Big Ten Presidents, Chancellors Propose Plan to Guarantee Scholarships

As the trial of Ed O’Bannon versus the NCAA winds into its final week, the chancellors and presidents of the Big Ten schools have put forth a list of major proposals that they hope will head off a scenario where schools are forced to pay NCAA athletes.

In a letter signed by the 14 heads of the current (and future – Rutgers and Maryland) Big Ten schools, the proposal was made to guarantee four year scholarships that are offered to student athletes.

The landmark antitrust class action lawsuit involves a former basketball player at UCLA, Ed O’Bannon, who has challenged the NCAA’s right to use the images of student athletes for commercial purposes. The trial has twisted through arguments of whether or not the NCAA or the universities actually turn a profit on collegiate athletics, and whether or not they have a right to do so while limiting the money that the athletes are making themselves.

The case, first filed in 2009, was only allowed to go to trial earlier this year by federal judge Claudia Wilken. Among the named plaintiffs in the suit with purports to represent all former Division I football and basketball players include NBA Hall of Famers Oscar Robertson and Bill Russell.

The Big Ten chancellors/presidents’ letter details a proposal that would avoid paying players, a move which they say would most negatively harm non-revenue sports like swimming. Rather, the letter proposes guaranteeing scholarships for student-athletes regardless of injury, turning pro, or any other reason; improving medical insurance for student-athletes; and having a scholarship better reflect the actual cost of attending college.

The four bullet-point proposals:

• We must guarantee the four-year scholarships that we offer. If a student-athlete is no longer able to compete, for whatever reason, there should be zero impact on our commitment as universities to deliver an undergraduate education. We want our students to graduate.

• If a student-athlete leaves for a pro career before graduating, the guarantee of a scholarship remains firm. Whether a professional career materializes, and regardless of its length, we will honor a student’s scholarship when his or her playing days are over. Again, we want students to graduate.

• We must review our rules and provide improved, consistent medical insurance for student-athletes. We have an obligation to protect their health and well-being in return for the physical demands placed upon them.

• We must do whatever it takes to ensure that student-athlete scholarships cover the full cost of a college education, as defined by the federal government. That definition is intended to cover what it actually costs to attend college.

The mechanics of this makes sense in head count sports like football and basketball, where it’s fairly simple to continue a full scholarship for athletes after, say, injury (presumably without it counting against scholarship totals). The challenge comes in sports like swimming, where partial scholarships are available, and where coaches frequently manipulate scholarship levels from year-to-year based on performance and need to free up money for new potential signees. Sometimes, these agreements are made before an athlete commits to a school, and sometimes, they are not, as current signed scholarship offers can only guaranteed for one season.

Some universities already guarantee scholarships, especially in head count sports, for four years.

This could also drastically change the equation for student-athletes who are considering a professional career. No longer will there be an argument about “sacrificing a college degree at college XYZ for no guarantee of future wealth.” Student-athletes would now begin to begin their career, and if they found a level of success where large endorsements would become a greater probability, they can turn pro without sacrificing their scholarship.