NCAA Exec Dir Cedric Dempsey said the NCAA is considering
paying its athletes. Dempsey revealed the "potentially dramatic
about-face" during the NACDA convention in FL. If approved,
Dempsey said, the money most likely would be given to athletes
"as a loan repaid with pro earnings or from a trust fund funded
by endorsements," according to Bart Hubbuch of the DALLAS MORNING
NEWS. An NCAA committee is studying two ideas which could be
proposed as legislation during the NCAA convention next January.
Dempsey: "It's a changing world, and we've got to change our
thinking." The loan would allow high-profile athletes to get an
unspecified amount from schools, with the pro leagues setting up
and running loan programs and identifying potential high draft
picks who might qualify for extra money. Under the second
proposal, "name athletes" would receive money from a trust fund
tied to their share of endorsement revenue (DALLAS MORNING NEWS,
6/12).
NCAA NEWS: A committee examining the NCAA's marketing and
licensing effort said the Association's current effort "is too
conservative" and that the NCAA "should be more aggressive and
flexible." The report, to be considered at the August meetings,
concluded that opportunities exist to promote college athletics
in "a good way" and proposed a joint licensing program with NCAA
and institutional marks to be used together (NCAA NEWS, 6/3
issue).