How does the House settlement affect Illinois FCS schools? Not well, based on fallout thus far

The House v. NCAA settlement resulted in nearly $2.8 billion in damages to be paid over 10 years. According to published reports, that breaks down to approximately $280,000 annually for FCS schools, including the four Illinois institutions. (Photo by Saluki Communications)

By Dan Verdun

The four Illinois FCS programs will play a combined five games against FBS opponents this season. Those games will generate $2,585,000 in guaranteed money.

However, that money is more needed than ever given the recent House v. NCAA settlement, which resulted in nearly $2.8 billion in damages to be paid over 10 years. According to published reports, that breaks down to approximately $280,000 annually for FCS schools.

This amount is part of the larger back-pay cost that the NCAA and participating schools are covering for athletes who were denied opportunities to earn from their name, image and likeness (NIL) between 2016 and 2024.

“The House Settlement is probably the singular most impactful change to college athletics since the NCAA began overseeing college sports, certainly in the 40 years I have been involved with Division I,” Western Illinois athletic director Paul A. Bubb told Prairie State Pigskin. “The impacts are significant, both in terms of student-athlete gains, as well as institutional costs. Each institution in the Ohio Valley Conference, for example, will see their revenues from the NCAA decrease by at least $275,000 a year for the next 10 years as the NCAA settles with the claimants in the lawsuit.”

Bubb said schools in other conferences may see a different impact, but “this is what our membership anticipates.”

“In addition to that loss of revenue from the NCAA, we are now faced with deciding how we, Western Illinois, as well as the other schools in the OVC, are going to work with our student-athletes in the new world of NIL,” Bubb said.

Jeri Beggs was named Illinois State University’s athletic director in March. Beggs, a professor for 21 years at ISU, had served as the interim AD since May 1, 2023.

Like Bubb, Beggs understands the magnitude of the settlement.

“To put it simply, this is the greatest change in Division I in history,” she said. “Most fans have heard of the $2.8 billion settlement but are not aware of the other changes included in the injunction. We’re moving from scholarship limits to roster limits. Institutions will be allowed to bring NIL in house. And the list goes on. It’s going to take years before we truly know the impact of this settlement.”

According to Forbes, the NCAA is paying $1.1 billion of the settlement for those past damages. Approximately $1.65 billion is being paid by the Power 4 conference schools. The remaining 27 Division I conferences are paying $990 million. 

Outgoing Missouri Valley Football Conference commissioner Patty Viverito declined Prairie State Pigskin’s request for comment until the House settlement was completely resolved. With continued ongoing litigation, that likely won’t happen in the foreseeable future.

In June, Ohio Valley Conference commissioner Beth DeBauche did comment, saying the settlement at last brings “clarity” to college athletics.

“The House Settlement marks a significant turning point for college athletics,” DeBauche said.  “While change can be challenging, it also brings opportunity. We are encouraged to finally have clarity around this issue, and the Ohio Valley Conference member institutions remain fully committed to working together to ensure that our student-athletes are supported in meaningful and lasting ways.”

The OVC administrative office confirmed earlier this week that the Big South-OVC is opting into the House settlement with no scholarship caps.

The Missouri Valley Football Conference is expected to announce a decision soon.

The FCS fallout

The impact of the settlement has already hit some schools. 

In March, Saint Francis University, located in Loretto, Pa., dropped its athletic programs to Division III from D-I, meaning it will no longer offer athletic scholarships.

“This was not an easy nor a quick decision for the Board of Trustees,” Chairman and the Very Rev. Joseph Lehman said in a statement. “The governance associated with intercollegiate athletics has always been complicated and is only growing in complexity based on realities like the transfer portal, pay-for-play, and other shifts that move athletics away from love of the game. For that reason, as a board, we aim to best provide resources and support to our student-athletes in this changing environment that aligns with our mission, Catholic institution, and our community’s expectations.”

Bubb – who previously served as athletic director at Cal State Northridge, the University of Maine and Idaho State University – addressed St. Francis’ decision.

“Most athletic programs around the nation are changing significantly, from what sports they offer to how sports are funded. St. Francis dropping from D-I to D-III is interesting and what most do not know is the why?” Bubb said. “Most would assume it is the cost of doing business, but it may be something more basic: Philosophically not agreeing with what D-I is becoming with paying student-athletes above and beyond athletic scholarships.”

Is it possible that Illinois FCS schools could drop their programs to lower levels? Bubb does not expect that.

“Those cost savings are minimal and normally include a decrease in revenue from ticket sales, sponsorships and conference revenue sharing. I do not anticipate a decrease in D-I membership,” Bubb said.

Beggs is following the impact on other universities and their athletic programs “very carefully.”

“Everyone is looking for ways to save money so that they can share revenue with student-athletes,” she said. “Some universities are cutting programs and administrative positions. Others are charging ticket fees in order to have more funds for revenue share.”

Illinois State, a member of the MVFC, will seek a variety of ways to bring in revenue.

“It’s affecting all of us. The numbers are just bigger for the Power 4 conferences,” Beggs said. “We are fortunate to have a great fan and donor base that continues to step up in their philanthropic and ticket support of the Redbirds. All four ticketed sports saw an increase in attendance for us this past year and we launched our Battle Bird Society in September, which saw great success in year one.”

Bubb noted that Division I membership has grown from 290 schools in the early 2000s to more than 360 today.

“While most of us would prefer to not drop sports, how we fund the sports we maintain will change,” Bubb said. “Many colleagues at other Division I programs have shared the significant cuts they have made to those sports budgets or how they choose to continue. I believe we will see many programs, even those at the Power 4 conferences, become more like club sports with regional travel, no or very limited scholarships, and reduced operating budgets.”

Eastern Illinois has already reduced its athletic offerings.

In May, EIU announced its men’s and women’s tennis programs were being dropped. EIU president Jay Gatrell cited the NCAA funding distribution from the House settlement as the cut’s main cause, according to The Daily Eastern News, the university’s student-run publication.

Gatrell, who was appointed EIU president in July 2023, foreshadowed the looming financial challenges last fall.

“It’s challenging to think about institutions like Eastern paying a disproportionate share of their annual budgets to reach a settlement in a case in which they weren’t named a part,” Gatrell told The Daily Eastern News in October, “and in a case where they don’t really yield any benefits from the legislation or protections for the next 10 years.” 

Gatrell isn’t alone with his sentiments. 

Tom Wistriell is the commissioner of the Big Sky Conference, which plays FCS football. He was quoted in Forbes from an interview with a Utah radio station.

“We didn’t get a say in this, and now we’re paying this tax – essentially getting our wages garnished – and nothing to say about it, nothing to do with it, and certainly our former student-athletes aren’t benefiting from this,” Wistreill said.

Moving ahead

The question of fairness is out the window. Universities and athletic departments must now chart new courses to combat the loss of revenue.

“We have to replace the funding that we’re losing from the NCAA first of all,” Beggs said. “We can help ourselves by selling tickets, finding new sponsorship opportunities and asking our loyal fans to help us. 

“Second, we need to continue to look for ways to support our student-athletes through scholarships and NIL in order to remain competitive.”

A coach’s perspective

Southern Illinois head coach Nick Hill maintains that his focus is on his team rather than decisions that are out of his control. That said, the 40-year-old Hill is fully aware of the financial ramifications of the House decision.

“It’s going to have a huge impact,” Hill said. “Some teams are able to revenue-share. I feel like the majority of us at FCS aren’t going to be revenue-sharing, though some probably will. 

“Even at this school, I don’t get much say (in those decisions). I try not to even let it affect me. People have been talking about this for months. You think about the amount of time spent sitting around and speculating and complaining and here we are in June and nobody still knows (the full picture).”

Like many in his position, Hill is well aware today’s college football isn’t like the one of even a few years ago.

“The right people are talking about it. There just needs to be some clarity for everybody,” he said. “We’re living in a world of college athletics where there is a lot of uncertainty and not many rules. 

“So whatever institution you’re at, you’ve just got to do the best you can. At the end of the day, I tell our staff we’ve got to go play our schedule. Nobody talks about that (revenue) at the end of the game in the press conference. Hopefully though, in the end there will be some sort of alignment. Whatever that looks like, we will adjust to it.”

The ever-widening gap

To illustrate the distance between FCS football and an FBS perennial national championship contender, consider this:  According to published reports, the Alabama Crimson Tide football program brought in $140.6 million for the fiscal year 2024. EIU’s total athletic budget was reported to be approximately $3.25 million.

This coming season, EIU plays a Nov. 22 non-conference game in Tuscaloosa against the Crimson Tide. EIU will receive a $560,000 payout from Alabama for the game. 

Meanwhile, the University of Illinois athletics program set records in the last fiscal year for both revenue and expenses, according to a Feb. 1 Champaign News-Gazette story. The bottom line showed the program finished about $4.6 million in the black, the paper said.

Western Illinois opens its season Aug. 29 against the Fighting Illini at Memorial Stadium. WIU is contracted to receive a $500,000 guarantee for the game. Western plays its second game at Northwestern Sept. 6 and will earn a $400,000 guarantee.

A year ago, Eastern Illinois played two revenue-generating games against the same two FBS schools from the Big Ten for similar paydays.

Illinois State did not benefit from playing an FBS opponent a year ago when the University of Oklahoma asked to push back a scheduled game last season to Aug. 30 of this year.

So what are the best- and worst-case scenarios for the Illinois FCS programs?

“The frustrating part for schools like us is that we didn’t earn any of the money that the lawsuit was based on (TV contracts, etc.) and our former student-athletes won’t get any of the back damages and yet we’re losing money from NCAA distributions for the next 10 years,” Beggs said. “Having said that, Illinois State is in a better position than most to weather the storm and find ways to be successful in this changing environment.”

“There are no best- and worst-case scenarios,” Bubb said, “there is simply moving forward as an FCS Division I athletic program in the Ohio Valley Conference. There are new opportunities for our student-athletes as well as new challenges for our coaches and staff, but we will adjust and continue to move forward.” 

Breakdown of FBS guaranteed money for 2025 games involving Illinois FCS teams

Illinois State at Oklahoma (Aug. 30) $625,000 

Eastern Illinois at Alabama (Nov. 22) $560,000

Southern Illinois at Purdue (Sept. 6) $500,000

Western Illinois at Illinois (Aug. 29) $500,000

Western Illinois at Northwestern (Sept. 6) $400,000

Dan Verdun is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin. He has written four books: NIU Huskies Football, EIU Panthers Football, ISU Redbirds Football and SIU Salukis Football.

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