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August 18, 2020 By: Mark Knudson

What I would accomplish as Commissioner of College Football

The country is crying out for leadership at the top right now.

No…I’m talking about College Football.

Therefore, I am hereby offering my services to the entirety of the collegiate gridiron world – the Power Five, the Group of Five…every school that plays this great game. Much like state Governors, the conference commissioners have enough to do on a day-to-day basis. Someone has to focus on the bigger picture.

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So, in accepting this nomination I will hereby offer up my platform for what I plan to accomplish during my first 100 days on the job: First up, dealing with the immediate needs for the fall of 2020.

The 2020 fall championship football season will be postponed for all schools, falling in line with the NCAA’s decision regarding all other fall sports and predicated on the advice of our best medical experts. The focus will be placed on playing a split season in 2021, starting in the spring. Schools will be allowed to play as many as five (5) non-conference football games between March 13 and April 24, 2021. Student-athletes will be allowed to begin voluntary football activities on January 4, 2021 with full team practices beginning on January 25. No games will be scheduled for April 3, 2021 in deference to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four games. After the conclusion of the spring portion of the season, all players will be given the entirety of the months of May and June off, with no organized team activities nor any face-to-face contact with coaches taking place at the school facilities or elsewhere. Starting on July 1, 2021 team conditioning workouts can resume on campus, with organized practices to begin on August 16 in preparation for the fall season that can begin September 25. Full conference schedules of up to eight contests will be played in the fall. Conference championship games and bowl games will be played as previously scheduled. The 2022 season will return to previous norms.

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Starting in 2022, a cap will be placed on all football coach’s salaries and put into place for every school and conference. A cap of $10 million for the entirety of each football coaching staff, including a cap of $5 million for the head coach will be put into place and strictly monitored and enforced. This total will include all school and/or conference sponsored endorsement and appearance deals.
Starting with the 2021 spring season and rosters, each student-athlete who completes his eligibility by participating in four years of college football as an active member of the playing roster will receive up to six years of fully-paid health insurance benefits following graduation, up until and unless those benefits can be replaced by a comparable health care plan through future employment.

Beginning with the 2022 season, the College Football Playoff will be expanded to a field of eight teams. Each Power Five champion will automatically qualify for the field, along with the highest ranked champion of the Group of Five conferences, and two at-large teams selected from any of the 10 conferences and qualifying independents. Each at-large selection, along with the seedings of all eight teams will be done by the CFP selection committee. The four first round games will be played on the campus sites of the highest CFP committee ranked teams, with the final four teams participating in selected bowl games prior to the national championship contest.
In an effort to head off the devastating side effects of all currently proposed “Name Image and Likeness” payments to select individual participants – which would bring with it the very real likelihood for an influx of unwanted and unscrupulous financial involvement from outside influences including, but not limited to, boosters and player agents – I will implement a new revenue sharing plan between member schools and student athletes. This will include the revenue generated from all NCAA licensed merchandise. Henceforth, all revenue brought into the NCAA member schools from the sale of all NCAA licensed merchandise, including but not limited to, all team gear such as jerseys, hats, video games, snack foods, etc. — any and everything else with school or NCAA logos on it…will be evenly divided between the schools and the scholarship student athletes. Since 2015, all scholarship student-athletes have received a “cost of attendance” stipend payment as part of their full or partial athletic scholarships. Starting immediately, 50% percent of merchandising revenue generated each year will be placed into a fund to be distributed as an additional portion of that stipend, proportional to each student-athlete’s scholarship. A new subcommittee will be formed to create a formula for determining these amounts and ensure the distribution of this additional revenue to the student-athletes in a prompt and equitable manner.

Starting in 2022, all FBS schools will be allowed to schedule one FCS non-conference opponent every two seasons. Each FBS school will be required to play at least one non-conference true road game each season (not including specially scheduled season opening neutral site games.)
Finally, I will announce the formation of a new College Football Oversight Committee, that will include three current FBS coaches, three current FBS athletic directors, three current FBS players, three former FBS coaches and three former FBS players (who are no longer active in professional football.) These people will serve on the committee for two-year terms then rotate out. The committee will function in an oversight manner and offer suggestions for improvements prior to each school year.

That will be the first 100 days. There will never be a time we won’t be working to improve this great game.

Listen to Mark Knudson on Monday’s at 12:30 with Brady Hull on AM 1310 KFKA and on Saturday mornings on “Klahr and Kompany” on AM 1600 ESPN Denver.