O'Bannon lawsuit could be an extinction level event for NCAA

Coming up on the short end of this legal battle will effectively end amateurism in college athletics

At last, the shoe is on the other foot.

Ever since the NCAA decided to appoint itself judge, jury and executioner of university athletic programs, schools under investigation have offered up a sacrifice in hopes of leniency.

"Don't drop the hammer on us," they beg, "and we'll self-impose sanctions."

Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. There's never any rhyme or reason to how punishment is administered.

Now, however, it's the NCAA throwing itself on the mercy of the court. Only this is a court that exists in the United States judicial system, not the NCAA's self-serving kangaroo court.

The esteemed body has cut ties with EA Sports, ending a beautiful financial relationship that resulted in some terrific video games and a whole bunch of money for both businesses.

But as you know, a lot of those players in a lot of those games bore uncanny resemblances to "real" players. And those "real" players have now filed suit against the NCAA.

It all started when former UCLA basketball player Ed O'Bannon sued the NCAA, Electronic Arts (EA Sports) and Collegiate Licensing Company for profiting from his likeness without allowing him to profit from it, too.

The official complaint charges that the NCAA violated antitrust laws by " … conspiring to fix at zero the amount of compensation athletes can receive for the use of their names, images and likenesses in products or media while they are in school and by requiring athletes to sign forms under which they allegedly relinquish in perpetuity all rights pertaining to the use of the names, images and likenesses in ways including TV contracts, rebroadcasts of games, and video games."

Now six current athletes (including Clemson's Darius Robinson) have joined the suit, demanding a 50-50 split of TV revenue which, in theory, would be put into a fund available to them when their college careers end. That's the game-changer.

If this case is certified as class action and the NCAA loses, then you can kiss the NCAA goodbye. The financial losses will be staggering.

That's a big reason the NCAA cut ties with EA Sports. The more avatars that look like actual players, the more actual players will have a right to sue. It's a risk the folks in the home office are not willing to take going forward.

Here's the prepared statement by the NCAA announcing the divorce:


I don't believe for a second officials in the organization are confident. In fact, I think the NCAA is running scared.

Their lawyers have to hope they can either settle this out of court or avoid class action status and deal with lawsuits one at a time.

Otherwise O'Bannon vs. the NCAA is the meteor versus the dinosaurs — an extinction level event.

Losing the case will put a short-term financial hurt on Electronic Arts, but the money from the EA Sports college football franchise accounts for a relatively small portion of its overall profits. As long as it has its Madden and soccer brands it'll be fine.

And besides, it'll still make a top-selling college football game — it just won't have the NCAA's name attached to it in 2015.

The empire will hardly crumble.

Not so with the NCAA.


And if there's no longer amateurism in college athletes, would there really even be a need for the NCAA?

Probably not — and certainly not if it's bankrupt.