For NCAA women, Charlie Baker's legacy is being written – and it's not pretty

Former NCAA star Riley Gaines reacts to Eventbrite's claim her speaking event about protecting women’s sports at the University of California-Davis violated the platform's terms of service on 'FOX News @ Night.'

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) holds its annual convention Jan. 10-13 in Phoenix. Talk of Name, Image, and Likeness compensation rules and debate about whether college athletes are employees of universities are certain to dominate proceedings. The NCAA "Woman Athlete of the Year" will also be announced. 

None of this agenda matters for current and future college female athletes so long as the very question of what it means to be a woman athlete in women’s sports remains up for grabs. 

Incoming NCAA President Charlie Baker had his moment to take the reins and address this high-profile failure in women’s sports – and he missed it. 

Charlie Baker, president of the NCAA, arrives for a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Oct. 17, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

In the glow of his announcement to succeed Mark Emmert just over a year ago, Baker was cast in a favorable light as an executive who could navigate rough waters and tough issues. His tenure as the Republican governor in liberal Massachusetts surely proved this. 

NCAA WON'T PROTECT FEMALE ATHLETES FROM A TRANS TAKEOVER OF THEIR SPORTS

Women’s organizations standing for the rights of female athletes, like Concerned Women for America, responded to the news with optimism. Baker’s appointment was a sign that a reset might be possible. 

Rough waters only intensified last year as NCAA women saw institutions selling them down the river declaring males could claim their identity and make better female athletes. Lia