Bubba Cunningham is the athletic director at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He supports NIL deals but believes the current compensation model for student athletes needs improvement. He says so-called “collectives” are part of the problem.
“We had our alumni collect money and give it to the players, and it was fabricated NIL. It wasn’t real NIL that you would think about in professional leagues,” he explained.
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A new bill sponsored by Sens. Ten Cruz and Maria Cantwell would set federal standards and minimum contract requirements for NIL deals. It would put a limit on athlete transfers, a ban on midseason coaching changes and new rules for agents to prevent student athletes from being exploited.
Cunningham says he wants to make sure college athletes don’t become university employees.
“What is the right and fair compensation model in today’s environment? The courts have told us that what we’ve done in the past isn’t going to work going forward, so we have to adjust and make changes to fit today’s legal environment,” he said.
A recent antitrust lawsuit against the NCAA resulted in a $2.8 billion settlement, aimed at compensating former student-athletes who weren’t allowed to benefit from NIL deals. Cunningham says the court rulings in those cases highlight what needs to change, but he always wants to ensure the good progress made in collegiate sports over the past few decades is preserved.
“What we’re trying to do is balance Title IX and the educational experience with an incredible commercial endeavor embedded within higher education,” Cunningham said.
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The Senate Commerce Committee is holding a hearing to discuss the Protect College Sports Act of 2026 on Wednesday. Beyond addressing NIL issues, the bill also proposes changes to a range of other issues tied to college sports, including media broadcast rules, ensuring athletes have medical coverage and protecting women’s and Olympic sports.
“We’re also the funding mechanism for the Olympic movement. So all of the Olympians, 75% of the participants in the Olympics for the United States, were college athletes, and there’s no government support for the Olympic movement,” said Cunningham.
He wants to make sure professional sports, college sports and Olympics sports are all supported under whatever changes Congress institutes.