College football is what affects change, stokes chaos and dictates conference realignment. In many ways, it’s done more harm than good. But it’s college basketball and the money generated via March Madness for decades that is saving the day.
“The men’s basketball tournament is bailing everybody out,” one high-ranking industry source told CBS Sports. “The NCAA lost out on the authority to manage college football money. Men’s basketball is helping save, at least maybe has saved, all the other sports.”
The NCAA office is going to pay approximately 40% of the settlement bill. And where did that money come from? Men’s NCAA Tournament revenue accrued over the years, in addition to cost savings and insurance plans. The remaining near-60% of the damages will be paid off by every conference. Of that ⅗ portion (somewhere between $1.6 and $1.7 billion), 60% of it will be paid out by conferences outside the Power Five. That equates to somewhere north of $975 million over a 10-year period for multi-bid and mid-major leagues to foot the bill.
And what’s paying for that? Not College Football Playoff revenue. This is largely being covered by past and future money made off the March Madness event. Without it, the NCAA has nothing.
Yet (here’s the cruel part) the small schools, mid-major conferences and multi-bid leagues are still going to get financially hammered, especially in relation to how the bigger conferences will be better equipped to handle the financial blow later this decade thanks to the billions to made from high-profile college football into the 2030s. The NCAA is only agreeing to settle because it has future NCAA Tournament media rights payments that will be withheld by the NCAA to member institutions — basically like garnished wages for everyone from Alabama and Ohio State to the low rungs of Division I
Things just got a lot more difficult for every league not named the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC. (Even a lot of schools the ACC and Big 12 have things to work through; their media deals pale in comparison to the Big Ten and SEC.)
But for the likes of the basketball-focused conferences (Big East, Atlantic 10, WCC), let alone the one-bid leagues that will now be paying around $3 million annually as a result of this settlement? The cost of doing business has never been tougher.
“The Big East and all those other leagues, they should be pissed,” an industry source said. “The Power Four just developed a CFP model that keeps everyone out and they get to keep the cash. We’re thankful [basketball] can bail everyone out, but holy crap, that’s not talked about enough. All they’re doing is withholding future earnings, and the only way they got it is men’s basketball.”
The richest high-major conferences are footing 40% of the payments, yet the majority of the back pay (speculated to be near, if not north of 90%, according to sources) will be going to football and men’s basketball players. All this has led to genuine anger from just about every conference outside the Power Four structure. Many commissioners are refraining from speaking on the record, but their opposition has been plainly vocalized behind the scenes. Their leagues don’t have the earning capacity of the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC due to inferior or non-existent revenue deals with the CFP. Everyone else will be stuck either trying to invent massive new revenue streams or be forced to cut costs.
“We don’t have a say in it. We’re stuck. They can just do it,” Big Sky commissioner Tom Wistricill told CBS Sports. “It’s devastation without representation.”