OU’s Joe Castiglione says college sports reform needs a Plan B 'and C and D and E'

ARLINGTON, Texas – From seismic conference realignment to the birth of the NIL Era and the College Football Playoff, Joe Castiglione has seen the college sports enterprise flipped on its head since he assumed Oklahoma‘s athletic director role 25 years ago.

And he knows more consequential change is ahead.

In a lengthy interview with the venerable athletic director, whose Sooners are embarking on their final year in the Big 12 before departing for the SEC, Castiglione discussed why he believes its perilous to merely rely on Congress for a lifeline, what the future collegiate model should entail and why student-athletes need a voice in helping to reimagine the paradigm. 

NCAA President Charlie Baker and stakeholders have been aggressively lobbying Congress for a federal bill that, ideally for them, would preempt state NIL laws, grant limited antitrust protection and include a formal designation that student-athletes are not employees. That said, Castiglione echoed comments his commissioner, Brett Yormark, made to On3 that it’s necessary for stakeholders to explore a backup plan because federal legislation is “not a slam dunk.” 

It’s time to explore a Plan B. 

“Exactly,” Castiglione said. “And [a Plan] C and D and E. There has to be scenario planning. We always talk about something after it is passed. Why are we letting that happen? Get in front of this.”

Getting in front of it would enable the NCAA and/or stakeholders the chance to have a hands-on role in reshaping the model, rather than having it dictated to them by another entity, be it a federal judge or the National Labor Relations Board, etc. Currently, the NCAA’s NIL subcommittee has been tasked with exploring a Plan B – specifically related to NIL reform – if efforts with Congress fall short.

Castiglione’s views are notable because he specifically references the need to figure out an evolved model “with” the student-athletes as part of that process.

“We need to embrace what we think the best solution is for the role of how we involve athletes in the future,” he said. “We need to help figure that out with them and for them.”

‘The NIL world is not going to solve it by itself’

Yormark, when asked by On3 on Wednesday whether it’s time to at least model out what a revenue-sharing enterprise would entail, said, “We are not there yet.”

When asked the same question Thursday, Castiglione said: “Some type of way. People really don’t – they are risk-averse to using certain terms [revenue sharing]. So, however, it is articulated, that is what I meant about they have to be part of the solution, to be able to engage them in ways. The NIL world is not going to solve it by itself. 

“I actually think there is going to be a time very soon – I may be wrong on this – where for us to sustain this, it’s going to have to involve more involvement by the athletic programs because right now we are [largely prevented]. It’s one of the – not the only – but one of the only strategies that has some level of sustainability to it. There could be rules around it, guardrails. There could be very bright lines. We can figure all that out. But I just don’t see any other way in the long run. I actually think it could be a very good thing as well. With whatever is permitted, we can help athletes.”

West Virginia football Coach Neal Brown on Thursday told On3 that, because of escalating media rights revenue, “players deserve a piece of that pie.” Without drilling down on specifics, Castiglione endorses exploring ambitious, bold ideas. The moment demands that an industry largely unfamiliar with forward-thinking innovation and rapid responses needs to think in unconventional, progressive ways. 

“We are doing as much as we can now in education and helping them [student-athletes] realize they are CEO of a company, if you will, when they are interested,” Castiglione said. “But if we can represent them at some point in certain ways. I’m not trying to create necessarily agent relationships but there are ways we can involve them as part of their experience. I think there could be opportunities, whether it goes through some of the vehicles we have now – Alston, cost of attendance, a licensing fee – I’m not limiting anything at the moment. We are representing the whole program, with them being part of it, and this is what goes with your experience at a university. We can share something with you because of that because we are representing you no different than the way we are representing the program itself – you’re part of the program. 

“There are going to be – I’m not a lawyer, they’ll find ways to shoot holes in any of these ideas – but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be forthcoming with big, bold ideas. We don’t know what can work and how it can work until we start putting them on the table and then start hashing out what is doable and what isn’t.”

Castiglione says time to evolve model ‘has to be now’

Joe Castiglione believes that federal legislation is an answer, but not the only answer needed to address a dynamic, fast-evolving landscape. The NIL subcommittee is exploring a potential draft of a proposal while major stakeholders continue to lobby federal lawmakers for a federal bill. The work of the subcommittee does not represent a pivot in strategy, a source with direct knowledge of the strategy told On3. 

“Let’s face it, the whole world that we revolve around is the student-athlete. Period,” Castiglione said. “That is why we exist. Without them, [we] don’t need any of us. So, let’s figure out what we can do to help them in the widest sense possible to be successful and embrace a new world and help to find the path forward. I think they will appreciate it.”

Castiglione said it’s critical to bring the “best thought leaders” to the table to figure out how to reshape a model that realizes the future vision for the enterprise. He acknowledged “many complexities,” referencing both the politics that exist within the NCAA and fast-evolving state NIL laws.

“Acknowledge that,” he said. “Don’t use that as a crutch. Figure out a way to navigate it. No one is asking anyone to break laws or break rules or anything like that. Figure this out. That has got to be our charge.”

Castiglione conceded what he called “some baked-in issues” that may be unsolvable. That speaks to more than 1,100 member institutions operating under one proverbial Big Tent. The disparate resources, budgets, coaches’ salaries, missions, philosophies and athlete recruiting strategies all make consensus difficult, if not impossible. Division III Cal Tech Athletic Director Betsy Mitchell best encapsulated the dynamic last year when she succinctly asked: “Why are we still trying to stick together?”

“Part of it is our own membership association, just the way we have traditionally gone about making rules or dealing with issues,” Castiglione said. “There are people sitting around tables that represent the wide interests of an association. They don’t all have the same challenges. We get that people have some common interests. But they can’t be solved in that broad of a way. So, you have a baked-in challenge to move some big ideas forward. We have got to figure out how we are going to do that. I think the timing has to be now. I don’t think this is ‘Wait until it evolves.'”

Eyeing the future college athletics model, Castiglione added, “We’re not going back. We can wish it all we want. We are not going back to the way it was. But what is the way of the future?”