The NCAA did something they swore they would never do.
The decision-makers in college sports' powerhouse council — commissioners, university presidents, media partners, biggest boosters and, of course, lawyers — came together and agreed that the cost of clinging to outdated notions of amateurism would be far greater than the price paid to the players.
But the same people who finally acknowledged that athletes are entitled to a share of the revenue did what they always do.
They made it harder for a school like Memphis to compete with schools from stronger conferences, making Memphis' football season seem more important than ever.
Unfortunately, the overall conclusion from the NCAA’s “historic” settlement of the three lawsuits is that all involved acknowledge that it has not answered the overarching question facing college sports: “Are the players on the field employees of the university for which they play?”
As with all things related to NIL and player compensation, the NCAA is leaving the issue for another day, hoping that a half-hearted solution can work out. Reports suggest that the system, which is set to go into effect in 2025, could pay players up to $22 million.
If the settlement is approved by a judge. If there aren't any Title IX complications. If Congress doesn't pass the bill. If more players don't sue over proposals that amount to a salary cap without collective bargaining. If these things are the same a year from now (and judging by how quickly college sports have changed over the past few years, we shouldn't expect them to be).
There are a lot of what-ifs. The details remain unclear. There are a lot of decisions to be made about how much (and how much) schools will pay their players, or even which schools will be able to afford to compete at the highest level of college sports.
It's especially tough to gauge where Memphis will be over the next five or 10 years because it's one of the few “have-nots” on the verge of climbing the wall between the powerhouse conferences and the rest. Last week's settlement announcement means that wall will get even higher.
So this football season may be Memphis' best chance yet to climb the standings. Depending on the results, it will surely be either exhilarating or painful. Probably nothing in between.
The first of two years that guarantees an automatic berth to the nation's highest-ranked Group of Five team in the College Football Playoff could also be the first year that Memphis is the preseason favorite to win the American Athletic Conference. It comes just as the athletic department's NIL efforts and plans to renovate Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium position Memphis to be one of the best-resourced Group of Fives in the country. It comes just as turmoil in the ACC could lead to a court-ordered realignment of the conference.
This whole endeavor might be helped by a paradox that former AAC commissioner Mike Aresco never intended when he added many of the Conference USA schools to the league starting last season: The AAC's weakness could be part of its strength.
Jeannot:Memphis football is operating at a pace that was unthinkable before this offseason.
The league was third among the Group of Five conferences behind the Sun Belt and Mountain West, according to ESPN's latest average rankings of SP+ ratings, a predictive indicator based on returning performance, recruiting and recent history. Seven AAC teams were ranked outside the top 100.
By comparison, five of 14 Sun Belt states did not make the top 100, and six of 12 Mountain West states did not make the top 100.
These latest numbers could confirm that undefeated C-USA champion Liberty beating two-loss AAC champion SMU to win a New Year's Six bowl game in 2023 wasn't just a one-year phenomenon. They could also mean that other leagues will be more inclined to beat each other, making it more likely the AAC will produce a one-loss champion.
They certainly prove that the AAC the Memphis Football Team must overcome shouldn't be as dangerous as the AAC the Tigers overcame to reach the Cotton Bowl in 2019 (in theory, considering league games will be played on the road).
At the very least, the stars aligned at a most favorable time for the program.
With renovations underway at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium and a landmark FedEx NIL donation in hand, and an offseason still full of optimism and anticipation, an AAC Championship and College Football Playoff appearance this fall could be proof of what Tigers fans have always said:
Memphis belongs.
Commercial Appeal columnist Mark Giannotto can be reached by email at mgiannotto@gannett.com or followed at X.Follow
