Big Ten, Power Five say settlement in NCAA v House is 'important step in the continuing reform of college sports'

It has been a transformative week in the world of college athletics, with the NCAA and its Power Five conferences — the Big Ten, SEC, ACC, Big 12 and Pac-12 — agreeing to a 10-figure settlement in which athletes will be compensated directly from the schools for which they competed.

On Thursday, the settlement in the House v. NCAA case was formally announced, with former Division I athletes set to receive $2.75 billion in back-pay damages and a model in which major-conference athletes and their schools will take part in revenue sharing.

It represents a sharp break not only from the amateur model that defined college sports for the overwhelming majority of its history, but even from the past several years, when athletes have been able to earn compensation from their name, image and likeness from third parties.

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In the hours since the settlement became public, the Big Ten joined the other four Power Five member conferences, as well as the NCAA, in releasing a statement discussing the significant news.

“The five autonomy conferences and the NCAA agreeing to settlement terms is an important step in the continuing reform of college sports that will provide benefits to student-athletes and provide clarity in college athletics across all divisions for years to come,” the statement read. “This settlement is also a roadmap for college sports leaders and Congress to ensure this uniquely American institution can continue to provide unmatched opportunity for millions of students. All of Division I made today’s progress possible, and we all have work to do to implement the terms of the agreement as the legal process continues. We look forward to working with our various student-athlete leadership groups to write the next chapter of college sports.”

The Big Ten, with some of the biggest and most successful athletic departments among NCAA schools, stands to be impacted by these payouts and revenue-sharing arrangements as much as, if not more, than any other league.

During the 2023 fiscal year, the conference brought in nearly $880 million in total revenue and distributed about $60.5 million to each of its 12 longest-tenured members, according to recently released federal tax documents. Both of those figures are the highest of any Division I league.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Big Ten: Settlement in NCAA v House is 'important step' in college sports reform