National Collegiate Athletic Association

Rep. Jimmy Patronis (R-Fla.) sent a letter on Oct. 22 to ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips and the conference's board, asking the conference to disclose its sports betting policies for employees, officials and others connected to its competitions, and to explain how it protects competition integrity. Patronis tied the request to the ACC's support for the Protect College Sports Act, a Senate-passed bill on NIL, agent registration and transfer rules, arguing transparency should accompany the conference's push for federal help. He requested a response before Congress returns in November. The letter carries no legal force, and the ACC's current betting policy and response remain undisclosed.

The request comes as the NCAA maintains its ban on athlete and staff betting after Division I schools voted in November to rescind a proposed rule change that would have permitted wagering on professional sports.

The NCAA has sued Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine in the Southern District of Ohio, challenging Executive Order 2026-04D, which let Ohio colleges grant a fifth season of eligibility to athletes from the high school class of 2022 despite the NCAA's age-based rule. The 39-page federal complaint asks a judge to declare the order unconstitutional and unenforceable, arguing it gives Ohio schools an unfair competitive advantage and undermines uniform eligibility standards nationwide. NCAA President Charlie Baker, a former Massachusetts governor, warned that allowing states or courts to unilaterally rewrite eligibility rules would make fair competition impossible.

The order, issued in response to lawsuits from Ohio athletes excluded from a fifth year under the NCAA's five-years-to-play-five model, has already influenced related litigation: the Ohio Supreme Court asked for briefing on how it affects Borovicanin v. NCAA, the lead case on the issue. The NCAA also used the dispute to push Congress toward passing the Protect College Sports Act, which would codify its eligibility policy and shield it from antitrust challenges.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order allowing the state's public and private colleges to grant a fifth year of eligibility to athletes who graduated high school in 2022, bypassing an NCAA rule that excludes players who have already competed four seasons. DeWine framed the move as a fairness issue, while NCAA president Charlie Baker objected, saying a single official cannot set eligibility rules for competitive advantage and renewed calls for Congress to pass the Protect College Sports Act. Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel backed the order, and none of Ohio's eight Division I programs, including Ohio State and Cincinnati, had immediately responded.

The order lands amid ongoing litigation over the eligibility rule, echoing how California's NIL law once forced nationwide NCAA policy change. In the key case, Wisne v. NCAA, a federal appeals panel in Denver heard arguments questioning whether plaintiffs adequately defined the relevant economic market for athletes' damages claims, a requirement for antitrust liability, with judges voicing skepticism. The NCAA has recently won related cases in Kentucky, Arizona and Ohio, while litigation continues elsewhere, including Louisiana. Judges also considered awaiting congressional action before ruling, though attorneys urged against delay given the shrinking window for affected players this season.