U.S. Senator Eric Schmitt unveils blueprint to ‘save college sports’

WASHINGTON (KQTV) -- As the college athletics scene has seen its fair share of changes with "Name, Image and Likeness," U.S. Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO) shared his plans to restore stability and safeguard the long-term success of college athletics.

The plan's framework identifies four core principles as legislators look to navigate any legislation about college sports.

The first pillar would consist of securing stability by ending rulemaking through a lawsuit. It would also allow athlete-protective rules without the threat of immediate, freezing litigation.

While mapping the statewide initiatives, Sen. Schmitt wants to create a national standard and also allow conferences to choose their own governing bodies.

Pillar two would aim to fix the framework by creating a national one-time transfer rule, strengthening and reaffirming eligibility standards and aligning coaching transitions with transfer windows to minimize disruption.

Pillar three aims to protect players and non-revenue sports.

In doing so, the regulation would protect Olympic and women's sports by requiring schools to maintain a certain number of varsity sports.

It would also restore NIL to its original purpose, which allows student-athletes to receive compensation from third parties for endorsements, sponsorships, social media content and appearances without losing their NCAA eligibility.

While restoring the original purpose of NIL, the pillar would aim to authorize direct compensation from schools to student-athletes and would ensure NIL compensation is rendered at Fair Market Value, while also prohibiting "sham contracts".

Pillar four looks to put fans first by maximizing value from media deals and would restore stability and predictability during conference realignments. Doing so would also prioritize long-term success in college athletics.

Sen. Schmitt, a former two-sport college athlete and member of the Senate Commerce Committee, said he knows firsthand how important, exciting and impactful college sports are.

"College sports are uniquely American. They're a source of entertainment and pride for millions of athletes, students, alumni, parents and fans," said Sen. Schmitt in a news release. "Unfortunately, there is currently a chaotic landscape in college sports, with no guardrails, guidlines or rules. Congress must step in to safeguard the future of college sports, protect student-athletes and restore order to a system that has grown unbalanced."

Sen. Schmitt launched a website to hear directly from student-athletes, parents and coaches. Anyone interested can visit www.schmitt.senate.gov/fixing-college-sports/.