Villanova University is now directly paying some of its student athletes as part of a settlement last year of a federal class-action lawsuit over student athlete compensation, writes Susan Snyder for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

It joins Temple, Penn State, St. Joe’s, Drexel, and La  Salle.

The change means that college athletes can no longer be considered amateurs and can profit from the successful business of college sports.

Questions remain about how schools will fund athletes, how equity pay will be addressed, and how the new policy will affect college sports that do not generate significant revenue.

Villanova is providing money to its men’s and women’s basketball teams.

“Our objective is to share revenue at levels which will keep our basketball rosters funded among the top schools in the Big East [Conference] and nationally,” said Eric Roedl, Villanova’s vice president and director of athletics.

The athletes see revenue sharing as compensation for the hours they spend practicing, playing through summers, and during breaks, leaving no time to work elsewhere.

“It is a job at the end of the day,” said former Villanova University basketball player Eric Dixon.

Read more about how Villanova University and other colleges are responding to the revenue-sharing requirement in The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Editor’s Note: This post was initially published on DELCO.Today in January 2026.