WTH is NIL?
NIL challenges that notion of “amateur sports,” and there’s growing concerns the rules could affect public high schools. Will they lose even more players to club play? How tolerant does the system need to be to let athletes pursue income?
When Nick Saban, arguably the best college football coach in history, stated NIL as one of the main reasons he was quitting Alabama football this year, I sat up and took notice.
NIL is an acronym for Name, Image, Likeness, and it’s a relatively new law entitling players to profit from their own name, image and likeness without losing their amateur status.
Players can’t ask for money for performance, like on the field of play – yet. No TV broadcast money. But where they can make income is endorsements, autographs, social media, event appearances and interviews.
Where it starts to get messy, and aggravating to coaches like Sabin, is that it’s only a state law, not yet a federal law, so each individual state/school has its own regulations. Some are much more generous than others.
For example, Roll Tide Alabama, where Sabin coached, has strict laws, while Oregon has much looser rules. So, college players are putting themselves in the transfer “portal.” It’s a bit like an online dating site, where those who want to be traded can be seen by recruiters who can tantalize them with NIL money options and interest.
The National College Players Association has attempted the first-ever rating list, for those who would like to see where their state lands, and where there will be a flood of star players moving.
The undefined gray areas are things like allowances for these NIL side hustles off the field. Will coaches let stars miss practice for appearances? Signings? Where do they draw the line? Can schools sell autographed shirts to help the players? How can recruiters romance potential players when they are asking “What kind of NIL money can you promise me?”
It’s an area that seems ripe for under-the-table agreements and a whole nother level of NCAA watchdogs that needs to be on full alert.
But so far it’s really just the star kids of superstar parents that are raking in the money. Labron’s son, “Bronny,”at the top of the scale, made $5.9 million in endorsements at age 17.
Can’t blame anyone for wanting that. And they have the right to build themselves up as a brand. But in high school?
I think it will affect Miramonte, but in small ways.
Like Mat’s tennis as an example, coaches will probably continue to lose more top-tier players to club play and private schools. It will become more about the ME and less about the WE.
Just what our kids don’t need. To be sucked further into the vortex of their glowing phones already consumed with needing more “likes” and followers.
But unless you’re like Miramonte’s alum and basketball superstar Sabrina Ionescu, endorsement contracts probably won’t creep onto our campus – fingers crossed.
In my book, high school should still be a time to craft your skills and grow. A touch early to start banking profits. But that’s just me. Let’s get a federal law for college NIL equality across the country, for an even playing field, and keep “NIL” standing for the sum of zero when it comes to how much we see on high school campuses.
