College athletics can be rather confusing, especially recently. While Congress is attempting to “fix” college sports, the football playoff field may double in size, professional athletes are attempting to make their way back to college fields and more conference realignment is on the horizon. There is more money being thrown out in today’s game than ever before.
A new series from The Daily Mississippian, called College Sports, Inc., seeks to explain the complexities of today’s sports landscape.
Last year, athletic departments across the nation spent $1.8 billion on name, image and likeness payments. According to the College Board, the average in-state four-year tuition and fee rate is $11,950. With the $1.8 billion spent on NIL every year, 150,000 four-year college degrees could be paid for.
While NIL is funded by third-party sources, athletic departments are also sharing millions of dollars in revenue with their athletes.
Ole Miss Athletics spent $56.4 million in combined NIL and revenue sharing this year, which puts the school 13th in NIL spending nationwide. The department is also making recording-breaking revenue; Ole Miss Athletics will make $200 million for the first time ever in 2027.
Is all the focus on money starting to affect fans? The on-field product remains as riveting as ever, with upsets and games coming down to the wire every week; however, ratings are slightly down. Fans are still tuning into games every Saturday by the millions, but college football viewership was down 11% through four weeks in 2026 compared to 2025.
Just two games have topped 10 million viewers thus far in 2026: Ohio State vs. Texas and Ole Miss vs. LSU. Compared to last season, when four games in Week 1 alone topped the 10 million mark, the views are not stacking up like they did previously.
In September, the U.S. Senate passed the Protect College Sports Act (PCSA). The bill would bring remarkable changes to college athletics. If signed into law, the PCSA would essentially double the revenue share cap, which currently stands at $22.5 million, to nearly $50 million.
Conferences are also preparing for a world without the PCSA. Most cannot afford to have the transfer market continue to climb in price every year. Players are getting more and more expensive. Without federal legislation, programs may get desperate to stay relevant.
At the beginning of the 2026 college football season, LSU attempted to roster former Rebels Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris. However, both players had previously signed with NFL teams before being cut.
Ole Miss Men’s Basketball has two rostered players that signed G-League contracts with NBA teams. Their eligibility is in question with only a couple weeks left until the season begins.
Another component of the PCSA is that Power Four conferences are limited to 20 teams. If the bill becomes law, the SEC, Big 10, Big 12 and ACC could attempt to reach that limit. Notable ACC brands like Florida State and Miami could leave the conference for a stronger one.
The College Sports, Inc. series will include stories about a potential collective bargaining agreement for college athletes, modern-day revenue sharing, what former Rebels think about NIL, Ole Miss’ H6IM5N campaign and what it costs to field teams in football, basketball and baseball.
