If I’ve learned anything through the various episodes of college football conference realignment it’s that the rules of realignment are never the same twice. Let’s review.
After the Supreme Court ruled in NCAA v. Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma that the NCAA television plan violated the Sherman and Clayton Antitrust Acts, the list of 21 Independent schools soon began whittling down as they rushed to join the closest conference in their region. Why? Because of the magical item known as grant of rights: a clause that dictates who owns the copyright to a piece of intellectual property (almost always the creator) and what rights you may be granting to the client to use, copy, reproduce, print, or publish your stuff.