far.
 
The senior catcher through 54 games leads the team in RBI’s with 38 and games started with 54 while she ranks second-best in batting average (.390), OPS (1.073), at-bats (164), hits (64), total bases (99), slugging % (.604) and walks (26).
 
Shelby Schultz has been a hitter’s worse nightmare all season as she helped guide Tarleton State to their best Division I regular season record of 34-20. Shelby Schultz heads into postseason play with a record of 15-4, the second most wins in the conference. In the nation as of May, 6, she ranks 12th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.06), 25th in strikeouts per seven innings (8.6) and 27th in total strikeouts (162). Shelby Schultz leads the WAC in all three of those categories as well. The left-hander is also tied for first in the WAC in saves with three with fellow Texan and teammate Alexa Rehmeier.
 
Through 31 appearances and 20 starts for the freshman ace, Shelby Schultz has struck out a team and WAC leading 162 batters while tossing seven complete games. She has taken control of the circle for 131.1 IP while earning three saves and tossing a individual and combine shutout for two on the season. The Temple, Texas, native, is the first freshman rock slinger in program history since 2017 to strikeout 100 would be hitters and became the first freshman in program history to strikeout 150 in a single season. She ranks seventh so far in single season strikeout total in program history with more games left to go.
 
First pitch on Friday afternoon is set for 1 p.m. PT/3 p.m. CT. The series will air live on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available. Fans can also tune in to Tarletonsports.com/listenlive to hear the home call and all the action live from Kyle Crews. Tickets for those of Texan Nation looking to support the Purple and White are also available.
 
For the latest news on the Texans, follow Tarleton Softball on Facebook, Instagram and X @tarletonsoftball.
 

After conversations with retired coaches Nick Saban of Alabama and U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville, formerly of Cincinnati, President Donald Trump has issued an executive order that could shake up college athletics.

The order stems from Saban and Tuberville’s complaints about what they view as disorganization in college football and a lack of regulation, particularly around athlete compensation. Both pushed for reform and suggested that the President intervene.

That suggestion appears to have landed.

President Trump’s Executive Order on College Athlete Pay Faces Pushback

Trump’s executive order targets name, image, and likeness (NIL) compensation, proposing restrictions on how college athletes can make money through endorsements, sponsorships, and outside business ventures. The sweeping order would also impose limitations on athletes, schools, conferences, and even the NCAA.

Legal experts say the order will likely face serious challenges in court, as it conflicts with federal and state laws recognizing college athletes as employees with rights to market themselves. Several states have passed NIL laws protecting those rights — laws that the federal government would now be overriding.

There’s also the NCAA’s own NIL policy, which allows athletes to benefit from commercial opportunities without pay-for-play deals from schools. While the policy was intended to promote personal brand growth, its lines have blurred amid rising commercialization.

Critics argue the executive order infringes on the Equal Protection Clause by treating student-athletes differently from other students. It may also violate First Amendment rights by limiting their ability to profit from their image or voice.

Observers warn the order could do more harm than good, potentially impacting coaching salaries and university revenues while stripping athletes of freedoms they’ve only recently gained.

Some see the move as politically motivated, an effort by former coaches frustrated by the financial boom in college sports that happened after their exits. Rather than embracing the modern college sports landscape, the order clings to a dated system that many believe no longer works.

College Sports Network has you covered with the latest news, analysis, insights, and trending stories in college football, men’s college basketball, women’s college basketball, and college baseball!

Charles Barkley isn’t about NIL.

He is so much against name, image and likeness, the “Inside the NBA” analyst said he wouldn’t give money to his college team, the Auburn Tigers. And he would do anything for his favorite team.

“Hey, I love Auburn, I do,” Barkley said during an appearance on “Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich” on OutKick.com.

“I’d do anything for Auburn, within reason. But I’m not gonna give Auburn millions of dollars, so we can be good in football or basketball. That doesn’t help my life in any capacity. And let me tell you something, black and broke does not work in any states. Guam, District of Columbia, all 50 states. I never want to be poor and black. That does not work.”

That’s quite a statement from a man who continues to give in other areas.

“I just gave $10 million dollars to HBCU’s, that stuff is way more important to me,” Barkley said. “I just gave a couple of million dollars to ‘Blight‘, in my hometown of Birmingham, to tear down old houses and rebuild houses. That stuff is way more important to me than joining the cesspool that is college athletics. We’re such a sh–ty country, Dan. We’ve ruined college athletics, and I don’t wanna even get in that cesspool.

“This notion that you have to come up with tens of millions of dollars to pay kids to play basketball, and have them be free agents every year and transfer to another school and get more money every year. Like, we don’t even get to do that in the NBA. Can you imagine if players in the NBA got to be a free agent every year?

“I’m not opposed to players getting paid. I want to make that clear. But, this notion we got to give college kids tens of millions of dollars a year, and basketball is the worst because you’re only gonna get a great player for six months. I don’t even see how you’re gonna get the return on investment.”

Barkley also said the NCAA is a “bunch of fools and idiots.”

Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.