uNILateral Decisions

College sports is a topic of conversation with Congress again — but this time, the discussion wasn’t about transfer rules or eligibility; it was about stadium subsidies, tax‑exempt bonds, athlete taxation and the billionaire class reshaping the fan experience. On this episode of uNILateral Decisions , Joe Nickell, Mike Walsh and Sam Ehrlich are joined by Jesse Dougherty, sports enterprise reporter...

The conversation around federal legislation in college sports is heating up, and this week we're joined by one of the industry's most respected voices to break it all down. This week we're joined by Alex Kirshner, co-host of the Split Zone Duo podcast and one of the leading journalists covering the business of college athletics. His work has appeared in Slate , The Atlantic , The Ringer , FiveThir...

On this episode of uNILateral Decisions, Joe Nickell, Mike Walsh and Sam Ehrlich break down a whirlwind week in college athletics. While headlines focused on the ongoing Sorsby saga and the rollout of the new five‑for‑five eligibility model, a major change quietly dropped in the middle of it all: the College Sports Commission (CSC) raised the NIL Go review threshold from $600 to $15,000, a dramati...

The Brendan Sorsby saga is finally over—but the fallout may be just beginning. On this episode of uNILateral Decisions, Joe Nickell is joined by Mike Walsh, and Sam Ehrlich to break down the conclusion of one of the most controversial eligibility disputes in recent college athletics history. After months of legal battles, public pressure, and conference intervention, Sorsby and Texas Tech have agr...

This week on uNILateral Decisions, the crew breaks down one of the most controversial rulings of the college sports offseason: the injunction that will allow Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby to play despite violating NCAA gambling rules. With no written opinion from the judge, the panel explores why Sorsby may have prevailed in court, whether the case was really about gambling or mental healt...

Congress is back in the college sports conversation. In Episode 16 of uNILateral Decisions , Mike Walsh, Joe Nickell, Sam Ehrlich, and Dominic Shelden break down the proposed Protect College Sports Act and what it could mean for the future of college athletics. From federal oversight and antitrust protections to NIL regulation, revenue sharing, transfer rules, and the growing power struggle betwee...

Could the SEC survive — and thrive — without the NCAA? This episode of uNILateral Decisions explores the growing conversation around conference autonomy and whether major conferences like the SEC could eventually establish their own governance structures. The panel discusses antitrust implications, collective bargaining, revenue sharing enforcement, salary caps, Olympic sports, and the long-term s...

On this episode of uNILateral Decisions , Joe, Mike, and Sam break down the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 and why it may become one of the most important legal conversations in the future of college athletics. The crew explores how the SBA gave professional sports leagues a limited antitrust exemption to collectively negotiate television rights, why college athletics was left out after the Board...

College athletics is entering a new era of contracts, buyouts, and revenue sharing — but what should a “fair” deal between schools and athletes actually look like? On this episode of uNILateral Decisions, Dominic, Joe, Mike, and Sam break down the evolving legal and business structure behind NIL agreements and revenue-sharing contracts. The crew dives into transfer buyouts, athlete protections, in...

On this episode of uNILateral Decisions, Joe, Mike, and Sam break down the NCAA’s new eligibility rule, the athletes and classes being left behind by the changes, and the growing legal questions surrounding fairness and consistency. The crew also dives into the recent tennis case and discusses whether it could create ripple effects across other sports and eligibility decisions moving forward.

In this episode of uNILateral Decisions , Joe, Mike, and Sam tackle one of the biggest questions facing college athletics: could collective bargaining actually work? The conversation dives into the structural challenges of organizing athletes across schools, conferences, and even state lines, while unpacking what it would take to establish a unified voice. They explore the legal, logistical, and f...

In this episode of uNILateral Decisions , the conversation dives into the shifting power dynamics of multimedia rights companies in college athletics—and how the House v. NCAA settlement could redefine their role. Traditionally, companies like Learfield, JMI Sports, and Playfly Sports have operated as intermediaries, guaranteeing revenue to schools while monetizing assets like sponsorships, signag...

Tampering is nothing new in college sports, but is anyone actually trying to stop it? In Episode 9, the crew dives into the latest fallout from Iowa’s tampering violations and unpacks a system where enforcement feels inconsistent, penalties miss the mark, and the real decision-makers often walk away untouched. From self-reporting debates to whether consequences ever truly outweigh the reward, the...

Can an executive order actually fix college sports? In Episode 8, the guys break down the latest federal push to “save” college athletics, unpacking what the executive order says—and what it actually means. From directives aimed at the NCAA and federal agencies to potential challenges against state NIL laws, the conversation explores how much power is really behind the headlines. They dig into the...

What even is eligibility anymore? In Episode 7, the guys break down the rapidly evolving landscape of NCAA eligibility—from postgame frustrations like Nate Oats’ comments on Charles Bediako, to the growing wave of legal challenges reshaping who gets to play and why. What was once governed by NCAA waivers is now being decided in courtrooms, with inconsistent rulings, new loopholes, and a system str...

The conversation around college athletics is no longer confined to campuses and courtrooms — it’s now front and center in Washington. In this episode of uNILateral Decisions , the group dives into the growing involvement of Congress, the flood of proposed legislation, and whether any real progress is actually being made. Joined by our usual crew — Dominic Shelden, Joe Nickell, Mike Walsh, and lega...

The evolution of college athletics has reached a new turning point. In 2025, a landmark settlement in House vs. NCAA fundamentally reshaped the relationship between student-athletes and their institutions, opening the door for direct revenue sharing and signaling a new era in college sports. In this episode of uNILateral Decisions, host Dominic Shelden is joined by former college athletics adminis...

In the final episode of uNILateral Decisions, the conversation turns to one of the most recent legal battles shaping the future of college athletics. In 2023, a group of ten states and the department of justice filed suit against the NCAA in Ohio et al. vs. NCAA, challenging the organization’s rules around athlete transfers. The case quickly became another flashpoint in the growing legal pressure...

In Episode 3 of Unilateral Decisions, the conversation moves to the landmark 2021 Supreme Court case NCAA v. Alston, a ruling that fundamentally altered the landscape of college athletics. Dominic Shelden, Joe Nickell and Mike Walsh sit down with sports law expert and professor Sam Ehrlich to unpack how the case challenged the NCAA’s long-standing control over athlete compensation and why the cour...

The transformation of college athletics didn’t happen overnight. Years before NIL became a household term, another landmark lawsuit challenged the NCAA’s definition of amateurism, and forced the industry to confront a difficult question: should college athletes be compensated for the use of their name, image, and likeness? In this episode of uNILateral Decisions , Dominic Shelden is joined by form...

The modern era of college sports didn’t start with NIL. Long before athletes could profit from their name, image, and likeness, a landmark Supreme Court case reshaped the foundation of college athletics. In 1984, NCAA vs. Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma challenged the NCAA’s control over college football television rights—and changed the power structure of college sports forever. In...