The News
NCAA President Charlie Baker is feeling “pretty good” about the prospects for Senate passage of bipartisan college sports legislation.
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President → feel → legislation
As for whether it will get to President Donald Trump’s desk this year — well, one step at a time.
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it → get → time
“One of the things that you know I learned from my 16 years in state government is: This is a one-bite-at-a-time type business,” Baker told Semafor in an interview this week, adding that “I’m hopeful that if the Senate can get something done here, that the House will find a way to make this part of what they deal with” after the election.
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they → know → election
It’s a good moment for an experienced politician to lead the NCAA, whose very future is on the line in Congress one way or another.
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future → ’ → Congress
A former moderate GOP governor of Massachusetts, Baker is guiding his organization to the precipice of a vote that could stabilize college sports after long seasons of turbulence in the $14 billion-plus economy surrounding it.
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that → guide → it
Baker’s been a visible presence on Capitol Hill since taking the reins at the NCAA in 2023, overseeing a sprawling network of sports from football and basketball to wrestling and volleyball.
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Baker → take → wrestling
He’s spurred his share of big change, moving to provide healthcare benefits for injured athletes after they leave school, implement a school-based revenue sharing model, and place limits on the transfer portal.
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they → spur → portal
He’s also working to establish a massive portal database that will allow athletes to research where their fellow competitors transferred to — and how it worked out for them to offer “a little more clarity about what’s real and what’s not, so the kids can make better decisions,” he said.
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he → work → decisions
But there are limits to how far Baker’s NCAA can go without Congress.
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NCAA → be → Congress
That’s where the Senate bill comes in, with prohibitions on pro athletes playing college sports, firm limits on eligibility and transfers, restrictions on some conference realignment, and a higher cap on schools’ spending to pay and retain athletes.
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athletes → ’ → athletes
“We do have some very fundamental issues that would make a big difference, for certainty purposes around rules and around eligibility and around money and around transfers,” Baker said.
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Baker → have → transfers
“Those things would help sort of settle down a lot of the uncertainty that exists now.”
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that → help → uncertainty
Just a few minutes before his interview with Semafor, a court found that former Purdue men’s basketball player Trey Kaufman-Renn could pursue another year of eligibility after four years on the Boilermakers.
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Renn → find → Boilermakers
It was the latest confusing turn in the ongoing saga over who can play college sports and who can’t, a debate that’s tying up the courts and making popular sports incredibly confusing to fans and players alike.
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sports → play → fans
Baker also said it’s pulling resources away from what the NCAA actually wants to focus on, too.
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NCAA → say → what
“We are spending more money on championships than we’ve ever spent before.
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we → spend → championships
We have more people coming to them than we’ve ever had before.
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we → have → them
That’s a really great story,” Baker said.
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Baker → ’ → ?
“But we’re all spending a lot of money on lawyers, and I think all of us would rather spend that money on something else.”
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all → spend → something
Know More
Baker has a deep history in government.
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Baker → know → government
After leading two major state government agencies in the 1990s, he served for eight as Massachusetts governor under three presidents: Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden.
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he → lead → presidents
Now he’s working in tandem with Republicans whose politics sharply diverge from his strand of New England pragmatism, including both Trump and Senate Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz, R-Texas.
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politics → work → Trump
Baker praised both of them in an interview, as well as Democrats like Sens. Maria Cantwell of Washington and Chris Coons of Delaware who are working on the bill.
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who → praise → bill
Baker said Trump has made it possible to get where they are, though they haven’t had a specific conversation about the legislation.
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they → say → legislation
“His voice and the participation of a lot of the folks in his administration has made a big difference.
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voice → make → difference
There’s no question about that,” Baker said.
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Baker → ’ → that
Senate Republicans may face a few defections on the college sports bill in the next few days.
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Republicans → face → days
But the real question mark is Democrats, who could filibuster it outright.
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who → filibuster → it
Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Chris Murphy of Connecticut, and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut are among those lawmakers advocating against the bill behind the scenes.
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Booker → advocate → scenes
Murphy told Semafor recently that he doesn’t “buy the argument that this is a demonstrably better version of the SCORE Act,” a House bill that Democrats turned on last year because it stifled unionization among athletes.
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it → tell → athletes
Baker said the bill includes some items he doesn’t necessarily agree with and omits others he wants, declining to share further specifics.
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he → say → specifics
But he portrayed it as critical simplification for a college athletics world that has grown more complex by the year, thanks in part to ad hoc legal challenges.
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that → portray → challenges
It’s the kind of approach that got him reelected as a Republican in Massachusetts — and could help him put this legislation over the top in a narrowly divided Senate right before the election.
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him → ’ → election
“Does this make things better or worse?
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things → make → ?
And I think it’s very hard to argue that this bill doesn’t make things better,” Baker said.
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Baker → think → ?
Several backers of the bill have said they don’t see how college sports can survive without congressional intervention.
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sports → say → intervention
Baker wouldn’t address what might happen if this Congress can’t pass the bill.
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Congress → address → bill
“Well, why don’t we talk about that, Burgess, at the end of the year, okay?
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we → talk → year
Because for now, I’m really focused on trying to get it passed,” Baker said.
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Baker → ’m → ?
Burgess’s view
Baker’s done as much as he can to keep the NCAA relevant and implement changes that integrate paid athletes and new benefits, but college sports officials really need a bill right now to help avoid a bigger blow to a durable American institution — and this is the only game in town.
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this → do → town
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
