SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee looks out on the field before an NCAA college football game against UC Davis on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026, in Dallas.
Smiley N. Pool/The Dallas Morning News
UNIVERSITY PARK — During his team’s win over Missouri State on Saturday night, SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee looked down the sideline to see some familiar faces.
Former SMU wide receivers James Proche and Jordan Hudson were watching their former team from the sidelines, as they’ve stayed connected to SMU even after pursuing opportunities in the NFL.
But Lashlee also started to wonder whether the transfer portal era of college football could change that.
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“I’m going, ‘Is this going to exist anymore in 10 years if guys just go to four or five schools just to go get paid?’” he said.
But just two days later, the U.S. Senate passed legislation that could answer Lashlee’s questions.
The Senate voted Monday night to pass the Protect College Sports Act, 77-22, that addresses a wide range of topics that contribute to instability in college athletics. After years of lobbying from the NCAA, conferences and schools, Congress took the first major step to create a rulebook for NIL, the transfer portal and other constantly changing aspects of college sports.
“I don’t know if there’s any perfect solution, but we need a solution,” Lashlee said. “I think that’s the positive of something like that passing. At least we know what the law of the land is.”
The bill still needs to pass the House of Representatives, where it could continue to change, and be signed into law by President Donald Trump, which he has indicated he will do. The House isn’t expected to take it up until after the midterm elections on Nov. 3.
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The legislation addresses several of the most pressing concerns in college athletics. It provides the NCAA with an antitrust exemption intended to help it enforce a cap on how much schools can pay their athletes, as well as other rules that haven’t been enforced in recent years due to legal challenges.
Athletes would also be limited to transferring once without penalty, unlike the current system that sees some players attend as many as five different schools during their college careers. It would also reinforce the new NCAA five-for-five rule that limits athletes to a five-year window to compete, beginning either during the academic year when they first enroll in college full-time or turn 19 years old — whichever comes first.
“There’s a lot more protection in there for the players than we currently have,” Lashlee said. “It’s like my kids. They would eat ice cream for breakfast, lunch and dinner if I let them. That’s not good. It’s my job to not allow them to have ice cream for breakfast, lunch and dinner because I know even though they’ll be happy in the moment, long-term that’s not best for them.
“You get still having the ability to move but not just at a level where you’re never learning to stay somewhere and graduate and get a degree and have an alumni base and a home to fall back on.”
Some opponents argue the bill unfairly limits athletes’ rights to transfer. Others argue stability in college athletics should come from a collective bargaining agreement, like professional athletes.
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SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings said Tuesday that he and his teammates haven’t discussed much of what the legislation would mean for them. His college career could very well be over by the time it takes effect.
But for the coaches and administrators who know they’ll be around for a while, they say it’s an encouraging step towards a less chaotic future.
“We’re not the NFL, but the NFL has a salary cap,” Lashlee said. “They have structure. They have rules. That’s what this will give us.”