Big 12 Leads in Signing NIL Participation Agreements

The Big 12 conference has taken a significant step forward in the regulation of name, image, and likeness (NIL) payments by becoming the first Power Four conference to have all its members sign participation agreements with the College Sports Commission (CSC). Established last year, the CSC aims to oversee and enforce regulations around NIL deals.

“The Big 12 wants rules and enforcements, and we want to be a leader in that area,” stated Brett Yormark, the Big 12 commissioner, expressing the conference’s commitment to lead in this initiative. The statement followed the league’s four-day annual meetings.

The participation agreement requires member schools to relinquish their right to litigate against the enforcement body. This agreement allows the CSC extensive authority to impose penalties on programs that contravene the rules for player payments, as outlined after last summer’s House settlement.

However, for the agreement to take effect across Power Four conferences, all 68 schools involved need to sign the 11-page document. All members were initially asked to review and approve the document by the previous December.

Yormark highlighted, “I can’t speak for the other conferences. I mean, obviously, they all say they want rules and enforcement, but they haven’t signed the participation agreement.”

Kansas State President Richard Linton confirmed that the Big 12 board of directors, consisting of presidents and chancellors from the league’s 16 schools, unanimously agreed to sign.

Yormark indicated that they anticipated collecting all necessary signatures by the following week.

The agreement includes regulations established after the House settlement, such as salary cap guidance and the CSC’s responsibilities in evaluating third-party NIL deals through the NIL Go platform. Bryan Seeley, CSC’s CEO, addressed members and officials of the Big 12 during their North Texas meetings.

According to the CSC, over 26,000 NIL deals amounting to $242.3 million have been approved since its inception until May 1.

Yormark noted his participation in a call with the CSC and other conference commissioners, underlining the need for ongoing assessment and adjustment by stating, “Like any startup, and the CSC is a startup, not even 12 months old, you have to think about what’s working and what’s not and what are the necessary adjustments both short-term and long-term that we should be considering.” Yormark expressed optimism about CSC’s future, adding, “And we’re going to dive into that a little bit more in the coming weeks to determine what that might look like… But I’m bullish on the direction of the CSC.”

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