The concept of allowing college athletes to profit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL) seems fair. The introduction, however, has been disastrous. We now have unregulated collectives functioning as slush funds to pay players exorbitant amounts of money, widening competitive gaps, and in my eyes, the erosion of what made college sports special.
I believe the current NIL system is failing. Student-athletes deserve compensation, but this unregulated, Wild West approach is not working.
We need thoughtful reform that balances athlete rights with the educational mission and competitive balance that have made college sports so compelling for generations.
When the NCAA implemented its interim policy on Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) in July 2021, it was heralded as a long-overdue victory for student-athletes to earn a modest income to supplement their athletic scholarship. But five years in, the reality of NIL has exposed problems that threaten all college sports.
Far from the fair, equitable system its proponents envisioned, NIL has morphed into a thinly veiled pay-for-play scheme dominated by wealthy donors, corporate interests, and an increasingly professionalized sports landscape that’s leaving many athletes and institutions behind.
The most disturbing development in the NIL era has been the rise of “collectives”. They are donor-organized groups that pool money to facilitate NIL deals for athletes at specific schools. These collectives have quickly evolved into recruitment vehicles that effectively function as booster-funded payrolls.
College football’s biggest donors have orchestrated business ventures distributing five-, six-, and seven-figure payments to athletes under the guise of endorsement opportunities and appearance fees.
NIL has fueled inequality in college sports. Large programs with wealthy donor bases and extensive alumni networks can facilitate multi-million dollar NIL opportunities that smaller schools simply cannot match. Schools with smaller athletic programs may not have the means to facilitate lucrative NIL deals, altering the competitive balance.
As NIL becomes the primary factor in recruiting, we’re seeing the creation of a de facto professional league in which the wealthiest programs hoard elite talent, while smaller institutions are left to fight over the remaining prospects.
The combination of NIL with the NCAA’s transfer portal has created a virtual free agency system in college sports. Athletes can now enter the portal, field NIL offers from various schools’ collectives, and choose the highest bidder.
As I write this, it was reported that Congress has gotten involved and passed a bill named ‘Save College Sports’. We will see if it passes the Senate and talk about it in these pages again.
