NIL, Transfers, and Stratospheric Salaries. What Is the Future of GT Football and College Football in General?

[slugboy]

Here comes the bureaucracy so many on this site warned about.

Hopefully, we can avoid the “hurry up and do something” syndrome and be more thoughtful. Hopefully take a little time and figure this out. Would be nice if there is an answer that…..

Respects the rights of individual athletes to control their own earnings potential.

Protects players from exploitation.

Doesn’t make a mockery of the “student” in “student athlete.”

Keeps larger “brand” football factories from forming a monopoly.

Protects the health and wellbeing of athletes.

This is the NCAA lobbying not to fix the situation, but to set the environment back to how it was a few years ago. It also seems to codify the big money advantage of the factories.

As a Tech fan, I don’t see how it helps us or our students. It does look like a good plan for Texas A&M—at least for their athletic department.

I did not like Tuberville as a coach, and I like him less now.

There are other bills. Here’s Ross Dellinger on the lobbying

https://www.si.com/college/2023/06/13/college-sports-leaders-play-both-sides-of-the-aisle-nil-pitch-process

And Sam Erlich

 

[UgaBlows]

This is the NCAA lobbying not to fix the situation, but to set the environment back to how it was a few years ago. It also seems to codify the big money advantage of the factories.

As a Tech fan, I don’t see how it helps us or our students. It does look like a good plan for Texas A&M—at least for their athletic department.

I did not like Tubberville as a coach, and I like him less now.

Agreed, he is a moron and the last person I want crafting legislation Of any kind

 

[cpf2001]

“Push a bunch of the money back under the table where we can pretend to ignore it for our big moneymaker programs”, yeah?

Things like standard contracts would make sense if they were drafted with just as much input from players too…

 

[orientalnc]

 

[slugboy]

 

[TooTall]

 

[Northeast Stinger]

 

[TechPhi97]

Just make incoming transfers count against incoming scholarships limits. I think that will help some. Teams have no penalty to sign 25 and accept 10-15 transfer as long as they run off/graduate enough. Make teams choose what to focus on.

They're going to get rid of the 25 limit, I think. With the portal it's not really feasible any more.

 

[TechPhi97]

i think separately NIL and the portal are good things but combined they create this mess that we’re in. i feel like they would solve the problem if you were ineligible for NIL until a year after your transfer. similar to how you used to be unable to play for a year

All of those rules were put in place to restrict mobility, and are what created the imbalance that the player's cite. With COVID-based removal of these restrictions, now people have a taste for what the ultimate in mobility really means, and it has significantly balanced the equation.

Honestly, it all depends on what you see is the "mess", right? Your mess might be the players' collective opportunity.

 

[TechPhi97]

"What if we were to have a "Super D1" level that did away with scholarships or any pretense of school? Would any teams or conferences sign up for that?" The entire SEC, Clemson, Miami, FSU, and quite a few others are practically there now.

But then it's not affiliated with the school, and the fans (you know, the ones that pay for all that stuff) don't have an emotional tie to the team.

 

[Northeast Stinger]

All of those rules were put in place to restrict mobility, and are what created the imbalance that the player's cite. With COVID-based removal of these restrictions, now people have a taste for what the ultimate in mobility really means, and it has significantly balanced the equation.

Honestly, it all depends on what you see is the "mess", right? Your mess might be the players' collective opportunity.

Hope you’re right but explain a little more about what you mean by “imbalance.”

 

[g0lftime]

But then it's not affiliated with the school, and the fans (you know, the ones that pay for all that stuff) don't have an emotional tie to the team.

I'm not sure it would matter as long as the school name was on the team jersey. A whole lot of fans only care about winning and not how it was accomplished.

 

[TechPhi97]

Hope you’re right but explain a little more about what you mean by “imbalance.”

I was referring to the dramatic increase in money into College Football that was showing up in the College Football coaches' salaries while the student athletes could lose the ability to play if they accepted a t-shirt. This is the imbalance I was referring to - from the Student Athlete's perspective.

 

[Northeast Stinger]

I was referring to the dramatic increase in money into College Football that was showing up in the College Football coaches' salaries while the student athletes could lose the ability to play if they accepted a t-shirt. This is the imbalance I was referring to - from the Student Athlete's perspective.

OK, like a coach could change jobs but a player couldn’t, kind of thing. I get that but the exorbitant coaching salaries were, I thought, relegated to a handful of programs prior to the current rules.

Somehow I don’t think the transfer rules blew up the money game as much as NIL and the more liberal transfer rules we are now under. But I don’t mind trying out a more optimistic view if programs like uga will have a day of reconning that protects the SA.

 

[roadkill]

OK, like a coach could change jobs but a player couldn’t, kind of thing. I get that but the exorbitant coaching salaries were, I thought, relegated to a handful of programs prior to the current rules.

Somehow I don’t think the transfer rules blew up the money game as much as NIL and the more liberal transfer rules we are now under. But I don’t mind trying out a more optimistic view if programs like uga will have a day of reconning that protects the SA.

I think there are two distinct “imbalances” here. There’s the money imbalance between players and coaches, and there’s the competitive imbalance between schools. The former is being somewhat addressed by NIL and greater mobility for the players. Unfortunately, unrestricted mobility and NIL are contributing to greater competitive imbalance, to the detriment of the sport, in my opinion.

 

[jacketup]

I think there are two distinct “imbalances” here. There’s the money imbalance between players and coaches, and there’s the competitive imbalance between schools. The former is being somewhat addressed by NIL and greater mobility for the players. Unfortunately, unrestricted mobility and NIL are contributing to greater competitive imbalance, to the detriment of the sport, in my opinion.

NIL is the problem; unrestricted mobility is only a problem because of NIL. If a kid is not getting to play at one school, let them transfer. It's only the NIL bidding after they enter the portal that creates the imbalance. I think that is what you meant.

 

[Augusta_Jacket]

It's only the NIL bidding after they enter the portal that creates the imbalance.

Not only the bidding after they enter the portal. There are teams shopping players for interest while they are still at their current school and luring them into the portal with potential NIL deals...

 

[Buzztheirazz]

Nah. Ya sure? Everything is on the up and up as it has been for the last 30-40 years. No tampering or paying…pfft…sheeeeeeeeeeit

 

[TechPhi97]

OK, like a coach could change jobs but a player couldn’t, kind of thing. I get that but the exorbitant coaching salaries were, I thought, relegated to a handful of programs prior to the current rules.

Somehow I don’t think the transfer rules blew up the money game as much as NIL and the more liberal transfer rules we are now under. But I don’t mind trying out a more optimistic view if programs like uga will have a day of reconning that protects the SA.

That’s what I was referring to, yes. I’m taking a really long view here - pressures on paying athletes increased over years and I feel the head coach pay + huge media contracts finally reached a tipping point where public opinion turned in favor of athletes. That video game thing was the catalyst.

Mobility is a different issue, but again tight restrictions on the athlete with almost unfettered movement by coaches was the problem. As much as you like to believe a kid commits to a school, the personal relationships are so important - not to mention coaching philosophy, scheme, etc. Think Donnie Davis and Bill Lewis. So I think that I’m a lance drove the changes.

 

[orientalnc]

OK, like a coach could change jobs but a player couldn’t, kind of thing. I get that but the exorbitant coaching salaries were, I thought, relegated to a handful of programs prior to the current rules.

Somehow I don’t think the transfer rules blew up the money game as much as NIL and the more liberal transfer rules we are now under. But I don’t mind trying out a more optimistic view if programs like uga will have a day of reconning that protects the SA.

I don't want to defend the huge salaries in the current system, but assistant coaches are normally on year to year contracts. Some have two year deals. But, those are employment contracts. There is nothing binding those coaches to a school/team other than the contract. When a player commits to a school, the school (in the P5 conferences) promises a college scholarship for 4-5 years. Players in today's environment don't feel the need to show up for even one year (e.g., Bol at UF). The current system is broken. And NIL is flaw. Or the lack of enforcement thereof.

If Bol was promised an NIL deal for $500K and the unspoken premise was his play at UF for at least one year, the rule (if there is one) was broken on that basis. But Bol didn't take himself (or his NIL assets) off the market. While there is some question about who, someone has apparently upped the offer and Bol sees no commitment to UF worth honoring. I am 100% certain the NIL deal he had to play for UF is also dead. We have blatant play for pay and the NCAA sees nothing they can enforce. Bol doesn't want to be a student athlete. He wants to be a professional athlete.

I am moving toward the position that we no longer have "college" football or basketball. We have professional teams using the names of nearby colleges and universities. We are no better. uga is no worse. They just have a deeper pool of money to hire their players. The fact that players are attending classes and getting degrees is a sideshow for the main event.