March at a Crossroads: NCAA tournament expansion is closer than you think

Welcome to the weekend.

Thanks for making NIL Wire part of your Saturday. We have updates on dreaded NCAA tournament expansion, South Carolina lawmakers potentially doing a turnabout and Florida head football coach Jon Sumrall holding his players accountable in the NIL era.

I’ll have a loaded week, beginning Tuesday with some thoughts on the future of the NCAA tournament. Please subscribe and sign up to read exclusive content.

— Kyle

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THE BIG 3

NCAA tournament expansion push is back

Here we go again.

Few issues generate more justified concern than expansion of the NCAA tournament. What was once a speculative idea has steadily evolved into inevitability. And the implications for the sport are significant.

On Thursday in Indianapolis, Charlie Baker made his position clear. The NCAA president indicated a preference for expanding the field beyond its current 68 teams, with 76 emerging as the most frequently discussed possibility. That is not idle chatter. When the NCAA president signals alignment with expansion, the conversation has moved well beyond theory.

“I think there’s some very good reasons to expand the tournament,” Baker said, “so I would like to see it expand.”

Dan Gavitt, the NCAA’s senior VP of basketball, emphasized that no final decision will be made until after this year’s tournament. 

The reason for potential expansion is – of course! – money. Shocking, I know. The NCAA’s current media rights deal with CBS and Warner Bros. Discovery runs through 2032 and pays approximately $1.1 billion annually. Expansion represents more inventory, which represents leverage. And leverage in modern college athletics represents opportunity.

Baker has acknowledged that logistical hurdles exist. Scheduling, travel and preserving the integrity of the bracket are not trivial matters. Yet from an enterprise perspective, the calculus is straightforward – if adding teams increases the value of the media package, the NCAA is going to move forward, especially since many of the most powerful voices in the Big Ten and SEC want a larger tournament as well.

Baker did make one good point. If there are additional NCAA tournament units available to schools and conferences, it will incentivize them to invest in basketball and provide resources to succeed. A stronger financial ecosystem can elevate the sport’s overall standard. 

But at what point does expansion dilute a national cultural phenomenon?

The NCAA would be wise to tread lightly. Fans have already spoken on this, and there is considerable pushback against expansion.

Are taxpayers funding athlete payrolls in South Carolina?

For months, lawmakers in South Carolina have been working to seal off revenue-sharing contracts from public scrutiny. That effort has now stalled. Not because anyone had a sudden epiphany about open government, but because an uncomfortable question arose: Are taxpayer dollars flowing to college athletes?

In fiscal year 2025, Clemson athletics took $20 million in institutional support. South Carolina received $22 million in 2024 (you can check all of this data for almost every public school in the Extra Points Library). Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey has zeroed in on whether state-appropriated funds or tuition revenue are being funneled into athletic department accounts that now include revenue-sharing obligations to players. 

If that pipeline exists, the public isn’t just subsidizing stadium lights and coaching buyouts – it’s underwriting payroll. 

The flashpoint came when a private citizen filed an open records request seeking revenue-sharing contracts for South Carolina football players. Naturally, instead of compliance, the response was legislative triage. The General Assembly moved quickly to wall off access. Clemson argued that the contracts are “trade secrets.”

Until recently, these agreements were public record if the university was a party to them. That loophole – if you want to call transparency a loophole – has now been removed. Lawmakers amended the state’s NIL statute, striking the “unless they are a party” language. 

But the bill hasn’t crossed the finish line. Gov. Henry McMaster has refused to rubber-stamp it. In January, he said he was against shielding contracts from the Freedom of Information Act. 

“It ought to be public,” McMaster said. “It shouldn’t be happening in the first place. I think that NIL is ruining college sports. I don’t think we’ll understand the impact it’s having on college sports unless we know how much athletes are being paid.”

Jon Sumrall: Accountability comes with a check 💵 

Over the past several years, I’ve had ongoing conversations with media colleagues and coaches about the boundaries of fairness in covering college athletes. Where is the line? What’s responsible criticism, and what crosses it?

That line has shifted dramatically in the NIL era. The answer to a once-sensitive question feels far more straightforward: Yes, it is OK to criticize players. Not recklessly, but honestly. Accountability is no longer optional when athletes are market participants, not just scholarship recipients.

Add Florida football coach Jon Sumrall to the growing list of coaches willing to say the quiet part out loud.

Appearing on Sirius XM College Sports this week, Sumrall didn’t dance around it. He acknowledged that the days of coddling are over because the economics have changed.

“I actually think it’s easier, because if a guy wants to act some sort of way about having to do something tough, I’m like, ‘Dude, you make money. Shut up, bro. You’re getting paid, dog. Put the work in,’” Sumrall said. “I think some coaches in the world we’re living in of the transfer portal and NIL have gotten softer, I’ve probably gotten crazier. I’m like, ‘No, don’t tell me about this is too hard. We’re all pros here. Be a pro.’”

This isn’t a license for online mobs or cheap-shot commentary. There’s a difference between accountability and harassment. But this new era requires a recalibration. When athletes step into endorsement deals, negotiate contracts and enter the transfer portal with leverage, they also step into a performance economy. You don’t get the upside without accepting the scrutiny.

Sumrall’s approach reflects something else: credibility. When he took over a struggling program, he didn’t just talk about toughness, he embodied it. He told players they had to earn the right to wear the Florida Gator logo. He lifts alongside them. He sweats with them. He demands more because he gives more.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

Ohio State prez lashes out at NIL

Ohio State President Ted Carter sat down with WBNS Channel 10 in Columbus for a wide-ranging interview about the state of college sports. During a discussion about NIL, Carter said the model is “not sustainable” and needs to change within three years.

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NIL BLITZ

♦️ Tennessee AD Danny White claps back at NCAA President Charlie Baker after he pooh-poohed collective bargaining.

♦️ Texas Tech is in the market for a stadium naming rights partner after AT&T ended its deal.

♦️ A rebranding of the MAAC is on the way. And to kick things off, the MAAC and the MAC put together a humorous video.

♦️ How excited are North Dakota State boosters about the move to FBS? They’ve already pledged $25 million.

♦️ Arizona State is building a $55 million football facility with 106,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor practice field space. But, yeah, schools just don’t have enough money.

♦️ UW-Green Bay coach Doug Gottlieb is suspended for one game after criticizing officials last weekend.

♦️ UCLA coach Mick Cronin gave a lengthy apology for his behavior at the Michigan State game.

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BATTER UP

Today’s Poll Question:

Last Edition’s Poll Results:

If cost wasn’t a barrier, which Winter Olympic event would you want as an NCAA-sanctioned sport?

• Bobsleigh - 31%

• Skeleton - 3%

• Ski jumping - 12%

• Curling - 21%

• Short track speed skating - 29%

• Other - 4%