College athletics, as we know it changed forever Friday when judge Claudia Wilkin gave final approval to the settlement in the House vs. NCAA litigation.

The settlement – agreed to by plaintiffs representing nearly 400,000 current and former student-athletes and the NCAA, Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, Pac-12 Conference and Southeastern Conference (SEC) – will reshape the landscape of college sports, paving the way for a model that prioritizes fairness, stability, integrity and opportunity for student-athletes and institutions.

That wasn’t all.

It was also announced that a newly established College Sports Commission will be in charge of governing revenue sharing, student-athlete Name, Image and Likeness, NIL deals, and roster limits.

Major League Baseball executive Bryan Sheely will head the independent organization that will investigate any potential violations of these rules, make determinations regarding potential rule violations and penalties, provide notice and opportunity to be heard, participate in the arbitration process, and ultimately administer penalties for violations of these rules.

“The approval of the House settlement agreement represents a significant milestone for the meaningful support of our student-athletes and a pivotal step toward establishing long-term sustainability for college sports, two of the Southeastern Conference’s top priorities,” SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said in a statement. “As the journey to modernize collegiate sports continues, we remain focused on identifying and implementing innovative opportunities for our student-athletes across all sports while maintaining the core values that make collegiate athletics uniquely meaningful.”

So, what does it all mean?

Let’s start with the student athletes, who will have more opportunities to financially benefit during their participation in intercollegiate athletics than ever before.

Schools are now able to share revenue directly with student-athletes, in addition to providing existing benefits such as athletic scholarships, access to world-class training facilities, academic counseling, medical care, post-eligibility medical coverage, mental health resources, nutritional guidance, and life skills development.

• On July 1, schools can distribute up to 22 percent of the average revenue among schools in the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, and SEC from media rights, ticket sales, and sponsorships – known as the revenue sharing cap.

• The cap is estimated at $20.5 million per school for the 2025-26 academic year, pending final confirmation.

• Of the $20.5 million, between $13 and $16 million is expected to be used for football.

The settlement also puts an end to school rushing to sign current players and transfers to new contracts as they did before the approval of the settlement.

Contracts signed before the settlement approval and not paid out before July 1 were not subject to the clearing house or cap.

Regarding roster limits, deadlines are as follows:

• July 6: Opt-in schools must “designate” student-athletes permitted by the settlement to remain above roster limits.

• Start of 2025-26 academic year: Except for the “designated” student-athletes, Fall sports must be at or below roster limits by their first day of competition.

• Football rosters will shrink to 105 players, resulting in schools cutting more than 20 players, although most schools are expected to exceed those limits by “grandfathering in” current athletes.

• December 1, 2025: Except for “designated” student-athletes, Winter and Spring sports must be at or below roster limits by their first day of competition or December 1, whichever is earlier.

According to a release, to ensure revenue sharing with student-athletes is appropriately managed and reported to the Court for compliance, athletics departments will use the new College Athlete Payment System (CAPS) platform developed by LBi Software.

Student-athletes will also be able to continue receiving compensation from third-parties other than their institutions for the use of their NIL, so long as their NIL deals are made with the purpose of using their NIL for a valid business purpose and do not exceed a reasonable range of compensation.