Colgate University Athletics

“The House Settlement” (or “Settlement”) refers to the landmark settlement agreement that resolves certain claims against the NCAA and autonomy conferences (i.e. ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, and SEC) related to the House, Hubbard, and Carter cases. These cases, in various forms, challenged previous restrictions set forth by the NCAA related to student-athlete compensation and the terms of the settlement set forth a path to provide enhanced financial benefits and opportunities to NCAA Division I student-athletes. 

More information on the approval of the settlement agreement, which occurred on June 6, 2025, can be found here. 

The Settlement terms are viewed in two parts - back damages to be paid to class members and the establishment of a new model for collegiate sports moving forward. The back damages will be paid by the NCAA and its member institutions, while new regulations are being implemented within Division I to allow increased financial benefits to student-athletes.

All Division I institutions have the ability to “opt in” to the new model established by the Settlement, which would allow them the ability to provide additional financial opportunities and benefits to student-athletes. In the initial year of the Settlement, DI institutions had to declare their intent to “opt in” prior to July 1, 2025, but will have the opportunity to make this decision annually. 

No. For defendant schools and those who elect to participate in the Settlement terms, these regulations will apply to all NCAA-sponsored sports at the institution and cannot apply on a team-by-team basis. 

During the initial year of the implementation of the Settlement, Colgate University has elected not to opt in, in alignment with Patriot League and Ivy League peers. Colgate will continue to focus on enhancing current benefits and support to student-athletes while not removing participation opportunities, and will reassess the national landscape annually to make determinations that best support its Division I programs. 

The College Sports Commission (‘CSC’) is an independent entity established in June 2025 in response to the Settlement and is responsible for overseeing compliance with the new regulations surrounding third-party NIL deals and revenue sharing. 

No, the CSC and NCAA remain independent entities but remain highly collaborative. The CSC will be responsible for oversight of compliance with Settlement terms, while the NCAA will still manage divisional governance, championships and compliance with existing regulations and membership priorities (i.e. playing rules, athletic/academic eligibility, etc.). 

NIL Go is an online platform created by the College Sports Commission and Deloitte to determine whether third-party NIL deals are made with the purpose of using a student-athletes’ NIL for a valid business purpose and do not exceed a reasonable range of compensation.

More general information on third-party NIL deals and associated regulations can be found here. 

Yes. All Division I student-athletes, regardless of whether or not their school has opted in to the Settlement terms, will have to report third-party NIL deals valued at $600 or more in the aggregate into the NIL Go platform.

Any third-party NIL deals with compensation that equals or exceeds $600 must be reported and reviewed through NIL Go. A third-party deal is any deal made with an external payor, or an entity not owned or operated by the student-athlete's institution. 

Student-athletes are expected to report all deals within 5 business days of execution of the contract or agreement to the terms. Reported deals will be reviewed to ensure compliance with new rules. 

All reported NIL deals will be evaluated based on the information the student-athlete provides to determine:

• Payor Association Status: The relationship between the third-party payor and the student-athlete's school (i.e. Colgate);
• Valid Business Purpose: A Valid Business Purpose means that the payor is seeking the use of student-athlete's NIL to promote or endorse a good or service being offered to the public for profit. The “for profit” determination focuses on whether the sale of the goods/services is for profit, rather than whether the entity itself is operating at a profit or a loss at any given time.
• Range of Compensation: Whether compensation paid to the student-athlete is commensurate with compensation paid to similarly situated individuals. NIL Go will not calculate Fair Market Value for NIL deals, but rather determine if the deal is within a reasonable range of compensation based on a variety of factors.

If a deal reported by a student-athlete is not cleared, they have three options:

1. Revise the deal and resubmit for review, allowing the student-athlete to work with the third-party to renegotiate the deal so it complies with applicable regulations. 
2. Cancel the deal and refund any money previously received. 
3. Appeal to neutral arbitration to obtain a neutral review of the decision through an appeal process. 

Potentially yes. Failure to report third-party NIL deals and/or engaging in deals that have not been cleared through NIL Go may cause the student-athlete to face enforcement consequences, which could include the loss of eligibility. The CSC will maintain responsibility for the oversight and enforcement of NIL regulations. 

Defendant conferences and those opting in to Settlement terms will be permitted to directly share revenue with student-athletes. This model allows for those schools to distribute each year up to 22% of the average revenue among defendant schools - i.e. the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC - from media rights, ticket sales and sponsorships.

This direct compensation can be earned in addition to a student-athlete's athletics scholarship, third-party NIL deals and other previously permissible educational benefits. 

For those schools participating in the revenue sharing model, this will allow them to also enter NIL deals directly with their student-athletes. These institutional deals are not subject to review by NIL Go, which is exclusively used for third-party NIL deals, but will be subject to reporting requirements and must stay within annual limitations (i.e. the revenue share cap). 

For institutions participating in the Settlement, traditional NCAA scholarship limits have been removed and roster limits have been established for each sport. Under this new model, every student-athlete on a team may potentially have access to athletics scholarship funds, but the total number of student-athletes on each team cannot exceed a predetermined roster limit (consistent across all participating institutions). 

Institutions who elect not to opt in to Settlement terms will continue to adhere to traditional NCAA scholarship limits, as effective in Fall 2024. Similarly, those schools will be able to use discretion in determining roster sizes and are not mandated to adhere to limits. 

Should an institution wish to provide scholarships - in any sport - above the existing limitations, all sports will be required to adhere to roster limits as a condition of opting into Settlement terms and the provision of additional benefits.