Santa Clara University Seeks to Reevaluate Scholarship Allocations as NIL Era Expands

Thierry Darlan ’27 is the NCAA’s first signing from the G League. Santa Clara Athletics is evaluating its player payment policies.

(Photos provided by AP Photo/Jon Elswick and Elaine Zhang/The Santa Clara, Graphic by Nina Glick/The Santa Clara)

Santa Clara University is reassessing how athletic scholarships are funded and distributed as college sports nationwide enter a new era defined by name, image, and likeness (NIL) revenue and shifting NCAA regulations. 

These changes follow the landmark settlement filing in House v. NCAA, which was approved in June by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The Court will give each university the green light to share up to $20.5 million of their own annual revenue directly with student-athletes starting in 2025, according to NCAA settlement documents from the case.  

The decision marks a significant shift in the college sports world. It forces athletic departments to rethink their approach to supporting their athletes while still striving to achieve competitive balance, gender equity and meet expectations regarding team performance.

Santa Clara University Athletic Director, Heather Owen, is focusing on transitioning the University into this new realm. Owen is striving to adapt to this new system while maintaining the University’s values. 

“I want to ensure we fulfill all agreements that we have in place with all student-athletes,” Owen said. “That’s a nonstarter for me. We’re not going to pull something we’ve promised to somebody who’s here, running, swimming, whatever it is they do.”

Owen described the current moment in college athletics as a “new world order,” one where mid-major programs like Santa Clara University must get creative in contrast to more revenue-heavy schools. 

“If we’re going head-to-head with another school for a student-athlete and that school can offer a full scholarship and we can’t, that’ll be a problem,” she said. “We’re actively trying to raise money to add scholarships. That’s the goal.”

The scholarship funding structure at the University is complex. A mix of endowed scholarships, donor-restricted funds and general athletic aid all make up what an athlete might receive each year. Some funds are tied to specific sports, while others are more flexible and can be distributed based on need.

This flexibility will allow the department to make decisions about balancing financial commitments with team demands and overall university budgets. “It’s kind of a big game of Tetris, honestly,” Owen said. “We’re trying to use each fund in a way that allows us to cover the bill, and when we need to, we supplement in other ways.”

That disparity is also creating renewed attention on Title IX. The House v. NCAA settlement did not directly address gender equity in revenue sharing, leaving questions about whether schools must distribute NIL revenue evenly between men’s and women’s sports.

“I’m still waiting for more of a definitive ruling on gender equity in and around institutional NIL or revenue sharing,” Owen said. “That’s something the judge didn’t address. I think that will probably be challenged by somebody, and we’ll get an answer.”

Inside the athletic department, transparency is a pivotal point in how these changes are being managed. “We’re being as transparent as we can with our coaches,” Owen said. “But even they won’t know what another sport is doing down to the penny. Privacy for student-athletes is paramount.”

Many alumni and donors are beginning to understand how dramatically the environment has shifted. “There are some who don’t love the concept of paying athletes,” she said. “But most people just have an intellectual curiosity about where this is all going.”

The coming year will bring both uncertainty and opportunity as the University prepares for a drastically changed NIL landscape. “We’re trying to stay relevant as a mid-major in this changing landscape,” she said. “It’s tough, but that’s the work ahead.”

Santa Clara University Associate Athletics Director of Business Affairs Jaclyn Alongi Lee was unable to comment before the publishing of this article regarding the specific financial figures involving its allocation of scholarships.