Stanford’s Andrew Luck, Cal’s Ron Rivera explain challenges of modern college sports

SAN MATEO – With the auditorium at the Peninsula Golf and Country Club split half-and-half between Cal and Stanford supporters and peppered with football royalty, the general managers of the rival schools’ football teams had a message of unity on Wednesday night. 

“We believe in each other, because we need one another to exist.” Cal’s Ron Rivera said. 

Rivera and Stanford’s Andrew Luck sat a few feet apart from one another in a panel moderated by ESPN’s Mina Kimes and attended by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, 49ers GM John Lynch, former Raiders executive Amy Trask and 49ers Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young. The proceeds from tickets went to the Women’s Coaching Alliance, a Bay Area non-profit organization that aims to use youth sports to develop female leaders.

Both Luck and Rivera boast decorated football careers at their respective alma maters, which found refuge in the Atlantic Coast Conference last year after the Pac-12’s dissolution.

Luck, who was an All-American quarterback at Stanford and the top pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, admitted that having to fly cross-country for non-football sports is a huge challenge faced by both universities. 

But he also admitted that being in a major conference was a non-negotiable for Stanford’s flagship sport.

“We’re in a Power Four conference, and that matters …. Being in whatever that top level of football is core and part of the DNA of our university,” Luck said. 

Rivera agreed. 

“I believe this is the fifth-largest TV market … so that’s why its important that we are relevant,” said Rivera, who was hired in March. “That’s why we’re here, because we believe in our universities, and in taking the next step.”

Rivera also acknowledged the academic and monetary issues caused by having teams travel from coast to coast for games. 

He floated the idea of a national super-conference eventually becoming a reality, and the ironic possibility that it could regionalize college sports. 

“I’d love to see some version of the Pac-10 come back,” Rivera said to thunderous applause, explaining that in this model, the West Coast teams would be a division within a larger conference. 

Both GMs touted their school’s track record of success in women’s and Olympic sports, and pledged to continue to support those sports in a time when some universities are making cuts to their athletic programs. 

But while the Bay Area universities may be in a major conference with a commitment to a multitude of sports, navigating the modern college landscape is anything but easy. 

Rivera pointed out that with the explosion of  Name, Image and Likeness deals, which allows athletes to be paid for endorsements, has very little in the way of regulations. 

“It is very challenging because you never quite know what the rules are gong to be, and you’re not going to understand what the demands are going to be,” Rivera said. 

President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order titled “Saving College Sports”, which aimed to place limits on the power of NIL collectives. 

However, the actual impact of that bill is yet to be determined. 

Without commenting on what they thought about the bill, both Luck and Rivera agreed that more clarity on what is and is not allowed with NIL is needed in college sports. 

“It seems like it’s another step to setting up the table for something,” Luck said. “We’re all waiting on pins and needles to see what happens, in many ways.”

Rivera also explained that NIL money affects more sports than just football and basketball, with the school also investing in promoting financial literacy for athletes in all sports. 

Luck pointed out that one of the most important aspects of their job as general manager is to take financial decisions out of coaches’ hands, allowing them to focus on sports rather than how much each player must get paid. 

Luck did not mention former Cardinal football coach Troy Taylor during the 50-minute panel. 

Taylor was fired by Luck and the university after ESPN published an investigation into allegations that Taylor bullied members of the Cardinal staff. 

While each man expressed optimism concerning his respective university, they also acknowledged that nothing is set in college sports is ever set in stone. 

“I don’t think the system that is (here) today is going to be the system for perpetuity,” Luck said.