The Scoop
The Senate’s bipartisan college sports bill is getting more air support as it faces resistance from the Congressional Black Caucus.
Saving College Sports, a group founded by wealthy businessman and Texas Tech University Board of Regents Chair Cody Campbell, is launching a seven-figure ad buy supporting the legislation, according to details first shared with Semafor. The first ad will air during HBCU games the weekend of Aug. 29 and the following weekend, and run on national cable in the second week of September, according to a person familiar with the plans.
The spot features the commissioner of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, a conference of HBCUs, touting support for the Protect College Sports Act from the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and the United Negro College Fund.
“This legislation protects the rights of student athletes everywhere and provides nearly $1 billion for historically black colleges and universities,” says Dr. Charles McLelland, the conference’s commissioner.
The campaign is geared towards challenging the CBC’s opposition to the bill; the group alleges that the bill’s authors did not sufficiently take into account the perspectives of Black athletes, coaches, and others. The Senate is set to take up the legislation in September.
Notable
The ongoing public outcry over pro athletes attempting to come back to college sports may lend a boost to the bill, Semafor reported.