Well, we all knew it was simply too good to be true earlier this month after Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 2804 , the bill made its way through the Texas House, which focused on state-based NIL reform that would go into effect on Saturday, July 1. On Tuesday, the NCAA informed all member schools that programs, like Texas A&M and Texas, will violate “association rules” if they abide by their State passed NIL reform, wielding their power once again. For Texas A&M, The 12th Man Foundation described as,
The 12th Man+ Fund was established to further the 12th Man Foundation’s mission while enhancing the student-athlete experience at Texas A&M through name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities.
12th Man+ is a new avenue of support through the 12th Man Foundation designed to compensate student-athletes for promoting the organization through charitable marketing services.
According to the foundation, Every donor will have the opportunity to donate funds to specific sports or to contribute to a general A&M fund which will be distributed to every sport while providing incentives between donors and players in a completely legal manner.
The Texas Longhorns, whose Longhorn Foundation provides essentially the same services, will also be directly affected by the ruling, as NCAA executive vice president of regulatory affairs Steve Wilcox released the following statement:
“The Association has been clear and maintains that schools must adhere to NCAA legislation (or policy) when it conflicts with permissive state laws,” Wilcox wrote in the letter. “In other words, if a state law permits certain institutional action and NCAA legislation prohibits the same action, institutions must follow NCAA legislation.”
In lamens terms, the NCAA believes that the current NIL state laws in Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas are meaningless based on the current power structure that puts them in charge of every and any future change, leading to Texas A&M Athletic Director Ross Bjork to reveal the Aggies’ strategy moving forward:
“The state law is going to govern how we do business,” Bjork stated. “We will continue to communicate with the NCAA on a variety of matters, but in terms of this, the state law will reign.”
There it is. Expect more information regarding the ruling to be released as the 2023 CFB season draws closer, but as things stand from Texas A&M’s purview, this is just the start of what may be a continuous power struggle.
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