My thoughts:
1. I'll double down on this:
NCAA announcing UNC penalties on Friday. I'm willing to bet that the release planned for last Friday contained penalties. UNC successfully changed the NCAA's mind.
2. The logic that changed their mind: (a) The NCAA has approved or tolerates a wide range of benefits for athletes, such as luxurious "athlete dormitories", so long as a small number of selected non-athletes get the same benefits. See e.g.
Upscale housing is the latest weapon in college athletic recruiting arms race. (b) UNC probably threatened a suit for double standards that would have forced the NCAA to either relent on punishing UNC or to punish all the SEC etc. football programs and top basketball programs (Kentucky, Kansas) for the housing benefits, and other benefits handed out in an athlete-preferential fashion.
But, now that the recipe for cheating is established -- give extravagant benefits to athletes, and let selected undergrads also obtain those benefits -- there is virtually no limit to how much favoritism and provision of benefits to athletes can go on. You just have to set aside a 50% tax for the other students.
And if universities can openly bribe athletes with such benefits, then their benefits will no longer be against the law, so no FBI investigations either.
Effectively, we are seeing another step in the professionalization of college sports. And with de facto bidding wars for players, the high revenue teams in the B1G, SEC, and ACC will dominate college athletics.