Arizona

New Arizona law ensures state universities are competitive in NIL

Published

7 months ago

May 14, 2025

New Arizona law ensures state universities are competitive in NIL

A new law signed by Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs last week authorizes the state’s four Division I universities to directly pay students for their name, image and likeness.

Senate Bill 1615, which went into effect on May 7, states that universities cannot classify athletes as employees.

The law also allows universities to engage with third-parties to “facilitate opportunities” to compensate athletes without enforcement from the NCAA or other governing bodies.

“The bill allows the university to partner with a third-party entity that is dedicated to secure deals beyond the university’s brand, creating more NIL opportunities for students,” Jason Corriher, Arizona senior associate athletic director for strategic communications, told Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services.

The timing of the legislation comes as college athletic department await a ruling in the House vs. NCAA settlement. California federal judge Claudia Wilken is expected to approve a $2.8 billion settlement that would, among other things, allow schools to directly pay athletes a portion of an athletic department’s revenues, capped at $20.5 million, beginning July 1, 2025.

If the settlement is rejected, schools could still pay athletes directly if their state governments allow.

Braly Keller, director of collegiate services and insight for NIL firm Opendorse, praised the bill, saying on X that “Arizona quickly went from one of the shortest and more dated NIL laws to a robust policy.”

Arizona’s new #NIL law
•Schools can pay SAs directly
•3rd-party marketing arms allowed
•Athletes ≠ employees
•No FOIA access on payments
•Prevents NCAA/governing body enforcement
^ /
Signed by Gov. on 5/7, effective immediately pic.twitter.com/Ar0CvfLUbZ
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— Braly Keller (@BralyKeller) May 9, 2025

Arizona athletic director Desireé Reed-Francois championed a first-of-its-kind Missouri NIL bill in 2022 during her time as Mizzou’s AD. That bill allowed high school recruits to earn NIL as long as they sign with a school in the state.

Reed-Francois told the Arizona Daily Star’s Bruce Pascoe that the Arizona legislation will keep the state competitive in the evolving NIL landscape.

“SB 1615 ensures the University of Arizona has the tools and structure to remain nationally competitive in recruiting and retaining top student-athletes,” she said. “The bill provides greater clarity around the rights and protections of student-athletes engaging in NIL activity.”

The bill, which was sponsored by Sen. TJ Shope (R-Coolidge), gives universities at least one new way to raise money that can be shared with athletes: 50/50 raffles.

Arizona previously required that half the money raised through raffles be distributed to a pre-selected entity like a charity. Under the new law, universities can disperse raffle revenues to athletes.

For example, If Arizona Stadium holds a 50/50 raffle this fall and $100,000 are put in the pot, the Arizona athletic department can hold on to $50,000 and use it to pay athletes.

The raffle funds are an avenue for Arizona athletics to raise the $20.5 million that can be paid directly to students under the pending House settlement.

Arizona will spend most of the $20.5 million on football and men’s basketball players, with the remaining money going towards athletes in other sports.

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Arizona

5 big Powerball lotto prizes won across Arizona days before Christmas

Published

12 hours ago

December 23, 2025

Press Room

5 big Powerball lotto prizes won across Arizona days before Christmas

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Five more lucky lotto players are heading into the holidays with a little extra cash in their pockets.

According to state lottery officials, the big winning tickets were sold around Arizona, each worth $50,000.

The tickets were sold at:

Goldfield Chevron
- 3265 S. Goldfield Rd, Apache Junction, AZ
Circle K
- 2088 W. Orange Grove Rd, Tucson, AZ
QuikTrip
- 918 E. Baseline Rd, Tempe, AZ
Desert Springs Travel Center
- 4031 Fleet St., Littlefield, AZ
Terrible’s
- 19985 N. Hwy 93, White Hills, AZ

The winning numbers from Monday’s drawing were 3, 18, 36, 41, 54 and Powerball 7. Nine $1 million tickets were sold nationwide.

The jackpot remains unclaimed and is estimated at $1.7 billion — the fourth largest ever — with the next drawing set for Christmas Eve.

Powerball tickets cost $2 per play, with odds of winning the jackpot sitting at 1 in 292.2 million, according to the lottery.

More information on games and prizes can be found on the Arizona Lottery website.

See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.

Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.

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Arizona

No. 1 Arizona wraps up Bethune Cookman 107-71

Published

24 hours ago

December 23, 2025

Press Room

No. 1 Arizona wraps up Bethune Cookman 107-71

Arizona wrapped up their pre-Christmas schedule with a nice bow in the form of a 36 point victory over Bethune Cookman. Seven players scored double figures as Brayden Burries lead the game with 20 points. Partway through the first half Mabil Mawut was ejected from the game while on the bench, a rare occurrence under the Tommy Lloyd led team. Arizona will take Christmas off with practice resuming on the 26th and their next game at home on the 29th.

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Arizona

Will Arizona see a white Christmas? What the holiday forecast says

Published

1 day ago

December 22, 2025

Press Room

Will Arizona see a white Christmas? What the holiday forecast says

After a week of persistent warm weather, a storm system is expected to bring rain, not snow, to Arizona for Christmas.
Flagstaff and other high-country areas are also too warm for Christmas snow, with precipitation expected to be mostly rain.
The same weather pattern is bringing heavy rain and potential flooding to Southern California and parts of the Northwest.

Arizonans dreaming of a white Christmas will likely have to settle for rain this year as warm temperatures persist.

A storm system off the West Coast is expected to funnel moisture into the state later this week, giving much of Arizona chances for rain around Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

The unsettled pattern could bring measurable rainfall, but temperatures are expected to stay too warm for snow, even in the high country. Arizona won’t get the soaking Southern California is expecting from incoming atmospheric rivers slamming the coast, but that same system will push moisture into the Southwest.

“Unfortunately, no white Christmas. I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news,” said Ted Whittock, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Phoenix.

In Phoenix, rain chances as temperatures cool from record highs

In Phoenix and the lower deserts, Christmas week will start off unusually warm before gradually cooling as rain chances increase.

Phoenix could break a daily temperature record for the second day in a row on Monday, Dec. 22. The current record is 79 degrees, with a forecast high of 82. A high of 81 degrees on Sunday, Dec. 21, broke the daily record for the third time this month.

But the weather should shift as a low-pressure system moves in from the Pacific.

“We’ll see a strong low-pressure system move in just off the West Coast and bring plenty of moisture into the region starting tomorrow,” Whittock said. “As a result, we’re going to see periodic rain chances this week.”

Forecasters say there will be two main windows for rain: late Tuesday into early Wednesday and again from Christmas Eve into Christmas Day.

Temperatures will start to trend downward midweek, with highs potentially dropping into the 60s and low 70s by the weekend.

Rainfall totals in the Valley could add up to around a half-inch or more in spots.

In Flagstaff, mostly rain early with uncertain snow chances later

Up north, Flagstaff will also see an unsettled and warmer-than-normal Christmas week. But snow lovers may be disappointed.

“It’s very warm for this time of year compared to what it usually is in December, so we’re expecting this week’s events to mainly be rain instead of snow,” said Jacob Lewandowski, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Flagstaff.

The first chance of rain in the forecast is Tuesday, Dec. 23 in the evening. Snow levels are expected to stay high through midweek, generally between 9,000 and 10,000 feet. That puts Flagstaff below the snow line during the initial rounds of precipitation.

Chances for snow could increase later in the week as cooler air moves in, but confidence drops significantly after Wednesday.

“The chances for snow start increasing by Thursday and Friday, but it’s still a lot of uncertainty with it,” said Lewandowski. “It’s just how warm it is through the week and whether it’s going to be all rain or a little bit of snow mixed in. Most likely not a white Christmas, though. It’s too warm.”

Atmospheric rivers hit the West Coast as much of the U.S. stays warm

The storm system affecting Arizona is part of a broader pattern impacting much of the western United States. Atmospheric rivers, or long plumes of moisture from the Pacific, are expected to bring heavy rain to parts of coastal California this week.

“The atmospheric rivers are going to impact Southern Calfironia, particularly on Wednesday,” Whittock said. “This is an especially impactful system for people that are traveling to and from Southern California, especially coastal areas.”

Forecasts from the National Weather Service in Los Angeles show an extended period of heavy rain expected from Tuesday through Saturday, with 4 to 8 inches of rain likely across coastal and valley areas. Prolonged rainfall could lead to flooding and debris flow concerns, especially in burn scar areas.

Unusual weather isn’t limited to just the West. Much of the United States will have a warmer than normal holiday, with some areas experiencing their warmest Christmases on record.

A northward shift in the jet stream over the middle of the country is allowing warmer air to spread east, causing above-normal temperatures. From the Rockies to parts of the Appalachians, temperatures could reach 15 to 30 degrees above average for Christmas Day.

So whether it’s rainy or warm, much of the country will miss out on a snow globe Christmas this year. In Arizona, that likely means a damp holiday instead of a snowy one.

Hayleigh Evans writes about extreme weather and related topics for The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. Email her with story tips at hayleigh.evans@arizonarepublic.com.

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