Manchin, Tuberville unveil college sports reform plan

Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville and West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin on Tuesday announced legislation to standardize the use of the name, likeness, and image (NIL) of college athletes.

Dubbed the "Protecting Athletes, Schools and Sports Act" would grant the NCAA authority to review NIL agreements and to report violations to the Federal Trade Commission. It would also require that boosters and collectives be affiliated with a college or school and bar NILs involving alcohol, drugs, or "conflict with existing school and conference licenses."

The legislation follows a Supreme Court decision upending NCAA rules that barred certain forms of compensation for student athletes.

"This bill marks the culmination of a year-long initiative in which the Senators actively engaged with stakeholders to create these commonsense guidelines for the NIL system," the pair stated in a press release.

A former Auburn University head football coach, Tuberville stated that "[s]tudent athletes should be able to take advantage of NIL promotional activities without impacting their ability to play collegiate sports."'

"But we need to ensure the integrity of our higher education system, remain focused on education, and keep the playing field level," he continued. "Our legislation with Senator Manchin will set basic rules nationwide, protect our student-athletes, and keep NIL activities from ending college sports as we know it."

Manchin, for his part, touted his past as a college athlete, saying "I know how important sports are to gaining valuable life skills and opening doors of opportunity. However, in recent years, we have faced a rapidly evolving NIL landscape without guidelines to navigate it, which jeopardizes the health of the players and the educational mission of colleges and universities."

"Our bipartisan legislation strikes a balance between protecting the rights of student-athletes and maintaining the integrity of college sports. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to consider this commonsense legislation as a way to level the playing field in college athletics," he asserted.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.