Five states sued the NCAA over their Name, Image and Likeness recruitment ban in January of this year, changing the landscape of NIL rights for athletes.
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Five states sued the NCAA over their Name, Image and Likeness recruitment ban in January of this year, changing the landscape of NIL rights for athletes.
After a coalition of five states sued the NCAA in January 2024 for their Name, Image and Likeness recruitment ban — on the grounds of antitrust violations — a federal judge for the eastern district of Tennessee at Knoxville approved the final settlement agreement March 24.
While NIL deals offer student-athletes the opportunity to earn monetary compensation through partnerships with independent brands or businesses, the ban restricted them from negotiating or discussing potential NIL deals before enrolling at a college.
The lawsuit was spearheaded by Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti and Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares, who were later joined by attorney’s general from New York, Florida and Washington D.C..
The plaintiffs challenged the recruitment ban and said it was an unfair restriction which prevented student-athletes from considering all opportunities regarding commercial success.
Over a year after the initial lawsuit, the final settlement was reached March 17 and awaited court approval. Skrmetti announced the group signed off in approval through a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, March 24.
“Another big win for Tennessee!” Skrmetti said in the post. “A U.S. District Court Judge signed AND approved our final settlement with the @NCAA protecting the rights of Tennessee’s student athletes. This is a great win for our students, fans and universities!”
In addition to allowing student-athletes to negotiate compensation deals, the agreement allows schools to provide more NIL-related support during the recruiting process and removes third-party restrictions, which prevent student-athletes from receiving money from any independent endorsement unrelated to school officials, according to the Attorney General and Reporter.
Aside from student-athlete-focused concessions, the agreement binds the NCAA when it comes to NIL. Long-term protections are set in place over the NIL changes, with the organization now required to maintain full transparency over the next five years and consult with the states for any proposed changes.
The prohibitions set on the NCAA with the antitrust lawsuit follow precedents against the organization such as the class-action lawsuit House v. NCAA which seeks reparations for student-athletes who were unable to receive NIL pay. A set $2.8 billion in back-pay damages is to be paid to former college athletes who competed between 2016 to 2024.
In conjunction with the House case, the Power Four conferences — ACC, Big 10, Big 12 and SEC — are permitted to use 22% of their school’s average revenue on student-athletes, according to Forbes.
If the settlement agreement for the House case is approved, schools in power conferences can share an estimated $20.5 million directly with student-athletes.
With the flurry of recent lawsuits and settlement agreements, mid-major schools may feel the effect as top student-athletes enter into the transfer portal hoping to receive more money and move up to a power conference.
Just a few days after the Ramblers lost in the semifinals of the National Invitation Tournament, Loyola felt the conference power imbalance as two consistent starters — third-year guards Jayden Dawson and Jalen Quinn — entered the transfer portal.
The official reasons for entering the transfer portal remain unknown, but Dawson has since committed to the University of Kansas — joining the Big 12 conference — while Quinn remains undecided.
While NIL can negatively impact mid-major schools and give an advantage to power conferences, it nonetheless provides financial opportunities for athletes, according to women’s basketball’s second-year guard Audrey Deptula.
“Obviously there are negatives,” Deptula said. “I feel like it seems like it’s a pay-for-play for some situations or some schools. At least around here — just being more of a mid-major school — not having those kinds of resources as significant as some of the power four schools, I feel like at least around here it’s been more of a positive.”
Deptula is among the athletes at Loyola who have NIL deals. She currently maintains a partnership with the Wisconsin-based sparkling drink brand known as BUBBL’R, which will last over the duration of her college career.
She also does the occasional photoshoot for jersey catalogs and, despite not making much from those deals, she said NIL has been a positive benefit for her.
Even though the NCAA has pushed for amateurism within collegiate-level sports and has rules in place — such as the recruitment ban — to keep major league professionalism and profit out of college, financial competitiveness will only continue to grow within all collegiate level conferences.
As the Atlantic 10 conference remains at a mid-major level compared to power conferences, Loyola men’s basketball has remained consistent after head coach Drew Valentine took over in 2021. The Ramblers earned 25 wins during the 2024-2025 season and finished third overall in the conference.
“Obviously when I took over the program it was in an extremely healthy spot, but literally the year I get the job its meeting eligibility, its extra COVID year guys going in the portal, its NIL becoming a bigger issue,” Valentine said. “The combination of those three things at the same time are all an advantage for schools in the power four level.”
Whether or not the House case receives approval in its final settlement hearing, the future of college sports remains uncertain as the rules regarding NIL continue to be contested and changed.
Although mid-major schools — such as Loyola — face disadvantages already, the after-effects regarding the changing NIL rules remain unknown. But moving forward, Valentine said he’s confident the men’s basketball team will continue to progress and uphold the same core values.
“We’ve got the most A10 wins in the last two years with probably — if i’m just talking NIL — we probably have bottom half of the league NIL and we’ve got the most wins in the last two years,” Valentine said. “So I think as our resources grow, our program will continue to grow but I want to make it clear that no matter what our resources are — the values of this program, I’m gonna try my hardest for those to maintain the same.”
Loyola’s Athletic Director Steve Watson declined to comment until further updates to the House case are made public.
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