MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WTVF) — A court settlement involving the NCAA and the five biggest college conferences could change college athletics forever. Under the agreement, former athletes going back ten years, could be paid retroactively. Moving forward, college teams could be allowed to directly pay their student-athletes.
Big schools can afford to write those big checks, but where does that leave mid-major schools like MTSU, WKU and others?
"The rich are going to get richer, and the guys in the middle and the smaller schools are probably going to have a tough time," said Jeff Murphy.
Murphy has a unique perspective on all of this. While he currently owns Domenico's Italian Deli in Murfreesboro, he's a former Quarterback for MTSU twelve years ago and currently co-hosts "A Group of Five Guys" — a podcast that promotes mid-major football programs.
He thinks this NCAA settlement will change the recipe for schools like Middle Tennessee, who just don't have the deep-pocketed donors to keep up with the Power 5 conference teams.
"The MTSUs of the world, North Texas, some of the smaller schools. I think once we kind of get into it and learn some more about it, there might be a way for them to figure out how to do it, but there’s just so many questions involved with it right now. I think we just need more answers," said Murphy.
Murphy remembers his mindset as a young player, and says chasing the paycheck would be tempting. But also thinks there's no substitute for playing time.
"The NFL will find you if you have good tape. If you go to a Power 5 school and now you’re fifth on the depth chart as a receiver and you’re getting a quarter of the snaps, it’ll be a lot harder for find you than it would if you stayed at a Middle Tennessee and 100 catches and a 1,000 yards and 12 touchdowns," he explained.
But Jeff also thinks the "Group of Five Schools" that don't play in the top conferences, could have a chance to stand out now, by trying to preserve some of the amateurism that many love about collegiate sports.
"I think there’s a market for the Group of Five programs to continue that and to push that. To drive that message home that it’s real college football for real fans," said Murphy.
What the future holds for mid-majors in this new NCAA era is impossible to know. But there's one thing he's sure of — hometown support is always a winning recipe.
"The best thing you can do is go support that program. Go to the games, be involved," he said.
A federal judge must approve the final version of the settlement. Until then, the details remain uncertain, including how revenue sharing would impact female college athletes and teams.
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