Ted Cruz Takes His NIL Pitch To ‘GameDay’ As Austin Libs Drown Him In Boos

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) appeared on ESPN’s “College GameDay” in Austin, Texas, on Saturday to push for Senate passage of the Protect College Sports Act — but was met with sustained boos and “Ted, you suck” chants from the crowd at the University of Texas, Austin campus.

Cruz, chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, spoke with Rece Davis for roughly eight minutes — longer than the six minutes given to Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian — arguing that college athletics have descended into disorder since federal courts struck down NCAA compensation limits.

“What we have right now is chaos. There are no rules,” Cruz said, pointing to disputes over bringing professional players into college competition and litigation involving athletes gambling on their own games.

ESPN had Ted Cruz on ‘College GameDay’ in a conversation with Rece Davis for nearly 10 minutes.

Cruz was heavily booed by the crowd — and heard “Ted, you suck!” chants — in Austin. pic.twitter.com/npQesiYMsG

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 12, 2026

The bipartisan bill, coauthored with Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA), would establish a national framework for athlete name, imagine and likeness compensation, cap revenue-sharing payments to players with an annual inflation adjustment, and restrict boosters and third parties from funneling pay-for-play money through NIL deals. It cleared the Senate Commerce Committee in June with bipartisan support and has since won backing from the Southeastern Conference and Big Ten, more than 260 universities, and President Donald Trump, who said he hopes to sign it before the college football season ends. The measure needs 60 votes to clear the Senate before heading to the House.

The bill missed a floor vote before the Senate August recess despite Trump urging lawmakers to stay in session, and the Congressional Black Caucus has said Senate Democrats should withhold support until concerns from black athletes, coaches and HBCUs are addressed. Cruz told Davis on Saturday he remains confident the bill will secure the votes needed to pass this week, marking the second consecutive week “GameDay” has featured a segment on the legislation, following an appearance by Nick Saban and Pat McAfee.

Cruz also renewed criticism of the transfer portal, calling it “terrible for the game” and blaming Congress-triggered antitrust rulings for the current landscape.