College football is in its era of evolution. As programs and conferences undergo changes in several areas, the players are not left behind. Collective bargaining is gaining ground in college football, and the players of Andrew Luck’s Stanford became the first to make a move.

A group of Stanford Cardinals players is establishing the first-ever chapter of the College Football Players Association, per Yahoo Sports. With this move, the players seal their partnership with the CFBPA, aiming to lay the groundwork for eventual unionization and collective bargaining, as announced on Monday. While it is not an official petition to form a union or be deemed employees, they see it as a move towards a collective bargaining structure, like that of a professional league.

The CFBPA has a plan, according to Stanford chapter leaders Fisher Anderson and Ernest Cooper, plans to sign up most players at every program in a conference, with the collective bargaining units set on a conference-by-conference basis. Though Stanford has taken the first step, 17 other programs must join this move before players can bargain with the ACC.

“I’m not sure on a timeline. But my personal opinion is that it’s inevitable more so than possible. It needs to happen. The question is when,” Anderson said, according to Yahoo Sports.

“The time is now to do something,” said Anderson, who earned 10 starts at center last year for the Cardinal. “This is college football and it’s increasingly becoming more like the NFL. At some point, we’re likely going to need a CFBPA.”

Anderson sees it as a platform where ACC players can negotiate player safety standards, league-minimum salaries, practice time, mental health benefits, and other pressing issues among programs, conferences, and players.

Stanford University was not a walk in the park for Jason Stahl, the College Football Players Association executive director, and some of his executives, who had been visiting Stanford since last month to present themselves to the players. But one meeting was not enough. The team had to hold other follow-up meetings with smaller groups of players to achieve the result the CFBPA has today.

Stahl is not overwhelmed by the huge task at hand of influencing players in other programs to create chapters and sign union cards. Instead, he sees the move by the Stanford Cardinals as a “precursor” to the conference-level plans, as players, programs, and conferences have been made more aware following the announcement. Stahl also revealed that several other programs in the ACC and other power conferences have to form their chapter.

Stanford’s administration on CFBPA

While the players are on this moving train, the program’s reception has been indifferent. Head coach Tavita Pritchard and general manager Andrew Luck have reportedly been neutral regarding the organization, and a team spokesman also offered no comment, per ESPN.

Aside from the players, who seem totally focused on the sports aspect of their collegiate careers, building trust was also difficult. Players were unsure about the overall reception of the idea; as a result, many were skeptical about joining the association.

“A lot of guys want to dip their toe in, but they’re scared of retaliation from a coach or someone above them,” Cooper said.

Linebacker Ernest Cooper, who is one of the chapter leaders, has fully bought into the CFBPA idea. This is understandable, given that he has been discussing it with Stahl for over a year. However, getting his teammates to buy into the organization was not so easy. Regardless, Anderson feels positive about his discussion with the school’s administration, seeing the CFBPA as an organization that helps both the program and the student-athletes.