As there is with college sports, there is an ever-changing landscape in all sports. College basketball is looking to expand the NCAA Tournament, a bad idea, but they are making some rule changes that will help with the pace of play in the sport.

The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel approved rule changes to help the flow of college basketball games, and they are giving coaches some power. The biggest eye-opening rule change is a coach’s challenge, which can be used at any point throughout the game so long as the challenging team still has a timeout remaining. In all honesty, this is something that the sport has been needing for a while, and it’s good to see it finally inserted into the game. The rule will be like the rule in the NBA in terms of winning the challenge.

“If the instant replay review challenge is successful, teams will be allowed to have one additional video review challenge for the rest of the game, including overtime.”

“If the first video review challenge is unsuccessful, the team loses the ability to challenge the rest of the game.”

College basketball needed coaches challenges

Coaches can challenge out-of-bounds calls, basket interference, and whether a secondary defender was in the restricted area of the arc, which is always a difficult call in the pace of play. This is something that has been needed in college basketball, and following the NBA script is the way for them to go. It will be interesting to see how teams go about using this challenge, will some use it early, or will they save it for later in the game?

Virginia Tech coach Mike Young will be like other coaches and rely on his assistant coaches to help decide whether or not to challenge a call. This is something that should stick around even after the coaches’ feedback after next season. This is a solid move for the sport.

A football player who just finished eighth grade already rakes in name, image and likeness money and has an agent to help him navigate the sponsorship deals at just 14 years old.

Kaden Coleman Bennett has had a knack for finding the end zone on the football field since he first discovered the sport, and he says he’s just getting started.

“I found something that I love; I found something that I wanted to do,” he said. “And you know, since then I’ve always been playing football since I was 4.”

His athletic abilities as a running back have already earned him verbal college offers from Syracuse and Virginia Tech. He also was invited to Bill Belichick’s football camp at the University of North Carolina.

“It is kind of crazy but it’s not hard to see because of, you know, my work ethic and the work that I’ve been put in throughout the years of me with football and school,” said Kaden, who committed to DeMatha Catholic High School.

A strong village helps ensure he keeps up with his practice schedule, potential business deals and his 3.5 GPA, Kaden said. He gives his mother, Brittany Coleman, a lot of credit.

“I’m super proud of him,” she said. “He’s faced a lot of adversity, through youth sports and just different things and people coming at him and stuff like that.”

His dad and stepfather also keep him grounded.

“As a young boy, we always taught him — me and mom — always taught him how to be ready for this moment with these NIL deals,” said his father, Bernard Bennett.

“It is our responsibility to set him up and put him in the position to accomplish the goals that he wants to accomplish,” said his stepdad and trainer, Quinton Brown.

With interest from multiple sponsors and potential NIL deals already knocking on his door, Kaden says having a solid infrastructure is imperative. That’s a key reason he already signed with a sports agent, Terrence Jackson, who is helping facilitate Kaden’s first NIL deals.

“There’s a reason why I’m here, and it’s really just to be … a place of peace. Someone that knows the ins and outs,” Jackson said.

Kaden’s focus is on getting better in order to get to the next level academically, athletically and professionally.

“Eat, sleep, grind and dedication,” he said. “I just keep those four in my pocket every time.”

Kaden aspires to become a biological engineer once he finishes his football career.

It’s about goddamn time. I’ve said it before, it’s not NIL or transfer portal ruining the sport. It’s the fact that the last 2 minutes of a game takes about 45 minutes of real time because the refs go to the monitor for every single play, there are timeouts, then throw in the fouls and free throw shooting contests and it sucks. The sport is supposed to be free-flowing. It’s supposed to be get the ball and go, not the ball going out of bounds and everyone waiting 5 minutes as three refs huddle up to look at the monitor. Is it going to fix the sport completely? No, of course not. We’re not dumb here. But this is the massive step in the right direction. It got to the point refs wouldn’t even make a call at the end of the game knowing they can go to the monitor.

Now it’s basically the NBA rule and frankly it makes sense. It never made sense to check who the ball went off of in the last 2 minutes of the game. Points aren’t worth more, 2 points is worth the same on the first possession of the game as the last. What I can’t wait for is to see what coach fucks this up. I do think we need to add something for them to throw. I want to see a disgusted Mick Cronin reaching into his suit pocket and throwing a flag of some sort at a ref. 

It’s even more than this too. We had a nut shot problem this year. Accidental nut shots led to immediate ejections. That’s not the case anymore 

Also get ready for continuation 

Don’t have a problem with this. I do know that refs will be even more confused at the start of the year, but it makes sense to have it. If you pick up your dribble it shouldn’t be on the floor. It’s the absurd continuation that should not happen. All I know is the sport is finally taking a step in the smart direction. Replays and reviews are ruining sports, not just this one. We need less of it. We went years, decades even, without having reviews. It ruins the ending of the sport and that should at least be fixed now. 

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Where Lady Vols basketball targets sit in updated class of 2026 rankings

No. 2 – Kate Harping

No. 5 – Oliviyah Edwards

No. 8 – Brihanna Crittendon

No. 11 – Addison Bjorn

No. 12 – Jacy Abii

No. 13 – Trinity Jones

No. 14 – Bella Flemmings

No. 41 – Leelee Bell

No. 49 – Natalya Hodge

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — The House v. NCAA settlement is paving the way for athletes to maximize their brands on and off the field by allowing schools to pay them directly starting July 1.

“It’s the largest, most significant change in college sports business that we’ve ever seen,” said Luke Fedlam, a corporate attorney and sports law advisor with Amundsen Davis Law Firm.

The multi-billion-dollar settlement includes the NCAA paying nearly $2.8 billion in back pay to former athletes who played in 2016 through present day and giving schools the ability to pay current athletes a limited amount. The annual cap is expected to start at $2.5 million per school with yearly increases. The deal currently lasts for 10 years. Schools can also get directly involved with NIL deals with student athletes.

“One of the things I think is important about this ruling is that it does bring some certainty and a level of certainty to the college sports industry that has really been in a tumultuous kind of time, the wild, wild, West period. This finally brings at least some level of understanding that we’re all moving in the same direction,” said Fedlam.

The NIL expert said the “most significant” sticking point in the judge’s analysis of approving the settlement was roster management. Roster limits go into effect, trimming scholarships for football down to 105 with no walk-on spots. However, student-athletes recruited in the 2025-2026 academic year who lost an opportunity because of roster limits or current athletes facing the same challenge will be viewed as “Designated Student Athletes.”

“Throughout their period of eligibility, they will be able to always be on a roster without affecting the number or the limitation on those roster limits,” said Fedlam.

With the settlement comes the launch of the College Sports Commission, an independent third party, created to enforce NIL rules and regulations. The Commission will oversee Deloitte’s “NIL Go,” a platform used to assess fair market value regarding NIL deals over $600 and monitor whether the deals should be challenged.

The settlement is with the Power Five schools; however, Fedlam noted that other schools can opt into the revenue-sharing model.

“Everything that I’ve heard over the last really 72 hours or so has really been, people are excited that it actually is finally approved,” said Fedlam.

The settlement aims to streamline how NIL is handled. In response, Ohio State launched a unified NIL management team called the “Buckeye Sports Group.” Athletes are not considered employees of the school.

“That is something that was not dealt with in this settlement and something that is going through the court process now, but student athletes are currently not employees,” said Fedlam.

While the landmark settlement sparks a new era in college sports, Fedlam believes Congressional action will be taken in the near future.