Sports briefly: Power Five commissioners seeking Congress' aid regarding compensation for athletes

Power Five conference commissioners are asking Congress to move ahead with legislation regarding compensation for college athletes.

The commissioners sent a letter dated May 23 to congressional leaders. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the letter Friday. The letter was signed by John Swofford of the ACC, Bob Bowlsby of the Big 12, Kevin Warren of the Big Ten, Larry Scott of the Pac-12 and Greg Sankey of the SEC.

They encouraged federal lawmakers to not wait for the NCAA process to play out before passing a national law that would set parameters for college athletes to be compensated for use of their names, images and likenesses (NIL).

"I don't think it's indicative of anything other than our belief that the five of us bring substantial equity to college athletics and that our brands are strong," Bowlsby said Friday.

Last month, the NCAA's Board of Governors signed off on recommendations making it permissible for college athletes to make money for personal endorsements, appearances and sponsorship deals that are currently against the rules. The board acted after California passed a law clearing the way for athlete compensation that takes effect in 2023; other state laws are set to take effect earlier than that, including Florida.

The NCAA hopes to have legislative proposals ready to be voted on in January. Even with that, NCAA leaders have acknowledged the need for congressional help and a national standard that would ward off a wave of state-level NIL laws.

College sports leaders have been working for months to get their message to lawmakers about what they believe are the best solutions for athlete compensation, long a thorny issue for the NCAA and its model of amateurism.

Athletic director Cade Smith said "numerous individual donors" had combined to raise more than $500,000 this week to help save the program from the chopping block.

Two other gifts of $125,000 each from longtime supporters Taso Sofikitis and Sheldon Wolitski provided enough money to allow the Chargers to continue competing at the Division I level for 2020-21. The $750,000 marks the largest athletic campaign contribution in school history.

UAH had announced the elimination of hockey and men's and women's tennis amid the financial hit from the coronavirus pandemic.

Hockey: USA Hockey President Jim Smith is the subject of two investigations surrounding his tenure as the president of Amateur Hockey Association Illinois, according to a USA Hockey spokesman.

Tennis: Dominic Thiem, Alexander Zverev and Nick Kyrgios will play exhibition tennis matches in Berlin in July. There will be electronic line calls to reduce the number of people involved on court.

NHL: The Chicago Blackhawks agreed to a two-year, $1.85 million contract with 21-year-old Czech forward Matej Chalupa.