CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – UVA athletics director Carla Williams said the department has spent the past two years preparing to be competitive in the post-House settlement era, calling this period a ” transformative time of college sports,” in a statement posted the school’s athletics website Thursday.

Willilams said that UVA will distribute the maximum allowable, $20.5 million, to our student-athletes in revenue sharing, and noted

She says competing at the highest levels of collegiate sports will require investments in four key areas: revenue sharing, scholarships, commercial NIL and operations.

Williams praised donor support and the results it has helped yield in terms of talent acquisition for the football and men’s basketball programs.

“We’ve already seen the positive impact of donor engagement for NIL and revenue share for football, having completed the most recent transfer portal class ranked in the top 25 in the country, along with critical donor support for enhanced nutrition and football recruiting needs,” Williams said in the statement. “Donor support for talent acquisition and retention in basketball has yielded similar results.”

Williams also noted that the Virginia Athletic Foundation, which helps pay the cost of athlete scholarships, “As of May, VAF has secured over $22.6 million in endowment commitments — an all-time high for a calendar year.”

The settlement, which brings to a close three federal anti-trust lawsuits, was approved on June 6, calls for about $2.8 billion in damages to be paid to athletes who lost out on the opportunity to be paid over their college careers, and includes framework for future revenue distribution, allowing athletes to be share in the money generated by college athletics. The settlement is already facing a legal challenge.

Eight female athletes, including UVA volleyball player Kate Johnson, have signed on to an appeal that argues the settlement violates Title IX, the federal gender equity law.

Click here for her entire statement.