Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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4 SEPT. 30, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED N otre Dame athletics director Jack Swarbrick keeps no se- crets in his steadfast stance about whether Irish athletes should be compensated in some way for the time they invest and the rev- enue they generate for the school. All the way back to December 2014, Swarbrick has been an out- spoken advocate for players to use their fame and talent as an avenue to earn side income outside of team activities. Basically, Swarbrick said, let the chefs who every year serve the bil- lion-dollar cake to their schools and the NCAA taste a small piece of it in the same way any "traditional" college student is allowed to in his free time. "I am not troubled at all," Swarbrick said, "by the notion of trying to find the right way to al- low students who are athletes to capture value for their name, im- age and likeness … because the music student can." Swarbrick's wish may become the NCAA's command if some legislative momentum out of California aimed at compensating college athletes contin- ues to build. Less than two weeks ago, the Cali- fornia State Assembly unanimously passed a bill — the Fair Pay to Play Act — that would give these amateur play- ers the right to independently market themselves and privately profit from being a student-athlete. California Governor Gavin New- som, a former collegiate baseball player at Santa Clara University, has yet to tip his hand on the matter but he had 30 days from assembly passage to sign the bill into law or veto it. To be clear, the proposal does not al- low California schools to directly pay its athletes, but would instead permit the players to earn financial reward from outside sources — for example, by hosting a summer youth sports camp, giving a speech or signing au- tographs. The California initiative is exactly what Swarbrick publicly supported long before this legislative push was even considered. Under current NCAA rules, a college swimmer can't teach swim lessons for pay, a baseball player who wrote an autobiography can't promote nor sell it, and an entrepreneurial volleyball player who launched an apparel line can't model it. Obviously, many details remain, if and when this bill becomes California law (it wouldn't go into effect until 2023). But if Newsom signs the proposal, expect other states — New York and South Carolina have already intro- duced similar bills — to start a legisla- tive avalanche that could bring long overdue change to the landscape of college sports. "I think it would contribute to reduc- ing so many of the problems we have," Swarbrick said of the scandalous un- derbelly undermining college athlet- ics, in terms of players illegally taking money, gifts and favors from boosters, and sometimes even coaches. In an effort to protect the status quo and its place in the college sports hi- erarchy, the NCAA is getting creative in its push-back against the California proposal. NCAA president Mark Emmert, along with 21 others from the orga- nization, recently sent a letter to Cali- fornia state legislators that warns of dire consequences if the bill passes, explaining that by allowing athletes to make any side money, the state's 58 NCAA member schools would gain an unfair recruiting advan- tage. "[Which] would result in them eventually being unable to com- pete in NCAA competitions," the letter reads, in part. Legislators were unimpressed with the far-fetched threat of kick- ing California schools out of the NCAA, and pushed forward with what could become the first dom- ino to bringing college athletes the personal earning power they richly deserve. Sports business analyst Darren Rovell of The Action Network is skeptical that legislators in any state can override laws set by the NCAA and agreed upon by its members. Regarding passage of the bill in California, Rovell tweeted, "This is cute, but the state doesn't have any jurisdiction here. NCAA is chosen governing body and, like something collectively bargained, this isn't part of current rules." But as this ongoing "who needs who more?" power struggle between the NCAA and its member schools con- tinues to slide in favor of the latter through the popularity and earning power of top-tier athletic programs, California's move could force the NCAA to change its stance and cry uncle if enough states fall in line be- hind California's lead. In the meantime, Swarbrick will take a wait-and-see approach. This seismic push remains in its infancy, and In- diana — home of the NCAA head- quarters — is often slow to move on progressive legislation. But given the grassroots and united support of California's ideas from Swarbrick, Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., and many other university policymakers, hopefully this is the first step for Irish student- athletes to finally get a piece of the cake they provided the ingredients and labor to bake. ✦ The Time Has Come To Share The Wealth UPON FURTHER REVIEW TODD D. BURLAGE Todd D. Burlage has been a writer for Blue & Gold Illustrated since July 2005. He can be reached at tburlage@blueandgold.com The NCAA Board of Governors, led by NCAA president Mark Emmert (above), sent California Governor Gavin Newsom a let- ter asking him not to sign the Fair Pay to Pay Act passed by the California State Assembly that would allow the state's student- athletes to earn money off their name, image and likeness, call- ing the bill "harmful" and "unconstitutional." PHOTO COURTESY NCAA