Are college sports in a better or worse place than before the NIL boom?
That question has hovered over this year’s NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, a postseason spectacle that hasn’t settled the debate, but rather intensified it.
“College sports, it’s different now,” FOX Sports’ Colin Cowherd said on Monday’s episode of “The Herd.” “I think it’s better. You may think it’s not. But what it really is … it’s different.”
NIL’s impact on March Madness, Will Blue Bloods continue to dominate the tournament?
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Gone are the days when blue-blood brands ran college athletics. This is an era where resources — and how creatively they’re deployed — matter more than pedigree.
Conferences like the Big Ten have benefited from this changing landscape, pairing financial resources with experienced coaching.
While the landscape looks vastly different for many old-school coaches, those who have adapted have stuck around and extended their careers. Parts of their jobs have become easier as well. They’re managing rosters more like front offices.
“In college basketball, you had to pound the pavement,” Cowherd said. “You’re going to six AAU tournaments over the course of a day and a half. Now it’s administrative. Now you write a check.”
That shift has helped produce one of the deepest talent pools in recent memory.
Freshmen stars are arriving with more incentive to stay. Veteran players are delaying the jump to the pros. International prospects, meanwhile, are increasingly choosing to play college basketball in the U.S. because they can gain eligibility, get better exposure and get paid more than in the overseas leagues.
Bennett Stirtz and Alvaro Folgueiras of the Iowa Hawkeyes react to winning the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament against Florida. (Photo by Tyler Schank/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
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The reason that Cowherd argues “it’s better,” is because of the parody at the top.
Programs like Indiana football and Vanderbilt basketball have leveraged NIL to accelerate rebuilds. Iowa basketball followed a similar blueprint, pairing financial backing with a strong system while bringing in an elite-level coach from a mid-major school.
That formula paid off in a defining moment of March Madness up to this point: the ninth-seeded Hawkeyes knocking off defending national champion Florida in the Round of 32.
In another era, that type of upset might have felt shocking to all. Now, it feels like the reality we’ve come to expect.
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