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Inside the Big Ten’s Private Capital Gamble: What It Means for College Sports

Private equity firms are notorious for looking to cut costs

Author

Steve Ulrich
October 06, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

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OCTOBER 6, 2025 | composed by STEVE ULRICH
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🎂 Hello, Monday. Sixty-five down, more to come.

🗞️ In Today’s Playbook. Inside the Big Ten’s Private Capital Gamble. NJCU and Kean University Sign Official Deal to Merge. CSMAS Continues Discussion on Athletic Training. By The Numbers. Plays of the Weekend.

🤔 Information. Does your president need to know more about college athletics’ lobbying efforts in Washington and how it affects DIII? We can help. Email us at [email protected]

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TOP STORY

1. Inside the Big Ten’s Private Capital Gamble: What It Means for College Sports

“The college athletics industrial complex rarely rests in its pursuit of the almighty dollar, and that is always apparent when power brokers gather in places such as the NCAA Convention, the Final Four or the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics convention.

In the past year, there was a notable set of new faces showing up to such gatherings en masse—private equity executives. They have spent months gauging interest in college athletics and trying to dispel misconceptions about an industry that does not garner the most favorable headlines when issues surface publicly.

Now, such a listening tour appears to be subsiding and the discussions have begun to turn serious.”

» Driving The News. “Industry and conference sources tell Sports Illustrated the Big Ten’s talks have centered around three of the biggest private equity firms in the country—Apollo Global Management, Sixth Street Partners and Ares Management—and that a decision on moving forward with a potential deal could happen before the end of October.”

» Situational Awareness. “Many of the finer details are still being finalized, and there remains a lack of full unanimity among all schools in the Big Ten over whether to ultimately proceed with the new venture. Reaction tended to center around a very obvious question: Why?”

» The Bottom Line. “Almost all in college athletics who are considering similar cash infusions are not treating such agreements as potential private equity transactions but rather as private capital deals without the level of control typically associated with the former. That’s a key distinction for both legal reasons, given the various state institutions and nonprofits involved, and a perception one for university presidents and chancellors who are wary of any public blowback.”

» Yes, But. “Of course, any such investment is not without risk. Private equity firms are notorious for looking to cut costs and often spin off valuable assets on top of levying large management fees. Sometimes they charge interest rates well above the market rate, too.” (Sports Illustrated)

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2. New Jersey City University and Kean University Sign Official Deal to Merge

“New Jersey City University has signed a definitive agreement to become part of nearby Kean University, the institutions announced in a joint press release Wednesday.

The agreement — approved unanimously by both universities’ governing boards — is subject to accreditor approval by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education as well as by state and federal regulators. Officials expect the merger to be completed by July.

Once complete, NJCU will become “Kean Jersey City.” The two public institutions signed a letter of intent to merge in May after recent years of financial and governance turmoil at NJCU.”

» Between The Lines. “Under the merger terms, Kean will take on NJCU’s assets and liabilities. It will also honor NJCU students’ academic credits, need-based financial aid commitments and merit scholarships if they transition to Kean. Once they do, students will pay Kean’s tuition and fee prices, which amounted to $15,300 for full-time undergraduate students in the 2025-26 academic year.”

» Reality Check. “As for student sports, the agreement establishes a separate advisory committee to look at athletic programming at NJCU post-merger. The university currently competes in more than a dozen NCAA Division III sports, including men’s basketball, women’s softball, and men’s and women’s volleyball and track and field. The committee is expected to make its final report to Kean’s president in December.” (Higher Ed Dive)

3. CSMAS Continues Discussion on Athletic Training Workforce Issues

“The NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports at its meeting last week in Indianapolis continued its discussion of membership concerns regarding the recruiting and retention of athletic trainers.

CSMAS approved the report of its July meeting on athletic training workforce issues, which convened representatives from the athletic training industry to discuss the current educational, credentialing and workforce landscape; opportunities to collaborate and share resources; and the exploration of potential solutions.”

» Driving The News. “In its discussion of the meeting, CSMAS noted data that shows challenges across the athletic training profession and trends specific to the collegiate setting, including: compensation not commensurate with qualifications and responsibilities; staffing shortages; recruitment and retention issues; work-life balance challenges; and increasing workloads.”

» Worth Noting. “The committee noted the process to obtain and review medical records of transfers often creates challenges and additional workload for the sports medicine staff of both the departing and the receiving school.” (NCAA)

4. Calendar

  • Oct. 7: Review of Division III Noncontroversial Legislation Recent Approvals

  • Oct. 10: Application deadline for NCAA/NFL Coaches Academy, Emerging Leaders Seminar, Foundations of Fundraising, Career in Sports Forum (Facilitators)

  • Oct. 11-14: DIII Senior Woman Administrators Program

  • Oct. 14: Championships Committee

  • Oct. 16: Interpretations and Legislation Committee; Membership Committee

  • Oct. 20-21: Management Council

  • Oct. 27: President Advisory Group

  • Oct. 27-28: Presidents Council

  • Oct. 29: NCAA Board of Governors

5. By The Numbers

A list of fall teams that are still unbeaten and untied after weekend contests.

🏑 Field Hockey (1). Christopher Newport (11-0).

⚽️  Men’s Soccer (1). Lake Forest (11-0).

⚽️  Women’s Soccer (4). Lake Forest (12-0), Lycoming (12-0), Messiah (11-0), Brevard (9-0).

🏈 Football (23). Adrian (5-0), Central (5-0), DePauw (5-0), Plymouth State (5-0), Wartburg (5-0), Bethel (4-0), Cal Lutheran (4-0), Christopher Newport (4-0), Hardin-Simmons (4-0), Johns Hopkins (4-0), Lewis & Clark (4-0), Maryville (4-0), Merchant Marine (4-0), Mount Union (4-0), Muhlenberg (4-0), North Central IL (4-0), Salisbury (4-0), Southern Virginia (4-0), Stevenson (4-0), Trinity TX (4-0), Western Connecticut (4-0), UW-Platteville (4-0), UW-La Crosse (3-0).

🏐 Volleyball (3). Virginia Wesleyan (19-0), East Texas Baptist (18-0), La Verne (14-0).

6. Lightning Round ⚡️ 

» Alumni. Congratulations to Johns Hopkins baseball alum Dan Merzel for making his first NLDS as an umpire working the Phillies-Dodgers series.

» Golf. UW-Superior won the UMAC men’s championship, while Northwestern captured the women’s team crown. Wisconsin-Stout brought home the WIAC women’s title.

7. Comings and Goings 

8. Plays of the Weekend

📬 Thanks for starting your week with us.
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