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

[AugustaSwarm]

The other problem is that the NFL is a profit driven enterprise. Most D1 athletic departments are operating at a net loss. Nobody donates to NFL teams. NCAA programs require donations survive. The NCAA also has laws that requires money to be siphoned into non-revenue sports.

These are two different worlds. It sounds good on paper, but I don't see this happening.

 

[MWBATL]

Why would the NFL have a lick of interest in messing with a free system that gives them cheap labor for 4 years in most cases. Look at any NFL roster and you will see most of the 53 man rosters are made up of players on rookie contracts that are very low cost for the NFL team. As long a college football produces players capable of playing in the NFL the League will be completely hands off and rightfully so.

Agree. Even the article that cited this possibility listed it as a Long Shot, not likely for the reasons you cite.

 

[Vespidae]

Why would the NFL have a lick of interest in messing with a free system that gives them cheap labor for 4 years in most cases. Look at any NFL roster and you will see most of the 53 man rosters are made up of players on rookie contracts that are very low cost for the NFL team. As long a college football produces players capable of playing in the NFL the League will be completely hands off and rightfully so.

I suppose you didn’t read the article. The basis of it was that IF players become employees… who is in a better position to manage it, the NCAA and a hodgepodge of conferences or the NFL.

 

[orientalnc]

Why would the NFL underwrite an expensive farm system when they have that system now for free? Those billionaire owners didn't get to be rich making dumb decisions.

 

[Vespidae]

Why would the NFL underwrite an expensive farm system when they have that system now for free? Those billionaire owners didn't get to be rich making dumb decisions.

I suppose you didn’t read it either. It clearly stated that …

“A lawsuit currently underway may result in athletes being classified as employees. That would have momentous implications for an organization (NCAA) that’s already severely diminished in importance.

Realignment and virtually unrestricted transfers have fundamentally changed college football.”

Why would the NFL get involved? Like most corporate enterprises, they want growth. Can they grow internationally? No. The most popular game is soccer there, not “gridiron”. Cricket of course, in India. Do they add more teams in the US? Why divide the pie?

After the NFL, ”The one other sport that’s come close to achieving the ratings and cultural importance of the NFL is, unsurprisingly, NCAA football.“

Is it that hard to imagine that IF players become employees, that the NFL can absorb that along with the media rights? I think they could do it in a heartbeat. Instant, massive growth. And in a sport that is getting ever closer to the NFL game.

Can schools? I doubt it. Alabama, for sure, has no mechanism to deal with players as employees. Almost any player would be in the top 1% of state earners and there’s a whole slew of laws that have to be changed to accommodate that.

Would an NFL owner want a slice of the broadcasting rights in an environment he already understands for the cost of setting up an employer organization? I think yes.

 

[orientalnc]

I suppose you didn’t read it either. It clearly stated that …

“A lawsuit currently underway may result in athletes being classified as employees. That would have momentous implications for an organization (NCAA) that’s already severely diminished in importance.

Realignment and virtually unrestricted transfers have fundamentally changed college football.”

Why would the NFL get involved? Like most corporate enterprises, they want growth. Can they grow internationally? No. The most popular game is soccer there, not “gridiron”. Cricket of course, in India. Do they add more teams in the US? Why divide the pie?

After the NFL, ”The one other sport that’s come close to achieving the ratings and cultural importance of the NFL is, unsurprisingly, NCAA football.“

Is it that hard to imagine that IF players become employees, that the NFL can absorb that along with the media rights? I think they could do it in a heartbeat. Instant, massive growth. And in a sport that is getting ever closer to the NFL game.

Can schools? I doubt it. Alabama, for sure, has no mechanism to deal with players as employees. Almost any player would be in the top 1% of state earners and there’s a whole slew of laws that have to be changed to accommodate that.

Would an NFL owner want a slice of the broadcasting rights in an environment he already understands for the cost of setting up an employer organization? I think yes.

I did indeed read the article. I simply feel the argument he presents is not likely to happen. Could I be wrong? Absolutely.

 

[forensicbuzz]

There's no way NFL gets into CFB. They don't care. They're getting a free minor league, with no downside. Until CFB is not controlled by or ran through universities, there's no way the NFL or any other private group is going to get involved. Even if CFB is a chaotic mess, it doesn't change the product that is being made available to the NFL each year.

If athletes are to be considered university employees, I see many, many universities moving towards divesting themselves of varsity athletics. There would have to be a cataclysmic change to CFB before outside entities got involved.

 

[cpf2001]

From the NFL's perspective, even if CFB gets into major financial trouble due to having to pay players as employees or collapsing TV revenue or whatever, and there's a risk of schools stopping football entirely, why would they help out the college system vs creating their own minor league? Creating a new minor league means no built-in fanbase which means low revenue which means low player leverage and salaries vs a donation-powered system. They don't really need CFB's on-field product, they just want to have a cheap development pipeline, and the players union just wants those players to have to pay their dues before coming for their roster spots. I don't think the programs that bring in serious eyeballs would be worth the headache and all the mediocre, low-rated games that they'd have to be subsidizing too.

 

[orientalnc]

There's no way NFL gets into CFB. They don't care. They're getting a free minor league, with no downside. Until CFB is not controlled by or ran through universities, there's no way the NFL or any other private group is going to get involved. Even if CFB is a chaotic mess, it doesn't change the product that is being made available to the NFL each year.

If athletes are to be considered university employees, I see many, many universities moving towards divesting themselves of varsity athletics. There would have to be a cataclysmic change to CFB before outside entities got involved.

The top teams in the SEC and B1G, plus Texas, OU, USC, Oregon, etc. are making so much money from football I do not see them giving up control over the product they are selling to alums and fans. If this becomes the NFL-Light I doubt many of those rich fans will continue pouring money into the AA. No one donates money to the Atlanta Falcons or Green Bay Packers. If the courts decide the players are employees of the AA, then a whole lot of NLRB rules will suddenly be issues. Can the NCAA set limits on the number of years an employee can work for his company? Could we have Stetson Bennett type veterans everywhere? Will the players be represented by a Players Association? Will the players have to attend class or make progress toward a degree? Will this still be college football?

 

[FlatsLander]

There's no way NFL gets into CFB. They don't care. They're getting a free minor league, with no downside. Until CFB is not controlled by or ran through universities, there's no way the NFL or any other private group is going to get involved. Even if CFB is a chaotic mess, it doesn't change the product that is being made available to the NFL each year.

If athletes are to be considered university employees, I see many, many universities moving towards divesting themselves of varsity athletics. There would have to be a cataclysmic change to CFB before outside entities got involved.

The only thing I could say against this is what Caleb Williams's dad said about his NFL future. If he's projecting to get drafted #1 by the Jets or whoever else they don't want to go to, then he can just stay "in school" and make more than a 1st round draft pick.

 

[forensicbuzz]

The only thing I could say against this is what Caleb Williams's dad said about his NFL future. If he's projecting to get drafted #1 by the Jets or whoever else they don't want to go to, then he can just stay "in school" and make more than a 1st round draft pick.

Until he can't stay at college and then gets picked the next year by a team that's even worse. Unless he has another sport, like Elway did (baseball), he's most likely going to go to a bad team.

 

[Root4GT]

The only thing I could say against this is what Caleb Williams's dad said about his NFL future. If he's projecting to get drafted #1 by the Jets or whoever else they don't want to go to, then he can just stay "in school" and make more than a 1st round draft pick.

1st round picks make good money on their rookie contracts. QBs make insane money on their 2nd contract which can be negotiated after the 1st round draftees' 3rd year. No one is delaying $45+M for $1 or 2 M. Now he might force a trade as Elway and Eli Manning did. He isn't staying in college another year though.

 

[Thwg777]

TL/DR… I blame Sotomayor. If Maurice Clarett had been allowed to enter the NFL draft, I think it would have raised parity in college football. Football factories wouldn’t be able to buy players from smaller schools since it’s tough to compete with NFL money. And for many of the elite athletes, the concept of earning a degree has been a farce for decades already.

 

[roadkill]

TL/DR… I blame Sotomayor. If Maurice Clarett had been allowed to enter the NFL draft, I think it would have raised parity in college football. Football factories wouldn’t be able to buy players from smaller schools since it’s tough to compete with NFL money. And for many of the elite athletes, the concept of earning a degree has been a farce for decades already.

On the surface, it might appear that doing away with the NFL's 3-year rule would hurt the top-tier programs disproportionately and thus improve parity. But I'm not so sure that there would be a dramatic difference over the long haul. Consider other college sports that don't have such a rule, like basketball. Is there more parity? Consider that fielding a competitive BB team does not require the level of expense and capital outlays that football does, and thus allows many smaller schools to participate at the highest level. Yet we still see the "haves" and the "have-nots", with the most successful programs willing to do whatever it takes, financially and academically, to obtain the best players available.

 

[Thwg777]

On the surface, it might appear that doing away with the NFL's 3-year rule would hurt the top-tier programs disproportionately and thus improve parity. But I'm not so sure that there would be a dramatic difference over the long haul. Consider other college sports that don't have such a rule, like basketball. Is there more parity? Consider that fielding a competitive BB team does not require the level of expense and capital outlays that football does, and thus allows many smaller schools to participate at the highest level. Yet we still see the "haves" and the "have-nots", with the most successful programs willing to do whatever it takes, financially and academically, to obtain the best players available.

I agree with your points. The NFL draft rule being overturned wouldn’t benefit powerhouses and thus raise parity but how much isn’t clear.

I don’t think raising parity is necessary an objective of anyone (nor am I implying it should be). I do think that players deserve compensation and felt like the NFL draft avenue was the better option than the current NIL/transfer portal. I think the current structure lessens parity as it allows powerhouses to buy players from other teams. I don’t follow college football in the offseason and was amazed when watching week 1 games to see how many players were playing for a different team. Amazing how credit hours transfer so seamlessly (/sarcasm). Can’t fault the players, just don’t like the game. I was blessed to see Calvin Johnson play when I was a student at Tech. It’s hard for me to see us recruiting, let alone retaining a player as special as him in the current structure.

 

[roadkill]

I agree with your points. The NFL draft rule being overturned wouldn’t benefit powerhouses and thus raise parity but how much isn’t clear.

I don’t think raising parity is necessary an objective of anyone (nor am I implying it should be). I do think that players deserve compensation and felt like the NFL draft avenue was the better option than the current NIL/transfer portal. I think the current structure lessens parity as it allows powerhouses to buy players from other teams. I don’t follow college football in the offseason and was amazed when watching week 1 games to see how many players were playing for a different team. Amazing how credit hours transfer so seamlessly (/sarcasm). Can’t fault the players, just don’t like the game. I was blessed to see Calvin Johnson play when I was a student at Tech. It’s hard for me to see us recruiting, let alone retaining a player as special as him in the current structure.

You make a good point about transfers and the NFL rule. Certainly, transfers occur often in basketball, but more rarely for the top-tier players and for obvious reasons don't occur for the one-and-dones. However, all the NCAA had to do to avoid the current free-for-all in football was to retain their requirement for transfers to sit out a year. We are about to play a game tonight where the opposing team's starters have an unusually large cohort of former GT players. This is frustrating for fans, but like you said, can't fault the players.

I personally care about increasing parity, as I believe it would benefit GT, as well as improve the overall fan experience. How it should be increased is a topic for much discussion.

 

[LT 1967]

I like this idea, how effective would it be though? It reduces the number of available spots in the portal, but I would think that just keeps more of the underperforming players from transferring. Your top few guys who look like a sure bet will still hit the portal if they know theres a lot more money headed their way.

I just know that it is really frustrating to see Nate McCollum making big plays for UNC versus MINN. Particularly since he led the charge to elevate Key to Head Coach. You would think that he would stick around since he received his wish. However, money talks.

We will likely see some more of the same tonight from our former players at Ole Miss.

 

[orientalnc]

Pay For Play Is On The Way

Some college athletes are now making big money from endorsements. Next up: whether they should be paid as university employees.

www.theassemblync.com

 

[g0lftime]

Front

I just know that it is really frustrating to see Nate McCollum making big plays for UNC versus MINN. Particularly since he led the charge to elevate Key to Head Coach. You would think that he would stick around since he received his wish. However, money talks.

We will likely see some more of the same tonight from our former players at Ole Miss.

Front page on Raleigh sports section this morning about how great McCollum is. Would never see that in Atlanta.

 

[Vanillalite]

I don’t know how tech feasibly fits into the landscape like this. Hell I don’t know how factories can keep doing that year over year. UGA paying 5k just to lose a kid to Bama. Ohio State paying kids 5k to get them on campus because if not Michigan will.

This all just seems bonkers, and I’m actually for kids finally getting compensation.