SEC, Power Four aren't kidding about forming separate league | Golden

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The running joke a few years back was that there would come a day when the NCAA's Power Four conferences would form their own league and free themselves of the mess that has become the governance of college athletics.

It's no longer a laughing matter.

Imagine a day when the Texas Longhorns are no longer in the NCAA, but a member of a super league of around 80 schools?

It could happen.

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey is all about his business and when he addressed reporters at SEC media days Monday in Tampa, Fla., the Protect College Sports Act was a major source of conversation along with breaking away from the NCAA - talks the commissioner described as serious.

Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) introduced the bipartisan bill earlier this year with a goal of bringing uniformity to college athletics, particularly in the areas of the transfer portal, NIL and revenue sharing. The heavyweights of NCAA - including legendary coaches Nick Saban, Mack Brown and Urban Meyer - met with President Trump in Washington this spring.

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According to Yahoo's Ross Dellenger, lawmakers are at work revising the bill that would include legislation to allow Power Four conferences - the SEC, Big Ten, ACC and Big 12 - to invite non-power schools to their leagues.

"We believe changes to the act are necessary to make it most effective, and the changes we've suggested are both achievable and reasonable, and we're committed to working with Congress to move the legislation across the finish line," Sankey said.

That's fine and all, but if these sides can't come to an agreement on the language, then what's to stop these power conferences from saying no thanks to the politicians and forming their own super league instead of sharing the billions they're making from TV contracts and merchandising with the smaller conferences?

"People have talked about that," Sankey said. "The frustrations that bring them to the point of saying we should look at something significantly different. I do not believe that is a leverage point. I think that's honest communication."

Translation? Both things can be true. It's absolutely leverage because the major players hold the biggest cards. After all, they're the schools packing stadiums and bringing in the biggest TV ratings with their billion-dollar contracts.

Trying to make sense of the jumbled mess of college athletics is like watching a 3D movie without the special glasses. The frustration is palpable and that's often the case when billions of dollars and politicians are involved.

NCAA leaders have long strived for transparency and accountability and ways to keep schools from circumventing the rules, but it's a monster of their own making. The Brendan Sorsby nightmare at Texas Tech is proof enough.

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian expressed frustration with the process during the spring.

"I just think that right now we're living in a society of no fear when it comes to college athletics," Sarkisian said.  "If I don't like the fact that I got caught breaking (a) rule or not doing what I was supposed to do to go get a judge to say ‘Hey, get an injunction, we'll deal with that a year from now.' I don't think that that's what we want, and we've got to find a way to get past this era of college athletics."

If the SEC and Big Ten are in agreement on the critical issues, the Big 12 and ACC will follow, if they decide to stay or decide to go. The latter two understand the pecking order. The big boys are calling the shots here.

The NCAA along with university presidents, athletic directors and conference commissioners dropped the ball when they put NIL matters in the hands of the separate states, creating the Wild Wild West of college sports as we know it. One can't unring that bell. Now they have to deal with the fallout.

The need for uniformity is obvious and understandable, but is it realistic for more than 300 schools - of different sizes and financial standing - to arrive at the same page? Worse yet, does anything improve when the federal government gets involved? Methinks the people running our country have more important problems to address than why Arch Manning is making tons more than the guy at Fresno.

The haves will always reign over the have nots. This isn't the NFL where 32 owners are splitting a humongous pie in 32 equal slices. The NCAA is 10 times bigger and and the pie distribution is anything but equal.

As for the NIL and the portal, these measures carry with them an air of hypocrisy because it's obviously an attempt to put a governor on the money these athletes are making. 

No one had a problem with a coach like LSU's Lane Kiffin bailing from one high-paying job to another while his Ole Miss team was playing out an historic season. But now that the athletes are enjoying the fruits of their labors, the politicians and some coaches are calling for guardrails.

The athletes have brought in billions to these football factories with only a scholarship and free room and board to show for it. A college degree is nice, but back in the heyday there were thousands of Vince Young jerseys at DKR on Saturdays as far as the eye could see. I don't remember seeing any Mack Brown T-shirts although Mack made a fortune as head coach.

Meanwhile, VY didn't see a penny of those greenbacks despite leading Texas to a 30-2 record as the face of the greatest Longhorns team of the modern generation. That championship win over USC in 2005 brought the Horns back to the top of the sport and more importantly led to untold millions from increased donations, raised ticket prices and a surge in merchandising sales with Young's No. 10 jersey flying off racks.

The fans pay to see the players. You will never hear me complain that these guys and girls are making too much money. It's long overdue. 

The leadership created this. Don't be shocked if these Power Four conversations become an even bigger story if this bill doesn't meet with their approval.

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