From left, Utah quarterback Tyler Huntley, BYU quarterback Zach Wilson and Utah State quarterback Jordan Love in action this season. | Deseret News and Associated Press photos
A new NCAA decision to enable athletes to earn money has a long ways to go to define what will happen but possibilities are endless
The NCAA is now in a race to beat legal demands, allowing college athletes to earn money off their own name, likeness and image.
There are plenty of unanswered questions on how this will be implemented by the NCAA but California SB206 forced its hand. It is long overdue that players get a piece of the financial pie they help create. But let’s be honest, the biggest payday will go to college superstars, not the little-known Olympic sport participant.
And the NCAA will pour gas on the fire of what is already an underground compensation ring in recruiting that funnels benefits, if not plain cold cash, to top high school players so they will sign at certain schools.
In my opinion, how this new tilt impacts the complex spider web of recruiting far outweighs how a regular college athlete will discover an income flow from appearances for local businesses, peddling a product or two, or becoming the CEO of a real estate office or store on Instagram, Facebook or other internet enterprises.
For a school booster to be able to create an attractive financial endorsement package from his or her business to a prospective recruit is a piece of dynamite. Schools centered in rabid college sports towns like Lexington, Tuscaloosa, Eugene (Nike), Seattle (Microsoft, Boeing) and other venues will be creative in piling up bricks of gold to lure talent.
The NCAA knows this, and the recruiting component will be a high priority to regulate. Once the box is open, it will be hard to contain because it’s impossible to oversee now with current NCAA rules.
It is way too early to get a grip on this new NCAA tact. There are too many questions that remain unanswered. But no question, spirited communities wound up emotionally in college sports will find a way to funnel legitimate over-the-table money to athletes under new guidelines.
I can foresee Utah’s gymnasts selling posters, calendars and other memorabilia and pocketing some personal gain wherein it now goes into the school coffers. In Utah County, high-tech businesses and world multilevel-marketing firms will be more than happy to have a quarterback, running back or tight end show up at company events and endorse products. In Logan, construction companies who’ve long fueled Aggie interests would happily sign an athlete as spokesman to be the face of the brand for a season or two.
“It’s all going to depend on the marketability of the athlete,” said Ricky Volente, an attorney who represents athletes and entertainment figures, to USA Today. “You could see the potential for athletes to have promotional deals both where they’re playing and where they came from.”
I envision this creeping into journalism. Right now coaches are paid for coaches shows in radio and TV. We currently have an army of former athletes on the air in the Utah market, chiming in on games and giving analysis. A new model could open the door for current players to sign deals to appear on broadcast media and the internet. They now do this for free.
Imagine a 20-minute “Tyler Huntley Show” or “Zach Wilson Show,” or “Timeout with Jordan Love Show.” Suddenly the Aggies, Cougars and Utes coaches won’t be the only ones earning money for interviews.
That’s a stretch, but it could happen.
A caveat is the NCAA could have a noncompete clause in its new regulations that would bar an athlete from signing a deal with a company that competes against a university sports sponsor. In other words, if the school is a Nike school, athletes could not endorse adidas or Under Armour in a shoe contract.
Businesses across the state would love to pay a high-profile athlete to attend company parties and sign autographs and jerseys. You can envision book deals, internet websites, moneymaking blogs, diaries and photos being sold on a regular basis. A talented athlete with aspiring and creative dreams could make them happen without hurdles.
And that’s all fair.
The popular college football video game by EA Sports has been off the market for six years due to compensation suits for using student-athlete icons inside the game. That will almost certainly be resurrected and royalty fees could be paid to current players with eligibility.
Profits from jersey sales will be interesting. Right now, every college has licensing rights for its team jerseys and player names and numbers. They get all the money, split with the jersey maker and stores. Now, a player may have to receive a part of those sales.
Like I said, there are a ton of things that have to be spelled out and it is way too early to fully understand this new NCAA venture. For instance, the NCAA may have a rule that whatever money is earned by an athlete be set aside in a trust account until eligibility is over to help maintain the model of amateurism, a foundation of the entire organization from the beginning.
These are new times around the corner.
It will be interesting how this new direction works itself toward the ideal.
It will be even more intriguing to see how the changes impact recruiting, the lifeblood of it all, and by far the stickiest aspect of the underbelly of college sports.
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