The leaders of college sports’ most powerful conferences quickly aligned behind President Donald Trump’s latest executive order.

Commissioners from the Big Ten, SEC, ACC and Big 12 all released statements on social media Friday evening unanimously thanking Trump for his executive action. 

Trump’s EO directs federal agencies to potentially restrict funding for schools violating new, tighter rules on player transfers (limited to one) and eligibility (maximum five years), while curbing pay-for-play booster collectives and protecting women’s and Olympic sports funding.

The conferences struck a consistent tone of appreciation for federal involvement, coupled with a renewed call for Congress to establish national standards governing college athletics, particularly with respect to athlete compensation, employment status and name, image and likeness (NIL) rules.

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Big 10 Commissioner Tony Petitti wrote, “The Big Ten Conference would like to thank President Trump for his leadership and continuing efforts to protect college athletics and joins him in urging Congress to quickly pass legislation addressing the critical issues undermining its long-term stability.

“Consistent with President Trump’s executive order, the bipartisan SCORE Act thoughtfully addresses name, image, and likeness for student-athletes, protecting academic and athletic opportunities provided through women’s and Olympic sports programs, and expands resources to support student-athletes on and off the field.

“We will continue to work with a broad coalition of college sports stakeholders and members of Congress to enact this legislation.”

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey wrote, “The establishment and enforcement of consistent national standards for college athletics remains a top priority, and President Trump’s executive order provides important clarity to help ensure all programs operate under comparable policies.

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“We are grateful for the President’s leadership and the continued, bipartisan engagement of members of the House and Senate on these key issues.

“We support House of Representatives approval of the SCORE Act and meaningful Senate consideration of similar legislation to preserve academic opportunity for student-athletes and the long-term future of college sports.”

Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark wrote, “Federal action is essential to protect the future of college athletics, and on behalf of the Big 12, we appreciate President Trump’s commitment to advancing a solution. To build on this momentum and provide long-term clarity and stability, Congress must now act.

“The bipartisan SCORE Act offers a comprehensive framework for many of the issues facing our industry, and I look forward to continue working with President Trump and Congress to enact meaningful reforms.”

ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips wrote, “We deeply thank President Trump and his administration’s ongoing commitment to protecting college athletics by issuing today’s executive order. Following the White House’s college sports roundtable, there continues to be significant momentum to preserve the athletic and academic opportunities for the next generation of student-athletes, and we appreciate the efforts.

“We remain optimistic that the SCORE Act, which would provide stability to college sports, will pass the House of Representatives in the near future.”

The executive order “directs Federal agencies to bolster the effectiveness of key college sports rules on transferring, eligibility, and pay-for-play by evaluating whether violations of such rules render a university unfit for Federal grants and contracts.”

It also says that a “five-year participation window” will be enforced, along with “structured transfer rules” and a “banning (of) improper financial arrangements including pay-for-play agreements facilitated by collectives and similar entities.”

Trump’s executive order comes roughly a month after he hosted a roundtable addressing several hot-button issues with notable sports figures and officials.

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The SCORE Act was at the forefront of the roundtable. It was scheduled to be voted on in December, but the vote was canceled shortly before it was to take place.

The White House endorsed the act, but three Republicans — Byron Donalds of Florida, Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and Chip Roy of Texas — voted with Democrats not to bring the act to the floor. Democrats have largely opposed the bill, urging members of the House to vote against it.

The act would give the NCAA a limited antitrust exemption in hopes of protecting the NCAA from potential lawsuits over eligibility rules and would prohibit athletes from becoming employees of their schools. It prohibits schools from using student fees to fund NIL payments.

The president’s order from July prohibits athletes from receiving pay-to-play payments from third-party sources. However, the order did not impose any restrictions on NIL payments to college athletes by third-party sources. It also demands that schools account for preserving resources for the non-revenue sports.

A month before Trump’s order, a judge approved a settlement between the NCAA, its most powerful conferences and lawyers representing all Division I athletes. The deal means the NCAA will pay close to $2.8 billion in back damages over the next 10 years to college athletes who competed from 2016 to 2025. The settlement also allows college programs to pay athletes directly.

Fox News Digital’s Ryan Morik contributed to this report.

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Friday’s women’s March Madness game between UConn and South Carolina saw an eruption of tempers boiled over as two of the game’s sport’s most legendary coaches got into engaged in a heated sideline confrontation.

UConn’s Geno Auriemma and South Carolina’s Dawn Staley were seen shouting aggressively at each other in the closing moment moments of the game. South Carolina was on the verge of a 62-48 win in the Final Four, when With South Carolina closing in on a 62-48 Final Four win, Auriemma approached Staley, and the exchange began to speak to her aggressively, before the conversation devolved into quickly escalated into a visible shouting match.

After the game, Auriemma did not shake Staley’s hand.

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Staley addressed the incident in an interview with ESPN immediately afterward.

“I have no idea, but I’m going to let you know this, I’m of integrity. I’m of integrity,” Staley said. “So if I did something wrong to Geno, I had no idea what I did, I guess he thought I didn’t shake his hand at the beginning of the game, I didn’t know, I went down there pregame, shook everybody on his staff’s hand, I don’t know what we came with after the game, but hey sometimes things get heated. We move on.”

Auriemma was seen shaking Staley’s hand in ESPN footage before the game.

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Auriemma addressed the incident in the postgame press conference.

“I don’t want what happened there to dampen what we were able to accomplish today,” Staley said.

Meanwhile, Auriemma expressed displeasure with Staley and the referees during an in-game interview on ESPN.

“There were six fouls called that quarter — all of them against us,” Auriemma said on the broadcast. “And they’ve been beating the (expletive) out of our guys down there the entire game. I’m not making excuses, ’cause we haven’t been able to make a shot. But this is ridiculous.

“Their coach rants and raves on the sideline and calls the referee some names you don’t want to hear. And now we get 6 to 0, and I got a kid with a ripped jersey, and they go, ‘I didn’t see it.’ Come on, man. It’s for a national championship.”

After the game, Auriemma declined to elaborate on the incident.

“I said what I had to say and… nothing… nothing,” he said when asked what happened with Staley, refusing to tell reporters what he said.

“Why would I say it. I said what I said and obviously she didn’t like it. I just told the truth.”

Auriemma later addressed the speculation over the handshake pre-game and his mid-game interview.

“I don’t have any regrets,” Auriemma said of his mid-game interview.

“I’ve been coaching a long time, I never had a kid have to change their jersey because somebody ripped it and the official said they didn’t see it. There were a lot of things that happened in that game. Unless you’re on that sideline you have no idea what’s happening on that sideline…

“The protocol is, before the game, you meet at halfcourt, anybody ever see that before? The two coaches meet at halfcourt and they shake hands… they announce it on the loud speaker. I waited there for like three minutes.”

Footage of the shouting exchange quickly went viral on social media, with many fans shocked to two of women’s basketball’s most respected figures clash so publicly.

ESPN star Stephen A. Smith blasted Auriemma for the incident in an X post.

“That was some straight B.S. from the GREAT Geno Auriemma. Never — ever — thought I’d see the day when the greatest woman’s college coach in history would go down so CLASSLESSLY!!! Horrible look, and should be called out for it. He got OUTCOACHED,” Smith wrote. “Plain and simple. And gets in her face like she did something wrong to him instead of being gracious. Had Dawn Staley acted like that we would be all over her.”

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Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu were booed by fans at the Red Sox home opener Friday.

The two Democrat politicians took the field at Fenway Park before Friday’s game against the San Diego Padres for a pregame ceremony. 

And the 36,000-plus fans in attendance showered the Democrats with relentless boos.

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Footage of the booing went viral on social media, providing a boasting opportunity for Massachusetts’ GOP gubernatorial hopefuls.

One of those candidates, Brian Shortsleeve, said in an X video, “Hey, everybody, coming to you from Fenway Park. Here’s a quick update: It’s a beautiful afternoon. The Red Sox are up by one. Maura Healey and Michelle Wu just got booed very loudly.” 

In another post, he wrote, “It was even louder in person!”

Another candidate, Mike Minogue, posted a video of Healey and Wu being booed, writing, “Looks like fans want someone else up to bat.”

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Candidate Mike Kennealy wrote in an X post, “Man, I love Red Sox Nation!”

Healey on Thursday demanded that two private airline companies stop providing flights for ICE to quickly remove illegal immigrants who have been detained, citing a recent ICE-involved shooting in Minneapolis.

In October, one of Healey’s aides was arrested for cocaine trafficking after investigators intercepted packages with the drug slated to be delivered to a state office building where he worked, prosecutors said. 

Wu has been a target of frequent controversy due to her resistance to immigration enforcement.

In February, Wu accused federal immigration agents of conducting “unconstitutional” operations in the city and ordered the public release of surveillance and body camera footage from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions.

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