FSU Board Chair Peter Collins Lobbied Senators to Alter College Sports Act
Florida State University Board of Trustees Chair Peter Collins personally lobbied United States senators to rewrite conference realignment restrictions inside the federal Protect College Sports Act, according to emails obtained by Tomahawk Nation through public records requests and an interview with Collins.
Board Chair Intervenes on Federal Legislation
The push by Collins highlights an unusual dynamic for a university board chair working behind the scenes on national athletics legislation. Tomahawk Nation reported that records from five other Atlantic Coast Conference schools showed no comparable example of a board leader directly negotiating legislative text with federal lawmakers. The behind-the-scenes lobbying came as Florida State shifted from initial support for the Protect College Sports Act to seeking changes to specific provisions governing conference movement.
At issue was Section 205 of the proposed bill. The provision originally capped conference membership at 19 teams and imposed strict barriers on schools switching major conferences. For Florida State, that language directly conflicted with the exit flexibility the university fought to secure during its legal battle with the ACC, which began with a December 2023 lawsuit and ended in a March 2025 settlement.
“I think that there’s a lot of good things in the bill. We’d like to see a lot of that pass,” Collins said in an interview with Tomahawk Nation, “but we feel like we’re in a position where we’d be advocating to pass a bill that effectively eliminates our options that we just fought for a year and a half with the ACC to have.”
From Initial Support to Legislative Redlines
FSU initially backed the federal framework following briefings from conference leadership. McCullough subsequently asked Collins to review a joint ACC support letter. After Collins replied that he did not have an issue with the text, McCullough authorized his digital signature on June 3.
Collins told Tomahawk Nation that the initial ACC memo failed to provide a full picture of the bill’s restrictive scope. By July, university officials adjusted their stance. On July 9, Clayton Stein, a senior policy adviser to Sen. Rick Scott, was informed by Josh Duncan that FSU was hesitant to support the bill because of media rights and conference membership.
When ACC commissioner Jim Phillips circulated a final position call on July 30, internal division persisted among conference leadership without a formal vote. By August, McCullough forwarded the final Senate text to Collins, prompting the board chair to initiate direct calls with federal lawmakers, including Senators Ted Cruz, Rick Scott, Eric Schmitt, and Maria Cantwell.
Negotiating a Compromise in Washington
Collins recalled discussing the provision with Cruz. By August 5, Senate Commerce Committee releases indicated movement toward a revised proposal. Collins emailed FSU leadership to report he was actively working toward a compromise featuring a 20-team cap and a two-year delayed implementation of the five-year independence rule. Days later, legislative staff for Senator Moody circulated draft amendments.
On September 28, the Senate approved an amendment by voice vote raising the membership cap to 20 teams. Subsequently, McCullough joined other schools in a letter to House leadership urging further modifications, including raising the cap to 22 teams and eliminating the independence requirement entirely.
Collins told Tomahawk Nation that other ACC schools that did not sign the letter were on calls regarding the issues as well.