NCAA president warns Congress: Transfer portal killing graduation rates

The president of the NCAA is urging Congress to pass the Protect College Sports Act for the sake of timely student-athlete graduation rates.

Charlie Baker, NCAA’s president, in a new letter to lawmakers Thursday argued “the court-imposed unlimited transfer policy is leading to worse academic outcomes for student-athletes who transfer multiple times.”

A recent review commissioned by the NCAA found that of the student-athletes who did not transfer, 88 percent graduated on time while 12 percent didn’t. Among student-athletes who transferred only once, 81 percent graduated on time while 19 percent didn’t. Only 71 percent of student-athletes who transferred more than once graduated on time compared to the 29 percent who did not, Baker said.

“In just the last few months, approximately 200 lawsuits have challenged basic eligibility rules, in some cases allowing former professionals to compete against actual college students ― an outcome that not only undermines the spirit of fair competition but also robs graduating high school seniors of their chance to be recruited and compete in college sports,” Baker said.

The Senate last month passed the Protect College Sports Act, a sweeping bipartisan bill that would regulate key issues facing the NCAA like name, image and likeness (NIL) payments to student-athletes and limiting the transfer portal.

The House is expected to consider the bill when lawmakers return to Washington, D.C., after the midterm elections.

Critics of the bill, including the Congressional Black Caucus and NAACP, contend the legislation hands the NCAA and its top member schools too much power and will disproportionately harm minority student-athletes, limiting their ability to compete and earn for their performance on the field.

“Passing the PCSA [Protect College Sports Act] now will provide the foundation necessary to ensure fairness in college sports and deliver unprecedented, enforceable protections directly to student-athletes,” Baker said.