“This is the most significant day in the history of the NCAA because the sham that the NCAA has always been, is over”: Paul Finebaum

The NCAA and its Power Five conferences came to a monumental agreement on Thursday, settling three antitrust lawsuits by agreeing to pay $2.7 billion to former players. The agreement will also allow schools to directly pay their athletes for playing for them. This is set to be the biggest change to how college sports have operated in the association's over a century-old history.

The news has led many college analysts to give their reaction to not only the news but also the future of college athletics and its governing body, the NCAA.

College football analyst and host of "The Paul Finebaum Show," Paul Finebaum, was one of those to have his say on the matter. On Friday's edition of the show, Finebaum said:

“This is the most significant day in the history of the NCAA because the sham that the NCAA has always been, is over.”

The agreement to allow players to be paid was a long time coming. Even since the NCAA was formed, it has used the term "student-athletes" to refer to those students who played on any university sports teams.

The regulatory body strictly forbade any student from getting any form of payment for their on-the-field performance, saying that the students were getting paid with their education.

The immense growth and popularity of college football made people question whether this model was suitable. Why weren't the players allowed to receive any incentive for playing their role in what is, for many colleges, their biggest form of income and revenue?

The passing of the name, image and likeness ruling has changed everything in college sports. Players can now receive payment for the use of their image and name to endorse products. This led to some top college athletes having deals worth more than $1 million.

Many observers argue this will be the final nail in the coffin for the NCAA's model of student-athletes. With players now making NIL deals with their performances, they can now make money for playing the sport while transferring to high-paying colleges with ease.

The NCAA agreement benefits former players as well as current ones

The agreement between the NCAA and the Power Five conferences, the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC and Pac-12, does not only help those currently competing in Division I college sports but also those who have played it recently.

This forms part of a settlement of the three lawsuits the NCAA is involved in.

According to ESPN, players who have played any form of college athletics since 2016 will be eligible to receive part of the $2.7 billion the NCAA has been asked to pay in damages as a result of the lawsuits.

In return for being paid, college athletes are not allowed to sue the NCAA, and most drop any claim in the lawsuits against it.

All in all, both sides can take this as a victory. The NCAA will no longer face any lawsuits on this issue, and college athletes will finally be able to be directly paid by their universities for their sporting performances.

However, the long-term consequences of this deal are not known. But if the impact of the NIL on the transfer portal and recruitment is anything to go by, money may be used to bring players to the program. This opens the possibility of NBA-style "superteams" coming to college football.

Do you think paying college football players will lead to "superteams," as seen in basketball?