College Sports Are Bleeding Out
California Baptist University announced on January 2, 2026, that it would discontinue men’s wrestling, men’s golf, and men’s swimming and diving after the 2025–26 season, ahead of its move to the Big West. Chael Sonnen criticized the wrestling decision in a video and connected it to broader concerns about college athletics and NIL. That connection is his analysis; the university’s announcement does not establish NIL as the cause of its decision.
The CBU programs completed their final season in 2025–26. The school’s announcement said the changes would take effect at the end of the competitive season. The broader effects on Olympic development and U.S. results are questions for analysis, not outcomes that can be inferred from one school’s decision.
The NIL Era Is Reshaping College Athletics — And Not for the Better
Sonnen acknowledges a truth many athletes and fans have long believed: the NCAA historically kept too much revenue away from the players generating it. But he argues that the current Name, Image, and Likeness system has created a new imbalance — one that is proving just as destructive.
Sonnen argues that NIL could widen resource gaps between football and men’s basketball and Olympic sports. The cited reporting does not establish that NIL caused CBU’s decision. CBU cited the changing intercollegiate landscape and other institutional considerations.
Sonnen presents the CBU decision as part of a broader concern about funding for Olympic sports. CBU’s decision alone does not establish a nationwide trend.
Olympic Sports Are a National Strength Indicator
Sonnen pushes the conversation beyond athletics departments and into geopolitics. He argues that Olympic performance has long been viewed by major nations as a proxy for national strength. The athletes competing on the world stage are the same age demographic — 18 to 25 — that nations rely on for military readiness, leadership, and societal resilience.
Olympic success signals discipline, toughness, and the ability to thrive under pressure. When a country’s Olympic output declines, it raises broader questions about the health of its developmental systems.
Cutting college programs, Sonnen warns, is not just a sports issue. It’s a national one.
The Pipeline Problem: Universities Build Olympians
College programs are one pathway to Olympic competition, including in wrestling. The United States also develops athletes through national governing bodies, clubs, and U.S. Olympic and Paralympic training centers.
College programs contribute athletes and training opportunities across several Olympic sports, including wrestling. Team USA also relies on club programs, national governing bodies, training centers, and other development routes.
When a university ends a program, its athletes lose that school-based opportunity. The effect on the broader Olympic pipeline depends on the sport, region, and other available programs.
CBU’s wrestling program was one part of the broader development system. Its closure reduces collegiate wrestling opportunities for student-athletes in the area; the effect on future Olympic teams cannot be determined from this decision alone.
The National Impact Is Uncertain
Sonnen warns that cuts to college sports could have long-term consequences. The effect of any one program’s closure on future Olympic results is uncertain.
Olympic athlete development spans many years, and college sports are one part of that process.
A single program closure cannot establish a cause for any future change in U.S. Olympic performance.
CBU’s decision affected student-athletes and reduced collegiate wrestling opportunities in Riverside. The school’s announcement and Sonnen’s broader predictions should be read separately: one is a documented program change; the other is commentary about possible wider effects.
Citation Sources
- Chael Sonnen commentary — YouTube (https://www.youtube.com)
- NCAA NIL policy overview — NCAA.org (https://www.ncaa.org)
- Team USA Olympic development structure — TeamUSA.org (https://www.teamusa.org)
Article Tags
NIL, NCAA Wrestling, College Athletics, Chael Sonnen, Olympic Sports, Wrestling News, CBU Wrestling, College Sports Cuts
Sources
Tags: MMA, Combat Sports
