I have really had long convos with some ADs recently. I am by no means a legal expert. Nor do I have the quifications but since this is a message board here is where I am landing.
You can feel it on this board and on socials. Everyone’s mad coaches, fans, even the playersbecause NIL’s turned into the Wild West and a kid can leave leaving a program behind the 8 ball. Kids bouncing school to school like it’s a game of NCAA 25 player Mode. Schools getting left high and dry after developing talent for two years or for some a few months. Players getting bad deals from dudes with slick hair and a handshake.
So here’s what makes sense (to me) if we actually want to protect the players and stabilize programs:
Two-Year NIL Commitments (with a transfer buyout clause)
If a player signs an NIL deal through a school’s collective or affiliate? Minimum two-year term. Escalating pay, performance bonuses, academic bonuses (wright this more since it’s actually important) but if the player transfers early, there’s a buyout clause, just like coaches have. The next school (or their collective) can pay it, but there’s a cost. That gives schools roster stability and gives players leverage without turning them into free agents every offseason.
Injury and Medical Coverage, Paid by Collectives
Every kid in an NIL deal gets:
Injury insurance that covers after they leave (long term injuries are covered)
Mental health access (yes, it matters)
Family assistance fund—because some of these kids are feeding five mouths back home
Put it in the NIL contract. No wiggle room. This isn’t just “name, image, likeness”—it’s a life plan for a 19-year-old with a torn ACL and no pro shot.
NIL Deal Transparency Registry
All deals run through a university or collective must be filed with a central database. That way no backroom “here’s $50K in cash and a Dodge Charger” stuff. And it protects kids from signing away their rights to some sketchy agent for 10% for life.
Time to hire a commissioner. I’ve heard Coach Saban mentioned but honestly anyone who’s old school with an open mind to the future works.
Of course but if we have the contracts with the universities done right we could have more punitive measures to try and keep it limited. Going from under the table where making money was illegal to where it’s legal and you can get insurance and other things to sweeten the deal for players to protect them should also help lower those instances.
This is what I’ve heard is probably the ‘best’ solution for now. It’s legal, it’s enforceable. Without making athletes employees or getting rid of instant eligibility (legal cases have basically gutted it, but how can the SEC keep it enforceable for in-conference transfers?) or setting some salary cap/governance (which would require an NCAA like organization that actually has teeth), buyouts, just like coaches, is probably the best way to protect the ‘investment’.
Of course, they also need to fix the number and timing of transfer windows. And I also agree they need a commissioner but also enforcement and penalty power.
The only thing I worry about is that many P4 schools will continue to use the G5 schools as a sort of JuCo if they don’t get it done. If the Utahs, Alabamas and Michigans want to use Akron, UTEP and others as a minor league they need to pay some sort of buyout or transfer fee for these players the G5 are finding and developing. This however is a bigger issue (from what I can see) on the Hoops level.
What a joke. The guy was 1-8 against top-25 teams and got blown out in his only bowl appearance. Honestly, in watching him, I swear that half of his completions (OK, I’m exaggerating a bit) were jump balls he sent down the field as prayers that Hunter and Horn Jr. frequently answered.
I’ve seen some saying people are “hating on him” because of Deion. Yes, yes we are. He is a child of privilege who’s daddy got him his job. Americans hating Nepo babies is an American virtue. All he has to do is prove us wrong like the Mannings.
The NFL is a pretty conservative bunch when it comes to picking players with “attitude.” It’s one thing to be confident in your play. It’s another to be a showboat who had some success in college, but doesn’t have the “grit” to put in the work to develop and evolve their game. Like I’ve posted more than a few times, DC’s in the league are ruthless using tape to find a QB’s weaknesses, then scheming to force the player to play to them. We saw it with Tebow, Manziel, Vince Young, and many others over the years. They have a good season, then the door gets closed…ok, slammed shut.
A lot of Sander’s “attitude” has been “look at my bling!” He has been fortunate to have a father who invested well when the money rolled in during his playing days. Deion was a great talent back in the day, but was never in a position where he was going to be “the face” of the franchise. Shadeur is going to be a face of a franchise if he is picked, and it appears no team was willing to take the chance last night with their highest profile pick. Maybe he gets picked today. I could see the Raiders taking a flyer on him, but they need a stopper LB more than a QB. If he falls to the fourth round, or later, I fully expect Deion to crank up the helicopter and start up the hype train.
There’s also this: The unnamed coach told NFL Media that his interview with Sanders was “the worst formal interview I’ve ever been in in my life. He’s so entitled. He takes unnecessary sacks. He never plays on time. He has horrible body language. He blames teammates. … But the biggest thing is, he’s not that good.”
If he was as good as he thinks he is, someone would have taken a chance on him by now. The fact that we’re seeing QB’s like Tyler Shough drafted before Shedeur is a pretty good indicator that he’s just not all that. Certainly not worth the ridiculous circus that is sure to follow him.
There’s a line between confident and absurdly arrogant, and Shedeur sprinted right on past that a looooooooooong time ago.
