Emily Jashinsky

A historic hearing on Capitol Hill yesterday aimed at bringing order to a college sports system many see as needing fixing.

In the era of name, image, and likeness, or NIL, payments on the rise and the transfer portal making it easier for college athletes to switch schools like they're professionals.

The hearing coming one week after U.S.

Senators Ted Cruz of Texas and Maria Cantwell of Washington introduced the Protect College Sports Act of 2026.

The bill providing the NCAA with an antitrust exemption to enforce several rules that have been challenged in court in recent years.

Those rules would include limiting athletes to transferring schools only one time without penalty.

limiting athlete eligibility to a maximum of five years, prohibiting former professional athletes from playing in college, and prohibiting schools from poaching a coach from another school during their sports season.

Here, Senator Cruz opening up the hearing.

Among those called to testify, legendary former Alabama coach Nick Saban, who's been very outspoken on the matter in the past.

During his testimony before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, Saban calling for a national framework governing NIL payments and the transfer portal to be created, warning the current system is drifting toward professional free agency.

The seven-time national champion also pointing to the rapid growth of NIL spending, noting Alabama's collective funding growth during his time with the program.

Supporters of the Protect College Sports Act, like Saban, warn that without reform, schools could cut non-revenue sports and college football could eventually splinter into a super league dominated by the wealthiest programs.

The proposal faces opposition from major conferences like the SEC and Big Ten, which say key issues remain unresolved.

That'll do it for your AM update.

I'm Emily Drushinsky, host of After Party.

Catch The Megyn Kelly Show live on SiriusXM's The Megyn Kelly Channel, 1-11 at noon east on youtube.com slash megynkelly and all podcast platforms.

He was drunk on marine leave in Croatia, which who among us, Megan?

You have to set the bar high.

A 50% decrease.

Yeah, I mean, obviously, you can't blame the media for reporting a story about the character of somebody who's trying to win a Senate seat, a competitive Senate seat, nonetheless.