Good morning, and thanks for spending part of your day with Extra Points.
As I’m on vacation, I’m going to leave you in the capable hands of KC Smurthwaite, who spoke with Summit League commissioner Josh Fenton about the Protect College Sports Act. When considering the potential federal framework for college athletics, Fenton sees sees needed stability and a reminder that the same rule can land very differently across Division I.
The Protect College Sports Act is bigger than the Big Ten and SEC
by KC Smurthwaite
The social media algorithm and the filter bubble have a way of shrinking the scope of college sports.
Open a feed during a realignment fight, an NIL debate or a congressional hearing, and the same characters tend to surface: the Big Ten and the SEC, plus their commissioners and television partners and the programs powerful enough to shape the national conversation. That’s certainly true of the online conversation around the Protect College Sports Act.
Last month, the Senate Commerce Committee advanced the bill by a 19-9 bipartisan vote, clearing the way for it to reach the Senate floor for a full vote. On Friday, Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO), one of its sponsors, said he believed the legislation “probably” had the 60 votes needed to pass the chamber, while acknowledging that negotiations with the SEC and Big Ten were continuing.
Those negotiations are key, but they are not the entire story.
The Protect College Sports Act might feel like another fight among the richest brands in the industry. But in reality, the proposed legislation would reach far beyond the leagues with billion-dollar media deals. It would attempt to provide needed stability to a chaotic system and shape how athletes transfer, how NIL agreements are reported, how eligibility rules are enforced, how agents are regulated and how athletic departments preserve women’s and Olympic sports.
Summit League commissioner Josh Fenton offers a valuable perspective from outside that Big Ten and SEC bubble. He’s been in his role since December 2022, leading a basketball-centered conference that does not sponsor FCS football. But that hardly removes him from football’s complicated future. Three Summit League members compete in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, and through a joint management structure adopted in 2025, Fenton also serves as the MVFC’s executive advisor.
“We probably shouldn’t let perfect get in the way of good,” Fenton said of the bill. He understands that this process takes negotiation, and if a bill is going to become law, it needs broad bipartisan support. But he believes college sports need a consistent and enforceable national framework, and the bill addresses several of the areas creating the most instability: transfer regulations, athlete eligibility, NIL rights and compensation structures, agent regulations, varying state laws and constant legal challenges.
A bi-weekly look at the rapidly changing licensing landscape in college sports, as part of a paid sponsorship with Desert Cactus.
NIL expansion ripple effects hitting licensing
NIL monetization became legal five years ago this month, and since then, the college sports landscape has evolved — and evolved, and evolved. NIL has begun to expand beyond revenue-generating sports, into Olympic sports and niche sports.
It’s never been clearer: Universities and athletic departments’ licensing structures need to evolve, too — and to expand far beyond football and basketball. If they don’t, small-sport athletes won’t be able to be included in deals. That means less money for them.
Consider this: International athlete eligibility is already reshaping licensing deals. So for sports like soccer, skiing and tennis, which reach a worldwide audience and include a wide base of international competitors, group deals must be structured differently.
And as schools expand their reach, it’s important they consider full teams, not just individual athletes. A full-team poster, for example, is less risky for in-venue and retail providers. Why? Teams generally sell much better than individuals, and a single poster lessens the number of SKUs any vendor needs to carry.
That wider reach also opens up opportunities for brand diversification that don’t exist when the focus is limited to football and basketball. “Country club” sports like golf and tennis would benefit from deals with companies like Rolex and luxury automakers.
Headquartered in the Chicago area, Desert Cactus is a fast-growing e-commerce company specializing in officially licensed and custom merchandise for more than 650 colleges and universities.
