Senate adjourns without Protect College Sports Act vote

The U.S. Senate adjourned for the week Thursday without scheduling a vote on the Protect College Sports Act, making summer passage increasingly unlikely. Big Ten and SEC leaders later backed the bill after last-minute talks, but Majority Leader John Thune has not set a floor vote before the Aug. 7 recess.

Key Takeaways

• The Senate left town Thursday with no Protect College Sports Act vote on the calendar.
• Big Ten and SEC presidents voted Friday night to support the latest draft after weeks of talks.
• The bill would raise athlete pay pools, tighten NIL loopholes, and grant limited antitrust cover.
• Without a vote before the Aug. 7 recess, budget fights and campaigning could crowd out action.
• NCAA president Charlie Baker called the measure college sports' best chance at federal stability.

For readers tracking how big-money athletics reshape campus budgets and athlete pay, the stalled bill sits at the center of Net Worth & Wealth coverage of college sports finance.

According to ESPN, administrators from the Big Ten and SEC met Thursday on the expansive Senate bill but did not vote that day. The two leagues span 26 states, and their public support is widely seen as essential to building enough votes.

By Friday night, that picture shifted. Politico reported that a majority of presidents and chancellors in both conferences backed the Protect College Sports Act after negotiations with Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Maria Cantwell (D-Washington), and Eric Schmitt (R-Missouri). The conferences issued a joint statement supporting the bill "as currently drafted."

Why did the Senate skip a Protect College Sports Act vote?

Leadership never scheduled floor time before adjourning for the week. A Senate aide told ESPN there was "technically still time" for Thune to call a vote early next week, but odds shrink daily as the Aug. 7 summer recess approaches.

Cruz has called the bill the NCAA's "last, best hope" for congressional help. After a 2021 Supreme Court ruling limited the NCAA's power to restrict athlete pay and benefits, schools and conferences have spent millions lobbying for federal rules on transfers, eligibility, and compensation.

What would the Protect College Sports Act change for athlete pay?

The latest draft would give the NCAA a limited antitrust exemption to enforce rules and would cap power-conference membership at 19 schools. It would also let schools pool media rights for joint sales, a move expected to lift revenue for programs outside the Big Ten and SEC.

On pay, schools now can spend roughly $21 million in direct athlete payments. The bill would add a $22.5 million "retention pool" and a $5 million pool for women's teams. Big Ten and SEC officials had worried endorsement deals through business partners could still blow past any hard cap; Commerce staff later strengthened "associated entities" language to close that loophole, helping win conference support.

What happens if Congress does not pass the bill soon?

Without a new federal law, Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti said his league may seek a higher spending cap from the College Sports Commission—or craft its own rules. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey floated a similar path. Neither signaled a full break from the NCAA, but other administrators fear the two richest conferences could leave rivals further behind.

Baker urged leaders to act now, arguing the Protect College Sports Act would expand athlete academic and health benefits, rein in agents, and stabilize transfer, eligibility, and revenue-sharing rules. Whether that call reaches the Senate floor before recess remains the open question.