CLEMSON — It is no surprise there is a lot of news coming out this week surrounding the Protect College Sports Act (PCSA).

On Monday, The Clemson Insider reported how the bill has opened realignment discussions and what it could mean for the future of the bill and college athletics. On the backside of that news, now comes another revision that could change college athletics for the better.

Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reports a “potential” revision that would provide schools with a total cap between $40-$50 million, which aligns with the current spending in the market by some. Dellenger reports “the flexibility may be necessary as the bill, as written, places more restrictive rules around cap circumvention.”

A part of the $40-$50 million cap, if the revision is added to the bill, “includes a proposed idea to establish a separate pool of money for schools to use to retain current athletes on their rosters. This “retention pool,” as some refer to it, would be in addition to the $21.3 million revenue-share cap for the 2026-27 academic year. Other ideas under discussion include a general increase in the cap itself and the addition of a sort-of luxury tax on over-spenders.”

This new piece of information brings up the question, would a new cap increase get rid of Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) in college athletics? TCI was told by someone who has knowledge of the negotiations that the goal is to dramatically increase the cap of the revenue that the schools can share in exchange to eliminate NIL, in hopes to create an even playing field.

Though there will be a cap, NIL will not be a part of the picture. In other words, funds will come from the athletic department’s budget to pay athletes rather than rely on third-party (NIL) streams of revenue. For Clemson, obviously, this is a gamechanger.

It is to be noted that negotiations are still active and fluid. No agreement has been made at this time. The authors of the bill, Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Eric Stephen Schmitt (R-Mo.), have worked tirelessly with the SEC and Big Ten to amend the bill.

The PCSA is a bipartisan federal bill introduced this past May to establish national standards for NIL agreements, athlete eligibility, and revenue sharing while providing the NCAA with a limited antitrust exemption.

TCI will provide more information as it becomes available.