USF rightly celebrated its accomplishment of finishing first among American Athletic Conference teams in the 2024–25 Learfield Directors’ Cup standings.

The Cup identifies the most successful collegiate athletics programs in the country based on NCAA postseason performance across all sports.

Note those last two words: “all sports.”

Now, think about the new financial reality that athletic departments across the country face. While they could they start directly pay their athletes on July 1, they basically face a $20.5 million salary cap.

NIL deals are subject to NCAA approval to ensure programs stay within the financial parameters.

During Michael Kelly’s time as USF’s Vice President for Athletics, one of his most significant accomplishments was providing the school’s 21 athletic teams the resources they needed to succeed.

We saw how that paid off in the 2024-25 athletic calendar.

The Bulls won American Athletic Conference championships in volleyball, women’s basketball, softball, and men’s indoor and outdoor track and field.

Going forward, though, whoever USF’s new athletic director turns out to be could find overall excellence like that challenging to achieve.

USF has about 500 student-athletes. Nearly one-fifth of those are football players. How will all that be divided?

Will each head coach receive a set amount of money that he or she can divide among their players?

The Bulls have an outstanding track and field program, but can USF afford to allocate the necessary funds to remain nationally competitive in the salary cap world if that possibly costs them a four-star football player?

Do sports like golf and tennis become collateral damage?

Will top athletes in all sports be strictly interested in a cash grab from the highest bidder, or will relationships with their coaches and teammates matter more?

Looking strictly at the rulebook, USF is equal to Power 4 programs in the amount of money the Bulls can spend. But even though the NCAA vows to enforce the rules, there are possibilities for abuse.

Does a major booster offer Daddy or Mommy a high-paying new work-at-home job as a back-channel way around the cap?

If they did, how would we know?

Another “what if” possibility: The power conferences tell the NCAA to take a flying leap and form their alliance, spending whatever they want to spend. Does the NCAA, essentially toothless now, still believe it can tell the SEC and Big Ten what to do?

I have said before and will repeat here: For decades, the NCAA had a monopoly on college athletics. Top executives earned handsome salaries primarily from the labor of 18- to 22-year-olds, who were locked into the sham of amateurism.

When the winds of change began to blow and antitrust action loomed, the NCAA fought it tooth and nail to avoid losing its indentured labor source..

Yes, those players received college educations – that’s a significant benefit. But even then, athletes in the so-called “minor sports” – translation, those sports don’t generate revenue – usually received a pittance, if that much.

I’m for all of the athletes receiving what they can.

However, I would also recommend that the person chosen to succeed Michael Kelly stock up on remedies for the headaches that are sure to come.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — Anna Willis, a 2024 graduate of The Classical Academy, has completed an exceptional freshman year of pole vaulting for the University of South Dakota.

The class-3A record holder finished fourth place at the NCAA Division One Track and Field Championships and won the USA Track and Field Under-20 Championship just a week later.

“I wasn’t expecting anything crazy just because you never know when things are going to be taken away from you so it’s really important to value what you do have. It was just an honor to be able to make it to that meet my first year,” Willis said.

Anna, like many freshmen, struggled with the transition from high school into college. Being away from home for the first time began to weigh on her, but she turned that into something positive.

“Being away from home really allowed me to grow and learn my independence. It finally allowed me to have some accountability, knowing that no one is going to do the work for me and I have to do it myself.”

Fighting through adversity is a strong suit for Anna. Her father, Steve, says he believes that when she goes through adversity, she comes out on the other side stronger and more motivated than before.

While in high school, Anna went through a wrist surgery which caused her to put vaulting on hold for a bit.

Steve says they went to five different doctors to get their opinions on her wrist, and at one point they thought she would not vault again.

Through that entire process, Anna kept her head held high and told herself to remain patient with herself and with God’s plan, knowing it would all work out in the end.

“Dealing with a lot of adversity in high school helped me to have a really positive mindset throughout college. Always having that positive outlook on things and never doubting anything,” said Anna. “Just saying I know I can do this even if it’s not realistic. Just having that mindset will help.”

After having an All-American freshman year and winning the U20 pole vaulting championship, Anna has her eyes set on a new goal. She says she is aiming to vault over 15 feet.

She had already cleared 14 feet and 10 inches when she took second place at the Summit League Outdoor T&F Championships.

Something else that sits in the back of her mind is going to trials for the 2028 Olympic Games.
_____

Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.

The Star has finished unveiling its All-County teams for the 2025 high school spring season.

BURNSVILLE, Minn. (FOX 9) – A Burnsville boys’ volleyball coach is charged with criminal sexual conduct for engaging in multiple sexual acts with one of her players, a criminal complaint filed Thursday alleges.

Crime reported

What we know:

Brooke Reinhardt, 24, is charged with three counts of criminal sexual conduct as a person in a position of authority.

According to the criminal complaint, the abuse was uncovered after the victim’s wallet was found by a man who knew Reinhardt in his Burnsville home. The person who found the wallet is identified only as “Witness 1” and his exact relationship with Reinhardt is not clarified in the complaint.

Police say the witness reported being out of state for a week and when he returned to his Burnsville home he discovered the wallet belonging to the 17-year-old player. The witness said the boy had never been to his home and had no reason to visit.

Burnsville coach charged

Dig deeper:

According to the complaint, police spoke with the victim, who said he had mistakenly left his wallet in his coach’s car after Reinhardt gave him a ride to practice. The victim initially said that was the extent of their relationship. However, when he allowed police to check his phone, they found texts from Reinhardt that told the victim “had a lot of things to delete.” Officers say they found other texts mentioning condoms. When officers asked the victim about those texts, he admitted the two had been dating and had intercourse on at least two occasions.

Police then arrested Reinhardt at her home. According to the charges, Reinhardt denied having a relationship with the victim but then later admitted to engaging in a sexual relationship with the boy on three occasions, including in her vehicle, at her home, and at Witness 1’s home.

What’s next:

Reinhardt made her first appearance in court on Thursday. She is set to return to court next month for an omnibus hearing.

U.S. Women’s Water Polo Announces Singapore Worlds Roster with 7 First-Timers

The U.S. women’s water polo team announced its roster for the 2025 World Aquatics Championships on Friday, a group that includes just one holdover from the 2021 Olympics.

Seven of the 15 athletes are making their World Championships debut, and seven are held over from the squad that finished fourth at Paris Olympics last summer.

Amanda Longan is the lone holdover from an Olympic medalist team, the backup goalie on the Tokyo team in 2021. The Singapore group will not include such program mainstays as Maggie Steffens, Maddie Musselman, Ashleigh Johnson and Rachel Fattal.

Longan is one of seven players who were part of the Paris team, joining Tara Prentice, Jenna Flynn, Jovana Sekulic, Ryann Neushul, Jewel Roemer and Emily Ausmus. Seven players are taking part at their first World Championships: Anna Pearson, Julia Bonaguidi, Emma Lineback, Isabel Williams, Rachel Gazzaniga, Malia Allen and Ava Stryker.

Coach Adam Krikorian named a 15-person roster, with only 14 eligible to take part on any individual gameday. The U.S. is Group B and will open against China on July 10. It will play Netherlands and Argentina in group play.

The U.S. women are the reigning World Champions, having won the event at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships in Doha. The team lost in the quarterfinals of the 2023 event in Fukuoka, Japan, ending a streak of four straight titles that dated to 2015. The U.S. women have won eight world titles.

U.S. Women’s Water Polo 2025 World Championships Roster

• Amanda Longan (Moorpark, CA/USC/NYAC)
• Tara Prentice (Temecula, CA/UC Irvine/NYAC/Sabadell)
• Anna Pearson (Irvine, CA/UCLA/SET)
• Jenna Flynn (San Jose, CA/Stanford/NYAC)
• Julia Bonaguidi (La Jolla, CA/California/San Diego Shores)
• Jovana Sekulic (Belgrade, Serbia/Princeton/NYAC)
• Ryann Neushul (Goleta, CA/Stanford/NYAC)
• Jewel Roemer (Martinez, CA/Stanford/680 Water Polo)
• Emma Lineback (Laguna Beach, CA/UCLA/SET)
• Emily Ausmus (Riverside, CA/USC/NYAC)
• Ella Woodhead (San Rafael, CA/Stanford/SHAQ)
• Isabel Williams (Severna Park, MD/California/Glyfada)
• Rachel Gazzaniga (North Tustin, CA/USC/SOCAL)
• Malia Allen (Irvine, CA/UCLA/Panionios)
• Ava Stryker (Santa Barbara, CA/USC/Santa Barbara 805)
• Head Coach: Adam Krikorian
• Assistants: Molly Cahill, Dan Klatt, Natalie Benson
• Video Coach: Andrew Silva
• Team Manager: Ally Beck
• Sports Medicine Manager: Larnie Boquiren

U.S. Women’s Water Polo 2025 World Championships schedule

• July 10: vs. China, 9:10 p.m. PT
• July 13: vs. Netherlands 5:45 a.m. PT
• July 14: vs. Argentina 6 p.m. PT
• July 17: Crossover Round
• July 19: Quarterfinal Round
• July 21: Semifinal Round
• July 23: Final Round