Tennessee men's basketball players have drafted a model collective bargaining agreement with their university, and the move confirms what working Americans already know: the college athlete is now an employee, and the university is a farm system.
The term sheet, developed with the athlete advocacy group Athletes.org, covers minimum pay by class year, offseason rest, academic support, healthcare protections, and transfer rules. Three elected player representatives — Tyler Lundblade, Campbell Duncan, and DeWayne Brown II — spent months negotiating mock sessions with Tennessee athletic director Danny White. Front Office Sports reported that Tennessee is believed to be the first college program to develop such a model. The agreement is not ratified, and may never be. But it signals where this is heading.
The players acted because Congress is trying to lock them out first. The Protect College Sports Act, proposed federal legislation meant to address compensation, the transfer portal, and conference realignment, was written without athlete input. Duncan called it plainly:
