There are several significant changes coming to college sports thanks to the House settlement. One of those that’s been widely discussed is that there are now going to be limits to the size of rosters.
There’s, of course, plenty of debate about this. That includes those concerned it’s taken away opportunities, particularly from walk-ons and those who think the move will bring more parity to college football. However, one person who pushed back on that idea is Greg McElroy. On his show Always College Football, the analyst explained why he doesn’t think roster limits are actually bringing parity to the sport.
“So, will there be more parity as a result of the roster limits and the new House settlement? That’s the assumption,” Greg McElroy said. “Do I think that’s the reality? Probably not. I really don’t.”
In college football, the House settlement sets roster limits at 105 spots. Other sports were hit too, including men’s and women’s basketball (15), baseball (34), men’s and women’s soccer (28), softball (25), and volleyball (18). Notably, as part of the settlement, it was agreed to phase in roster limits.
“I think the best teams are still going to be the best teams. Now, will they annually be the best? Are there going to be years in which there’s going to be outliers and teams decide to go all in and maybe the stars align and they can make a run? Sure. But I still think those teams with the deepest pockets, the best resources, the best facilities, the best fan support,” McElroy said. “Those are still going to be the teams that are competing annually at the top of college football. So, I will be curious to see how this House settlement affects the quality of play and the parity that we experience right now in the sport.”
The counterargument to McElroy is that these roster limits are going to test teams’ depth. In an increasingly long season with the Transfer Portal already showing its impact on depth, these smaller rosters would be another hit as teams battle injuries. That, hypothetically, would create more parity.
Parity is something that’s been a bit of an issue in college football since the beginning of the College Football Playoff. In 11 seasons of the Playoff, including one where it was expanded to 12 teams, there have been six national champions coming from three conferences. Alabama, who notably has the most national championships in the Playoff era, also won two of the final three in the BCS era. It has, for the most part, been a limited field of realistic potential national champions.
The House settlement is going to go well beyond roster limits, which will again shake up college athletics. That, most notably, includes revenue sharing, the creation of an NIL clearinghouse to review third-party deals, and the creation of a new enforcement entity.
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