July is here, bringing with it a new era of college sports. If that sounds familiar, it’s because four years ago on this very date, the NCAA started allowing athletes to earn money from their name, image, and likeness (NIL). Now, schools can pay student-athletes directly due to the House Settlement. Revenue sharing is officially here.
This year, schools will be able to distribute up to $20.5 million to athletes across all sports, divided as they choose; that cap will increase by 4% each year. Roster limits will also go into place, and NIL deals over $600 must be reported to NIL Go, a Deloitte-operated clearinghouse. Kentucky has yet to disclose how it will divide up its $20.5 million, but Mitch Barnhart said in May that it will be fluid, able to change year by year to give certain sports more if needed. Men’s basketball is clearly more of a priority at Kentucky than at other schools, but football will certainly get the lion’s share as it brings in the majority of revenue.
Another focus for Kentucky will be creating new revenue streams. That’s why UK Athletics moved to Champions Blue LLC, a holding company, last month. In an interview with CBS Sports’ John Talty, Barnhart said finding new ways to grow revenue, like more concerts at Kroger Field and a potential entertainment district around the stadium, is essential in order to avoid raising ticket prices like other schools.
“We’re not just going to our fanbase and saying ‘Hey, our expenses went up and we need more money,’” Barnhart told CBS Sports. “That’s not fair to them all the time, and frankly, it’s not going to be viable in our state. Our opportunities because of our population (are) not as many.”
UK Athletics doesn’t exactly have a reputation as a trailblazer in college athletics, at least on the administrative/business side, but Champions Blue could change that. Four years ago, schools had to adapt to NIL or be left behind; that’s not even enough now. If you’re not thinking two steps ahead, you’ll be forced to make some serious (and sobering) changes.
With that very intense intro out of the way, let’s continue on with today’s rundown.
Jasper Johnson and Team USA back in action at FIBA World Cup
It’s the final day of group play at the FIBA U19 World Cup. At 11:15 a.m. ET, you can watch Jasper Johnson and the rest of Team USA face Cameroon. USA is 2-0 in the event so far, cruising by Australia and France. Cameroon is 0-2, losing to France by 25 in its opener and to Australia by five on Sunday.
Arizona wing Koa Peat, Louisville guard Mikel Brown, and BYU wing AJ Dybantsa lead Team USA in scoring so far with 17.0 points per game. Jasper Johnson is averaging 5.0 points per game (30% FG). Mark Pope is still in Switzerland to support his new shooting guard and keep an eye on the rest of Kentucky’s targets, including Tyran Stokes, Jordan Smith Jr., and Caleb Holt. With all games streaming live on YouTube, we can all scout them together later this morning.
Jaland Lowe gave us a great quote
While Jasper is representing his country abroad, the rest of the Cats are hard at work back in Lexington. Yesterday, we got to speak to two newcomers, point guard Jaland Lowe and center Reece Potter. Lowe is a natural with the media, already giving Big Blue Nation a sound clip to salivate over. When asked which player has surprised him the most so far in practice, Lowe didn’t hesitate.
“Trent Noah might be the best shooter I’ve ever seen,” Lowe said. “I played with a really good shooter in Blake Hinson, but Trent Noah? Gosh, he can shoot the living blank out of the ball. He can really shoot it. I love T.N.”
In his freshman season, Noah shot 33.3% from three-point range on 1.5 attempts per game; if you’re curious, Blake Hinson, Lowe’s former teammate at Pitt, shot 42.1% from three on 7.9 attempts per game during the 2023-24 season. Kentucky’s roster is loaded, but if Lowe’s praise is any indication, Noah will find his way to the floor.
We also got some fun stuff from Reece Potter, who said his favorite Kentucky player growing up was Daniel Orton, who helped train him while Potter was at Lexington Catholic. After two seasons at Miami (OH), Potter is looking forward to expanding his game under Mark Pope, taking on the role of point center like Amari Williams. We’ll be rolling out more from the interviews as the day goes on. You can also check them out in their entirety below.
80 subs away from 50K on the KSR YouTube Channel
You know how we’re always encouraging you to subscribe to the KSR YouTube Channel? Well, we’re doubling down today because we’re only 81 subscribers away from 50,000, a big goal for our videographer, Steven Peake. Right now on the channel, you can watch the summer basketball interviews and loads of original content, including NBA 2K25 simulations of a Kentucky All-Star Team vs. the rest of the league, breakdowns of each new Kentucky Wildcat, and all of our original shows.
Yesterday, Nick Roush and Jack Pilgrim joined me on KSR Happy Hour to break down the latest Kentucky Basketball and football recruiting news, along with some July 4th talk. Tonight, Jack and Shawn Smith will share even more basketball talk on a new episode of Sources Say at 8 p.m. ET. Seriously, so many reasons to subscribe (it’s free!), so do us a favor and smash that subscribe button, as the kids say.
Ponatoski Watch continues
Monday came and went without news on four-star quarterback Matt Ponatoski. The Archbishop Moeller star is back in Cincinnati following a weeklong baseball tournament in Georgia (remember, he’s a dual-sport star). Kentucky is still perceived as the frontrunner, with fellow finalists Alabama and Oregon recently landing other targets at his position. Ponatoski is the No. 9 quarterback and No. 100 overall prospect in the On3 rankings. He would be the jewel of Kentucky’s 2026 class, which currently sits at 13 commitments.
We’ll keep our ears to the ground, sharing the latest rumblings on KSBoard. Speaking of, there’s some more interesting football recruiting chatter there right now courtesy of On3’s Director of Recruiting Chad Simmons. I won’t spoil the broth, but Kentucky’s new wide receivers coach L’Damian Washington is not afraid to go after some big fish.
The On3/Rivals merger is live
It’s also a big day for our parent company, On3. Rivals officially joined the family yesterday, with changes going live network-wide today. Changes will be minimal on KSR’s end, with KSR+ and Cats Illustrated remaining separate entities; however, we will all see benefits from the merger.
Veteran college football insider Brett McMurphy joined On3 yesterday, giving us one of the best newsbreakers in the industry. An iconic North Carolina fansite is also coming on board one month from now. For now, we can’t share the name, but needless to say, it’s a big one.
NEWS: The most iconic North Carolina Tar Heels Fan Site is moving to On3 August 1st
Details: https://t.co/3ZrhMfOhE7 pic.twitter.com/IybS3xc1gV
— On3 (@On3sports) June 30, 2025
Mark Stoops’ “We’re just getting started, bro” doesn’t really hit the same anymore, but On3 is taking some big steps forward. We’re just happy to be along for the ride.
The post KSR Today: Revenue-sharing is here, Jasper Johnson and Team USA back in action appeared first on On3.