While the transformation of college athletics often focuses on football as the revenue engine and the biggest TV ratings sport, major changes are coming to baseball and softball that could double the allowable scholarships.
Baseball was for decades locked into a model with just 11.7 scholarships, with programs like Florida State able to chop those up those scholarships into pieces to cover just an athlete’s tuition, and/or books, meals and housing. And this is in a sport that allowed a roster of 40.
Softball was also set in a model with 12 scholarships, with coaches similarly able to break up the money into pieces.
Beginning in the 2025-26 athletics season, baseball programs could leap to 34 scholarships — a massive jump from 11.7 if FSU athletics can fund that many. Softball programs could jump to 25, also more than double in prior years and also based on funding.
Florida’s Bright Futures money has helped. It is a state-funded program that incentivizes student achievement and high grade point averages among Florida high schools with college scholarship money. Bright Futures money often complements the partial scholarship and has long been a formula that FSU’s coaching staffs have used. And the introduction of Name, Image and Likeness legislation three years ago has helped turn what’s essentially an equivalency sport like baseball and softball into something akin to a full scholarship sport.
Why the expansion of scholarships? In large part it's the proposed settlement of the House vs. NCAA case, which creates a new scholarship and roster structure.
A few FSU administrators have also stressed that now every sport on campus is an equivalency sport and not a headcount sport. Equivalency means coaches can offer partial athletic scholarships, while sports like football currently offer full scholarships.
In the fourth part of the Osceola's series, which reflects on important issues related to the business of college athletics, we take a look at what FSU is thinking and how administrators are planning ahead.
A transformational time for FSU and college athletics
Everything about the FSU-ACC lawsuit is complicated, including the timeline
Outlining specific benchmarks for earning ACC success initiatives
The baseball and softball discussion is ongoing and involves a decision by the school’s Board of Trustees, potentially in the next meeting on Sept. 12-13. An agenda has not yet been set.
“At the end of the day, each school has their traditions in various sports that they want to maintain and be competitive in so we’re monitoring it,” said FSU Athletic Director Michael Alford who discussed a number of topics for this exclusive series. “I’ve got about four models that I’m running right now. I got to present it to the Board of Trustees and and the President and show them what I’m doing and what my recommendation is moving forward. And that’s coming pretty quick.”
A school like FSU with tradition-rich baseball and softball programs will desire an expansion in the roster/scholarship count. And they will be able to add as many scholarships in the sport as they can fund, because the ACC won't set hard caps.
This means a Northern ACC school could opt to stay at 11.7 in baseball, or increase to just 14 or 15, for example. There was also never a requirement to fund 11.7 baseball scholarships, so it's plausible Northern schools in the ACC as well as other smaller conferences that don't prioritize baseball could have lower numbers.
If a school, like Boston College, wants to invest more in its niche sports, perhaps ice hockey, field hockey or lacrosse, it can do so. But their desires to push for national titles in those sports don't compete with FSU's goals in baseball or softball.
Another consideration is if the scholarship is classified as academic or athletic. Alford said there are schools who have been “successful” in placing athletes on academic scholarships.
“What does that count against your new cap, right?” Alford said. “And we haven’t gotten that answer back yet. Vandy built their baseball program based on that, putting kids on academic scholarship, so they weren’t playing with 11.7 scholarships like everyone else. They were playing with a lot more (because of the academic aid).”
Consensus doesn't have to be achieved across leagues. But it's a pressing issue as FSU competes for prospects who mostly live in the Southeast, and competes against SEC programs that will also be pushing for expanded scholarship totals. FSU athletics and the boosters will be challenged to fund the additional scholarships so that Link Jarrett and Lonni Alameda can continue to compete against the ACC as well as remain attractive to prospects in an effort to be among the nation's top programs in both sports.
Baseball and softball have enjoyed increased ratings in the postseason as the sports take on high-profile programming spots on ESPN’s networks in late May and June. Athletics departments around the country are pouring more money into baseball and softball, including the additional assistant coaches allowed (three assistants apiece).
In baseball, an increase in the available scholarship money coupled with NIL could keep draft prospects at the college level. It’s unlikely a projected top 100 pick would pass up a seven-figure payday, but those who are likely to go in middle or latter rounds could benefit from staying and developing in college.
And in softball, a sport where few players leave early for pro opportunities, the added scholarship money could result in less student loans and more post-graduate opportunities. This was a focal point of Kaley Mudge’s speech to a Congressional subcommittee in March 2023 that held a hearing on NIL.
“I came into FSU as a partial academic and athletic scholarship recipient,” Mudge said. “When NIL came into play in 2021, I was very excited for the chance to start earning money to help further pay for my education. My experience with NIL has been a very positive experience. I've gotten the opportunity to learn so much about the professional world as a college student, including how to read contracts, how to negotiate deals, and how to earn and save money.
“As an Olympic sport athlete on a partial scholarship, NIL has been extremely beneficial to me because I'm able to help pay for my tuition to hopefully come out of college with little debt. One specific deal that I am involved in now has given me the opportunity to start saving money for nursing school when I'm done playing softball.”
Follow The Osceola on Facebook
Follow The Osceola on Twitter
Subscribe to the Osceola's YouTube channel
Subscribe to the Osceola's podcasts on Apple
