The universities absolutely do not want this. Look around the world. In only one country do you see universities associated with major sports teams. That also happens to be the only country in which people maintain fanatical loyalty to their schools and donate huge amounts of money to their schools.
Take away the school fight songs, the marching bands, the cheerleaders, the gold plated facilities and especially the football and men’s basketball teams, and the money spigot will be turned off. American universities are the envy of universities around the world for the fierce devotion and loyalty and generosity of their fans and especially alumni. Several European school chancellors, etc have come to the US seen how its done and tried to get that going in European countries. It has never worked there. This is a unique part of American culture. We should preserve it.
Corruption follows money as night follows day. The NCAA is a voluntary organization and no schools are technically forced to join;however, as a practical matter they are. Things have gotten out of hand, but instead of the institutions doing something about it themselves, they are lobbying Congress to solve the problems for them. One can only imagine the calamity that will ensue if that happens.
The alumni that really care will eventually die off. Chinese and Indian students for the most part don’t give a crap about football or basketball. Since they pay full freight, the universities woo them like they’re pretty girls. In Canada, talented hockey players go into the junior ranks where they are given room and board and a stipend, just like American universities, but they don’t have to pretend they’re students. The same process goes on in Europe also. Universities have sports teams also. College hockey in Canada and college soccer in Europe is played at such a low level nobody really cares except friends and family. The Dallas U-15 soccer team that beat the women’s national team would beat Oxford or Cambridge in soccer, probably by the same margin.
It will probably be after most of us are dead and gone, but I believe college sports will eventually be adopting the club model, Young men just aren’t that interested anymore, especially football. At best, it will become geographically regionalized, like college hockey.