College Football Coaches In Agreement On What'll End The Chaos
They say change is the only constant and that's definitely the case in college football right now.
With athletes now able to receive payments for their name, image and likeness (including direct compensation from schools) and little to no limitations in the transfer portal, coaches like Deion Sanders have called for the installation of a division-wide salary cap.
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But some have argued that even more needs to be done than that — and that would be unionizing the players that suit up for these universities and hiring a commissioner to collectively bargain like the rest of the major professional sports leagues.
That's something that Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy acknowledged to On3.com over the weekend. Saying, "College needs to build that type of system so we don't have the same four, five or six schools that pay the most money at the end of the season in the playoffs."
"You gotta restructure the system and you gotta admit that the players are employees. Then you can build a collective bargaining, like we've all talked about. You can do it all. You need an entry salary cap for a high school player coming in because it's not sustainable."
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A spending cap and enforceable contracts would seemingly go a long way in nullifying some of the current growing pains CFB is going through. And it would also make it easier for players to make decisions on the whole like in the case of NIL opportunities such as the licensing of college sports video games.
STILLWATER, OK - NOVEMBER 2: Head coach Mike Gundy of the Oklahoma State Cowboys encourages the fans before a game against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Boone Pickens Stadium on November 2, 2024 in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Arizona State won 42-21. (Photo by)Organizing a players union would also likely have far-reaching effects in terms of practice rules and offseason training guidelines — and skew the balance of power more towards the middle (at least in theory).
There's certainly a compelling argument to be made that high-level college athletes are (and have been) employees. Now it's just a matter of how long it'll take before they're viewed as them congressionally.
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Related: NFL Fans React To Browns Decision On Quarterback Room
College Football Coaches In Agreement On What'll End The Chaos first appeared on The Spun on Jul 13, 2025
This story was originally reported by The Spun on Jul 13, 2025, where it first appeared.
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