College Sports Law Blog

Maryland has introduced a bill seeking to protect student-athletes’ social media privacy.  The bill states that an institution of postsecondary education may not require a student or applicant to 1) provide access to his or her personal account; 2) disclosure user name(s), password(s), or other means of accessing a student’s personal account(s); or 3) install software on a student or applicant’s electronic device that monitors the content of communications.  Further, the bill does not allow an institution of postsecondary education to penalize or threaten to discipline or penalize a student or applicant for failure to provide access or disclosure any of the information described above.  If the bill passes, students will be afforded additional protections.

As previously reported here and here, former Texas Tech University (“Tech”) head football coach and current Washington State University head football coach Mike Leach submitted his breach of contract claim (among others) to the Texas Supreme Court for review.  The Amarillo Court of Appeals held that Tech is immune from suit in accordance with sovereign immunity.  On February 17, 2011, the Texas Supreme Court denied Coach Leach’s appeal by denying his petition for review.  Thus, the law in the State of Texas appears to indicate state institutions are immune from breach of contract claims and any damages that result therefrom.

Reports indicate that West Virginia University (“WVU”) and the Big East Conference (“Big East”) have resolved and settled competing lawsuits filed in West Virginia and Rhode Island.  According to published reports, WVU will contribute $11 million to the settlement, which will allow them to leave the Big East on July 1, 2012 and join the Big 12 Conference.  The Big 12 Conference will pay the remaining portion of the settlement. 

It appears from a West Virginia judge's order that both the lawsuit filed by West Virginia University against the Big East Conference and the lawsuit filed by the Big East Conference against West Virginia University will continue on a similiar path.  A West Virginia judge denied the Big East Conference's motion to dismiss and, thus, the parties will move forward to trial (subject to the possibility of settlement) in each case.

The NCAA Committee on Infractions (“Committee”) recently issued its findings and found that the University of Nebraska, Lincoln (“Nebraska”) committed major violations of NCAA legislation.  The violations were narrow in scope and centered on Nebraska student-athletes who received scholarships that included books.  Nebraska’s bookstore provided student-athletes on aid with recommended textbooks and course supplies when NCAA legislation only allows student-athletes to receive required textbooks and course supplies.  The receipt of impermissible textbooks and course supplies resulted in violations of NCAA financial aid and extra benefit legislation.  Because these violations occurred over a lengthy period of time, portions of five academic years, and involved student-athletes in every sport, Nebraska agreed that it failed to monitor this aspect of its athletics financial aid program.

The most recent NCAA Convention held last week in Indianapolis was possibly the most important meeting of intercollegiate administrators, presidents, and chancellors since the creation of the NCAA.  As has been widely discussed, intercollegiate athletics is evolving and changing and there is clearly a desire for NCAA legislation and practices to do the same.  As such, the following matters of importance were addressed and discussed:

Several months ago, former University of Southern California (“USC”) running back Stafon Johnson filed suit against USC  and a former strength and condition coach (Jamie Yanchar) relating to the injury he suffered while performing bench presses in September 2009.  Johnson claimed Yanchar physically hit the bar while Johnson was steadying the weight and the contact with the bar caused Johnson to lose control of the weight, which caused the weight to fall directly on Johnson’s neck resulting in his voice box being crushed.  As a result, Johnson claimed that Yanchar was negligent and reckless for failing to responsibly supervise the activities under his charge.  Being that Yanchar was an employee of USC, Johnson sought to hold USC vicariously liable for the acts of its servant, Yanchar. 

According to NCAA Bylaw 16.11.1.5, a student-athlete or his/her team “may receive an occasional meal from a representative of athletics interests on infrequent and special occasions under the following circumstances: (a) [t]he meal may only be provided in an individual’s home, on campus, or at a facility that is regularly used for home competition and may be catered; and (b) [a] representative of the institution’s athletics interests may provide reasonable local transportation to student-athletes to attend the meal function only if the meal function is at the home of that representative.”  This bylaw gives representatives of athletics interests (i.e., boosters) the opportunity to meet with and celebrate special events with student-athletes on an infrequent basis.  In light of the controversy and investigation surrounding the University of Miami (“Miami”) and the alleged extravagant benefits provided by Nevin Shapiro, Miami informed its booster club that boosters can no longer provide occasional meals or host student-athletes in their homes.  Additionally, boosters were told not to provide any type of food, drink, transportation, or other extra benefits to current student-athletes.

West Virginia University (“WVU”) and the Big East Conference (“Big East”) are going to non-binding mediation per the order of the judge overseeing the case in Rhode Island.  Mediation is common in nearly every case and gives the parties an opportunity to resolve the conflict prior to trial.  In this case, the parties will likely mediate their dispute in total (i.e., both the case pending in West Virginia and the case pending in Rhode Island).  A third-party will try to help the parties shed light on their positions in an effort to compromise the dispute.  The parties will be back in court in Rhode Island on February 9^th to update the judge on the status of the case.

Currently, thirty-one states and Washington, D.C. have laws in place that require a player who shows signs of concussion to be removed from practice or game until cleared by a licensed health care professional trained in evaluating concussions.  In recent months, both the NCAA and NFL have been hit with litigation relating to the protection of its athletes and, specifically, the failure to warn of damage created by concussions.  In an effort to develop national uniformity, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and NCAA president Mark Emmert have reached out to nineteen governors to support legislation aimed at reducing concussions in youth football.