The world of college sports continued its rapid evolution this week as the newly formed College Sports Commission amended its policy enforcing college collectives providing name, image and likeness funding to student athletes.
Yahoo Sports national college football reporter Ross Dellenger broke the news that House attorneys struck an agreement with the NCAA and Power Four conferences on Tuesday, moving to amend a recent decision by the College Sports Commission related to restrictions on how NIL collectives pay student athletes.
What SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey referred to as a “soft cap” of $20.5 million now seems to be nothing more than that. Efforts to make it a hard cap would have resulted in more legal challenges, and now NIL collectives are likely to continue operating as they were, as a bridge between schools and their primary donor-base.
So how does this impact schools, and in particular, Mississippi State?
A major stipulation of the House vs. NCAA changes is the introduction of the clearinghouse to determine fair value. Players with a high profile like Josh Hubbard, who has Bulldog Initiative NIL arrangements as well as a third-party agreement with CSpire, will need to have all future agreements evaluated for fair market value. In theory, that value is determined by the demands of the athlete in terms of appearances, social media endorsements and other traditional radio and television advertising.
All NIL deals predating July 1, 2025 are exempt from clearinghouse scrutiny.
“As part of the agreement, the College Sports Commission is expected to treat collectives or any ‘school-associated entity’ in a similar fashion as other businesses when determining the legitimacy of third-party NIL deals submitted to the CSC’s NIL Go clearinghouse,” Dellenger wrote.
Any NIL deals worth more than $600, whether through collectives or third-party business entities, have to be approved through the clearinghouse company, Deloitte, to determine if the compensation aligns with fair market value.
Though collectives solely operate to facilitate NIL fundraising and opportunities for programs and their student-athletes, these entities will be treated the same as any business facilitating a deal to promote its own image, according to the CSC’s new amended procedures. And, despite their affiliation with universities, collectives are able to raise as much money as they can for athletes beyond the $20.5 million revenue sharing cap that athletic departments can spend.
Although MSU isn’t the richest program in terms of NIL funds and donorship, the recent changes will introduce greater support through revenue-sharing while maintaining separate NIL opportunities through its NIL collective.
Finding support
The Bulldogs have relied on grassroots fundraising efforts with the Bulldog Initiative NIL collective and the State Excellence Fund. NIL deals facilitated by the collective will face the same scrutiny as those from third-party businesses, but, once the deals are approved by the NIL Go clearinghouse, the NIL fund can continue providing opportunities for Bulldog athletes beyond the department’s $20.5 million in revenue-share spending.
MSU athletics has expanded its efforts on the fundraising front since Athletic Director Zac Selmon took charge of the department in 2023. In the last year, Selmon oversaw the expansion of the Bulldog Club in preparation for the House vs. NCAA changes.
Despite the changes brought about by the House vs. NCAA ruling, the athletic department positioned itself well financially to remain competitive as the new era takes shape, with the athletic department’s focus on revenue sharing, the fundraising success of the Bulldog Club and the Bulldog Initiative facilitating NIL deals.
Mississippi State announced a record-breaking 2025 fiscal year for fundraising earlier this month, raising $84.6 million for the athletic department through donations and pledges.
This number includes 202 major gifts and 10 donations of $1 million or more.
Bulldog Club donations go directly to supporting athletic department projects, which includes the new State Excellence Fund supporting the annual $20.5 million in revenue sharing for student athletes.
“In our unwavering pursuit of new heights for Mississippi State Athletics, direct investments and contributions from our supporters are mission critical,” Selmon said in a university press release. “The generosity, passion and clear desire to invest in Mississippi State and our student-athletes are truly remarkable and we are overwhelmed with gratitude to our Bulldog Club members. It is hard to put into words how much this support means to us. This year’s support set the standard for what we strive to achieve each year going forward, and for that, we are grateful. The inspiring philanthropic support, in addition to new revenue generation, continues to align our department’s transformation to the new era of college athletics.”
Selmon and the department began more ambitious fundraising opportunities with the Bulldog Club, launching the Cristil Society in August 2024. Named after legendary MSU broadcaster Jack Cristil, 439 members paid $25,000 of “direct investment” in the department to enter the Cristil Society, gaining access to exclusive gameday and event benefits while contributing direct financial support to the department.
Selmon’s tenure has also seen the department continue to fund improvements to facilities. This year, Selmon announced the addition of new LED light fixtures at Davis Wade Stadium and plans for a state-of-the-art indoor practice facility, funded by Howard Industries and alumnus Billy W. Howard Sr.
MSU head football coach Jeff Lebby spoke highly of the department’s efforts and fan and alumni support as he looks to build the program. He was able to bring in the 28th composite ranked high school class and 17th ranked transfer class in 2025 in an effort to improve on a 2-10 debut season in Starkville.
“I think there’s great momentum inside our walls,” Lebby said at SEC Media Days last week. “You look at what Zach and his team has been able to accomplish from a fundraising standpoint, shattering records after the year that we’ve had all the things that have gone on. There’s been this incredible amount of support with the new indoor being announced, the facility upgrades, being under the lights Week 2, with our home opener… It will be exciting. There’s great things happening inside the program. So again, for me, all things are pointing to Aug. 30.”
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