Analysis: Does Donald Trump’s executive order fix college sports?

Lets be honest: college football hasnt felt much like college in a while.The players transfer with the frequency of midterm dropouts.

The NIL deals flow like booster club wine.

And what was once a recruiting visit now resembles a high-stakes negotiation in a Fortune 500 boardroom.So when President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week aimed at curbing the chaos, it wasnt entirely a surprise.

Coaches have been grumbling.

Athletic directors have been sweating.

Traditionalists have been wringing their hands.

Someone was bound to try and put the genie back in the bottle.Trump gave it a shot.His order doesnt kill NIL entirely players can still earn money for legitimate endorsements but it draws a hard line against pay-for-play.

That means no more booster collectives tossing six-figure checks at high school quarterbacks like theyre bidding on vintage cars.

No more thinly disguised contracts written to buy a players signature instead of his autograph.In essence, the message is this: You can make money as an athlete, but not because youre an athlete.That sound you hear? College football coaches applauding from coast to coast.The Portal Became a PaydayWe shouldve seen it coming.

The transfer portal didnt just open a door it tore down the whole wall.

One day a freshman quarterback is third on the depth chart.

The next day hes in another state, wearing another jersey, cashing another check.

NIL was supposed to be about opportunity.

It became a market.

A fast-moving, high-dollar, no-rules market.Programs with deeper pockets and lets not kid ourselves, we know who they are could effectively buy a starting roster.

That wasnt sustainable.

And it wasnt fair.Trumps order attempts to restore a little balance.

It says, Were not running a professional league here.

And that part will sit just fine with the Kirby Smarts and Nick Sabans of the world, who still believe you win with structure, not just with wallets.But Not Everyone Is CheeringWhile coaches and administrators may finally get to breathe, the players especially the stars of college football and mens basketball have reason to frown.They were just beginning to understand their value.

For years, they were told a scholarship was enough.

Then NIL came along, and suddenly, their social media accounts and jersey sales were worth real money.Now, just as the dollars were getting bigger and the deals more frequent, the brakes have been slammed.Trumps order says fair-market NIL deals are fine but fair market according to whom? A linebacker in Tuscaloosa might be worth more to the local car dealership than an All-American in New Jersey.

Good luck figuring that out.And dont forget: the order also reaffirms that players are not employees.

So if you were hoping for unionization, collective bargaining, or actual salaries for Saturday performances, this isnt your victory.A Return to What, Exactly?Heres the thing: nobody really disagrees that college sports needed guardrails.

But theres a difference between setting rules and closing doors.Yes, the system needed fixing.

But for the top players the ones driving TV ratings, selling out stadiums, filling Twitter feeds it probably didnt need fixing this way.And lets not ignore the irony: the schools that benefitted most from the Wild West NIL era are now praising the sheriff for riding in.

If thats not college football in a nutshell, I dont know what is.So What Happens Now?Well, not much at least not right away.

This is an executive order, not a law.

Enforcement will fall to agencies, commissions, and possibly the courts.

The real test will come when a big-time quarterback sues because his six-figure endorsement got rejected for looking too much like a contract.Until then, were living in the great in-between.

Players can still make money.

But they cant be paid not in the way many of them had come to expect.College sports, especially football and mens basketball, are still trying to decide what they want to be.

Amateur? Semi-pro? Something in between?Trumps order tries to force an answer.Whether it sticks or simply adds another layer to the confusion is anyones guess.But for now, it looks like the bidding war is over.At least on paper..

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