Senate nears vote on bill to overhaul college sports

ST. LOUIS — A bipartisan bill backed by Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt could reshape college athletics by limiting athlete transfers, protecting scholarships and giving the NCAA more authority to enforce rules.

Appearing on FOX 2, Schmitt said the Senate is expected to vote this week on his Protect College Sports Act after lawmakers cleared a key procedural hurdle with support from 77 senators.

Schmitt argued college athletics has become increasingly unstable in recent years because of unlimited transfers, revenue-sharing changes and evolving rules surrounding athlete compensation.

“It’s a uniquely American institution,” Schmitt said. “You have 27-year-olds competing with 17-year-olds now, unlimited transfers, people going pro and coming back.”

The legislation would provide limited antitrust protections that Schmitt says would allow the NCAA to enforce new guardrails, including a five-year eligibility window and a one-time free transfer opportunity for student-athletes.

Schmitt said the bill also aims to protect non-revenue sports as colleges begin sharing more revenue with athletes.

“What’s going to start to happen is that they’re going to start dropping some of these non-revenue sports,” Schmitt said. “Baseball could be one of them, women’s lacrosse, women’s field hockey, sports like that.”

Under the proposal, athletes would still be allowed to sign name, image and likeness, or NIL, deals if they serve legitimate business purposes.

Schmitt said the bill includes new protections for athletes, including health insurance coverage for five years after leaving school and scholarship protections for injured players.

“It’s a bipartisan bill,” Schmitt said. “We all care about what’s going on.”

If passed by the Senate, the legislation would move to the House. Schmitt said he believes the measure has enough bipartisan support to eventually reach President Donald Trump’s desk.

“We’re in the red zone,” Schmitt said. “Let’s finish the deal here.”

DISCLAIMER: All facts from this article were gathered by KTVI journalists. This article was converted into this format with assistance from artificial intelligence. It has been edited and approved by KTVI staff.