SEC will not have easy button available to solve problems facing college athletics

The House vs. NCAA settlement reached was a monumental moment for college athletics. Name, image, and likeness (NIL) opened the door for pay-for-play. That door has been kicked down with the authority of a Sebastian Janikowski field goal as the new settlement will bring revenue sharing to college athletics, but not all of the problems facing the NCAA are going away.

There are more lawsuits to get through, and each state having different laws within a conference and national structure creates massive problems for almost everyone. SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey and other high-end administrators in college athletics are “responsible for navigating what really are for us in college sports uncharted waters of change”.

But there is no magic pill or easy button available to get college athletics through this extremely rocky transition.

“We are dealing with an incredibly complex set of issues that when I sit down with some of those leaders in the areas that I’ve mentioned, and I describe the various challenges we face, it is universal, whether it’s a professional league commissioner or a member of Congress, a high-level attorney, at some point they’ll look at me and say, that’s the most complicated situation I’ve ever heard,” Sankey told reporters at SEC Media Days. “That’s why there’s no easy button.”

The House v. NCAA settlement will allow everyone to move forward, but there are some more obstacles to tackle. That movement forward appears to be right around the corner. Throughout the process, Sankey has clearly stated that assistance from Congress will be needed for the NCAA to enforce rules regarding NIL enforcement and other issues. College athletics needs national standards that can only be established through Congress to give the NCAA some enforcement teeth again.

Sankey says the SEC is not going to sit and wait and will make the choices needed, but legislation might be the only thing keeping this from becoming a true Wild Wild West situation now and in the future. A failure could lead to end the of college athletics as we know it and create a legitimate employment model. Sankey does not want that.

“We want the College Football Playoff. America wants the Final Four,” said Sankey. “We desire a College World Series or a College Cup, and to do so, we need national standards.”

There is no easy button that college athletics leaders can press. But there is one that Congress could press for them.