Jay has over 20 years of experience advising universities on a wide range of athletics, intellectual property, and public relations problems. As college athletics evolved through the Alston decision and the House settlement, Jay acted as a trusted strategic advisor to many of the leading programs and learned that there was a huge need for advice to help athletics departments navigate the transition from the amateurism model to modern system in a way that preserved the core tenets of college athletics and protected the reputations of the universities. Jay focuses on athletics governance and strategy, institutional risk and stakeholder management, and complex NIL and brand-related operating design. Jay attended Rhodes College for undergraduate school and The University of Alabama for law school where he graduated summa cum laude.

Tabor has spent over twenty years advising universities in navigating complex issues relating to college athletics, intellectual property protection and profitability, and general problem-solving that necessarily comes with creating policies and procedures that are both compliant with all applicable governance and aligned with the universities’ overall mission.  Through his experience, Tabor focuses on assisting universities in general athletics governance and strategy. His focus areas include creating sound and repeatable NIL-related operations that are compliant with the requirements of the House settlement to attract talented student-athletes. Tabor attended undergraduate school at Washington & Lee University and law school at The University of Alabama.

As a former NCAA Division I vice chancellor and athletic director, as well as chief athletic compliance director at multiple FBS institutions, Daniel has a unique perspective, and he can offer a different lens for a variety of governance and compliance issues.  Daniel served on many conference and NCAA committees through the years, making him a trusted strategic advisor.  Daniel attended undergraduate school at Birmingham-Southern College where he was a member of the men’s soccer team, before graduating from The University of Alabama School of Law.

Clayton has focused his career on collegiate sports and higher education, including strategically advising universities on NIL matters, such as best practices for implementing the House v. NCAA settlement, structuring relationships with third party NIL entities, and complying with ever changing rules and regulations. He has drafted and successfully negotiated hundreds of NIL agreements with student-athletes and also advised universities in a myriad of NCAA and internal investigations. Clayton attended undergraduate school at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he graduated with distinction, and law school at The University of Alabama.

Averie began her career working at one of the most respected universities in college sports. She started in football recruitment and found herself in student affairs, before going to law school to further her education to better serve universities. Averie has handled internal investigations and strategy development, representing universities in Title IX litigation, NCAA compliance issues, and NIL-related matters. Averie graduated magna cum laude from The University of Alabama with a bachelor’s in public relations and a master’s in sports management. She graduated from Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law.

Alan is a litigator by training, with nearly 20 years of experience, but he has also been involved in multiple NCAA investigations into collegiate athletics, including investigations which alleged improper recruiting of student athletes, improper tampering with potential transfers, the provision of improper benefits, and violations of NCAA rules regarding NIL funds. Alan obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Mississippi and his law degree from Vanderbilt University, where he served as Chief Justice of the Moot Court Board.

Weathers comes to Starnes Sports with a background in regulatory compliance and defense litigation. While he began his career primarily in the courtroom, his practice now includes risk management, policy writing, and advising clients on enforcement matters in the federal regulatory environment. His interest in NCAA compliance is rooted in and continues to be informed by his college swimming career at Emory University. He competed before NIL and without scholarship money, but that experience gives him an appreciation of the relationship between universities and their student-athletes, along with the athletic departments working in the background to make it all run. Weathers attended law school at The University of Alabama.

Michael R. Lasserre is a partner at Starnes Davis Florie who has represented universities and institutions of higher education for more than 12 years, providing both proactive advising/consulting and litigation support on a wide range of issues.

As college athletics grapples with NIL rights, conference realignment, revenue-sharing, and athlete employment questions, Michael draws on his experience in complex commercial disputes, antitrust matters, and trade secret litigation to help universities and athletic departments get ahead of risk and respond decisively when disputes arise.

His broader litigation background, spanning contract disputes, antitrust, trade secrets, class actions, and appellate matters, gives him a practical, business-minded approach for university clients navigating the commercial, regulatory, and reputational risks unique to college sports.

Sam works extensively with universities, representing them in a variety of legal disputes at both the state and federal level. Drawing from this experience, Sam advises universities on issues relating to college athletics with a focus on compliance and institutional risk. Sam attended undergraduate school at Washington and Lee University and law school at the University of Alabama.

Joseph advises conferences and universities nationwide on the defining issues of modern college athletics, including College Sports Commission compliance, NIL contract structuring and authentic NIL development, Title IX matters, and the structural refinement of athletic departments. He remains deeply engaged with the evolving landscape of college athletics, closely following emerging issues, legal developments, and the changing dynamics shaping collegiate sports. A proud Tar Heel, Joseph graduated with highest distinction from The University of North Carolina.