TCU athletic director Mike Buddie advocates for a salary cap not only for college athletes, but also for coaches and athletic directors. He suggests that student-athletes should participate in discussions about compensation limits, aiming for a more balanced approach within college sports. Buddie’s views come amid escalating coaching salaries, with top NCAA football coaches like Indiana’s Curt Cignetti, Georgia’s Kirby Smart, and LSU’s Lane Kiffin earning over $13 million annually, while major conference athletic directors can exceed $1 million per year. At TCU, football coach Sonny Dykes recently secured a multiyear deal paying him above $7 million annually.

The notion of capping coaches’ salaries has been a subject of debate for several years, including congressional talks. In 2025, Representative Michael Baumgartner introduced legislation intending to cap coaches’ and athletics employees’ salaries, tying limits to tuition costs. However, legal obstacles remain, as a 1992 federal appeals court ruling deemed salary caps on NCAA coaches illegal under antitrust laws, based on the case Law v. NCAA. Despite these challenges, Buddie believes a solution lies in collective bargaining agreements similar to practices in professional sports, where unions negotiate salary caps and compensation rules.

Buddie draws from his professional baseball background to contend that collective bargaining could enable enforceable salary restrictions in college athletics. He emphasizes the importance of involving student-athletes directly in salary discussions to promote fairness. The current environment with mounting paychecks highlights the significance of finding structural limits to prevent unsustainable spending on coaching contracts and administrative pay in college sports. Buddie argues that salary caps for all parties would help maintain a healthier financial balance in collegiate athletics.

While Buddie’s salary remains undisclosed, his proposal reflects broader national conversations about compensation in NCAA sports, especially amid growing scrutiny of the commercialization and financial disparities in the system. The ongoing legal and legislative developments suggest that more concrete measures regarding pay limits for coaches and athletic staff could emerge if collective bargaining mechanisms gain traction. Buddie’s call for inclusive decision-making marks a notable perspective in the evolving debate on the economics of college sports.