Power 4 Commissioners Praise Trump College Sports Order
Commissioners of college sports' Power 4 conferences issued statements thanking President Donald Trump for his latest executive order on athlete rules. The Big Ten, SEC, ACC and Big 12 leaders posted on social media Friday evening, expressing uniform support for the action targeting transfers, eligibility and pay-for-play arrangements. They coupled appreciation with calls for Congress to enact national standards via the SCORE Act.
The order directs federal agencies to evaluate restrictions on funding for universities violating rules limiting transfers to one per athlete, capping eligibility at five years, and prohibiting pay-for-play through booster collectives. It also emphasizes protection for women's and Olympic sports funding. Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti stated the conference thanks Trump for leadership and urges Congress to pass the bipartisan SCORE Act, which addresses name, image and likeness rights while safeguarding academic and athletic opportunities.
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey highlighted the need for consistent national standards, noting the order provides clarity and expressing gratitude for bipartisan congressional engagement. Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark called federal action essential and endorsed the SCORE Act for long-term stability. ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips thanked the administration for protecting college athletics following a White House roundtable on the issues.
The order follows a roundtable hosted by Trump roughly a month earlier, where the SCORE Act featured prominently. That bipartisan bill, which gained White House endorsement, would grant the NCAA a limited antitrust exemption, bar athletes from employee status and prevent schools from using student fees for name, image and likeness payments. A recent court-approved settlement requires the NCAA and Power conferences to pay nearly $2.8 billion in back damages to Division I athletes from 2016 to 2025 and permits direct payments to athletes by programs.
