The NCAA money is real -- and it’s still going in the pockets of the executives.
Donald Remy, the NCAA’s former Chief Operating Officer reportedly received $2.4 million worth of severance pay in 2021 according to USA Today’s Steve Berkowitz. His total 2021 compensation was $3.6 million when including a salary worth $860,000 and other bonuses.
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Remy left the NCAA in July 2021 to work for the Biden Administration as the deputy secretary for Veterans Affairs -- a position he held until April 2023 before stepping down.
Meanwhile, other NCAA execs in the company pocketed millions in 2022 including controversial former NCAA president Mark Emmert who took home $3.3 million in total compensation including $2.8 million in base salary.
The million-dollar figures have raised eyebrows on social media for a couple of reasons. The first are the staff cuts from the league, who cut down to under 600 employees after the hit from the COVID pandemic after getting up to 657 in 2019, according to Sportico.
The second is the longstanding policy against student-athletes profiting from their name, image, and likeness (NIL), an opportunity the NCAA only granted its athletes in July 2021. The league’s revenue reportedly rose to $1.22 billion in 2022, and many continue to argue against giving the athletes more opportunities.
The league is now attempting to further regulate the NIL rules through government legislation. Preliminary details of a bill regulating n NIL are being circulated in the House of Representatives this week. Among the potential stipulations:
- Rules that guard the league against “retaliation by an institution of higher education for student-athletes who have signed a NIL deal.”
- A new regulatory body focused on NIL-related endeavors
- Ensuring that student-athletes do not qualify for employee status
