NCAA President Makes Big Announcement Following Years of Criticism

Mark Emmert just made a big announcement when it comes to his career. The NCAA president announced he will step down from his position until a new president is hired or until June 30, 2023, as mentioned by CBS Sports. Emmert, 69 has been the NCAA president since 2010. 

"Throughout my tenure I've emphasized the need to focus on the experience and priorities of student-athletes," Emmert said in a statement. "I am extremely proud of the work of the Association over the last 12 years and especially pleased with the hard work and dedication of the national office staff here in Indianapolis."  

"With the significant transitions underway within college sports, the timing of this decision provides the Association with consistent leadership during the coming months plus the opportunity to consider what will be the future role of the president," John J. DeGioia, chairman of the NCAA board said. "It also allows for the selection and recruitment of the next president without disruption."  

Emmert's exit came through a mutual agreement between the president and the NCAA Board of Governors. It comes on the heels of players being granted rights and compensation through name, image and likeness (NIL) deals. Emmert has been under fire over the last few years due to a few issues, including the slow pace of the NIL deals. The NCAA picked up on the trend when several states passed laws allowing student-athletes to earn compensation. 

"The NCAA's business model would be flatly illegal in almost any other industry in America," Justice Brett Kavanaugh said. "It is highly questionable whether the NCAA and its member colleges can justify not paying student-athletes a fair share of the revenues." Emmert was in charge during the scandal involving the disparity of resources between the men's and women's basketball tournaments and incidents that led to some schools being placed on probation. 

Emmert became the NCAA president on Nov. 1, 2010. Before leading all of college sports, Emmert was the president of the University of Washington from 2004 to 2010 and a chancellor at LSU from 1999 to 2004. Emmert took over as NCAA president for Myles Brand who died of cancer on September 16, 2009. Jim Isch was the interim president when Brand died.