Elad v. NCAA: Third Circuit Vacates Preliminary Injunction
Jett Elad, a Rutgers University football player, challenged two NCAA bylaws. These bylaws count years spent at Junior Colleges (“JUCOs”) towards the NCAA’s limit of participation in four seasons of NCAA football over a five-year period (the “JUCO Rule”). Elad argued that the JUCO Rule unreasonably restrains the college-football-athlete labor market in violation of Section […]
Christian Dennie Recognized as a Top Attorney by Fort Worth, Texas Magazine
Christian Dennie has been listed as a “Top Attorney” by Fort Worth, Texas Magazine for 2025.
The Football Coaching Carousel is in Full Swing: How does Mitigation and Offset Modify Buyout Payments?
The college football season is in full swing, marked by the release of the first CFP rankings on November 4, 2025. As has become more commonplace in the “win now” culture, major college football coaches have already been terminated and major head football coaching jobs are available at Auburn, Florida, LSU, Penn State, and many more. These […]
Private Equity in Professional and College Sports
The infusion of capital through private equity investment is all the rage in sports. The PGA Tour recently accepted an investment from SSG through the creation of PGA Tour Enterprises and a number of teams and franchises have similarly accepted private equity investments. The Big Ten Conference is now considering creating Big Ten Enterprises and accepting a […]
Pavia v. NCAA: The Sixth Circuit Punts on Mootness Grounds
Diego Pavia (“Pavia”) is the quarterback for the Vanderbilt University (“Vanderbilt”) football team, a member of the Southeastern Conference. Prior to attending Vanderbilt, Pavia played two seasons at New Mexico Military Institute, a junior college, and two seasons at New Mexico State University. After two seasons of NCAA Division I play at New Mexico State University, Pavia […]
Gaines v. NCAA: Lawsuit Against Georgia Tech and Georgia Dismissed, but Certain Claims against the NCAA Continue
Riley Gaines, the former University of Kentucky swimmer, and 18 others filed suit against the University of Georgia system (and various individuals) (collectively “Georgia”) and the Georgia Tech Athletic Association (“Georgia Tech”) asserting that the NCAA’s policies related to transgender athletes from 2022-2025 violated Title IX and the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. […]
Smart v. NCAA: Eastern District of California Approves Class Action Settlement involving “Volunteer” Baseball Coaches
Taylor Smart and Michael Hacker brought an antitrust challenge under Section 1 of the Sherman Act on behalf of a putative class of individuals who served as a “volunteer coach[es] in college baseball at an NCAA Division I school from November 29, 2018 to July 1, 2023.” In January 2025, the Plaintiffs and NCAA reached a […]
Christian Dennie Recognized in the 2025 Edition of Super Lawyers
Dennie Sports Law is happy to announce that Christian Dennie has been recognized by Super Lawyers as a top attorney in the category of “Entertainment and Sports”. Christian is the only sports lawyer listed in Texas under the designation of Super Lawyers in the category of “Entertainment and Sports”. To review the Super Lawyers digital […]
National Basketball Association v. Salazar – Defining the Boundaries of Data in Sports
The U.S. Supreme Court is preparing for its 2025–26 term, and several of the cases it is considering hold potentially significant implications for the sports industry. While much of the public’s attention tends to focus on the high-profile controversies surrounding participation rules, one of the cases that has requested review by the nation’s highest court […]
The NCAA Committee on Infractions Has Spoken: University of Michigan
The NCAA Committee on Infractions (“Committee” or “COI” or “panel”) recently issued its findings and found that the University of Michigan (“Michigan” or “institution”) committed violations of NCAA legislation. This case involved highly publicized violations in the football program at Michigan. At the core of this case was a scouting scheme directed by former football staff […]