DoubleBlue
Member
I wonder if the Supreme Court repeal of Chevron Deference is also at play with NIL. Courts are the experts (not the agencies) and they must judge based on the merits as presented by both sides. Previous precedent has little weight.
Name, Image, Likeness
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MChambers
Member
Don't know that the NCAA, as a private organization, ever got any deference under Chevron. Nor was there much precedence, in any event.
AustinDevil
Member
I do not think binding precedent was meant, just ideological alignment…
DoubleBlue
Member
Not directly under Chevron Deference, but the general trend in law seems to be weighing both sides appropriately, not giving deference to an "agency" or a "ruling body" as being the sole expert. The NCAA has demonstrated by negligence or stubborness that they are not the sole experts.
hustleplays
Member
The NCAA's negligence and stubbornness notwithstanding, they were saddled with an indefensible, self-contradictory mandate: regulate and restrict benefits to the "talent" [the athletes] in the context of the fiction that they were primarily students, while the students' employers were raking in millions of dollars. The talent increasingly did not regard themselves as students, lagging behind many universities who treated them as commercial assets. The talent aka students regarded and regard themselves as professional athletes who demand their fair share.
We are in the early stages of how this plays out with respect to the relationship between universities and their professional talent. The NCAA will not be a major player. The major sports programs will build mutually regulatory entities that serve their interests. The new entities will have to navigate the restraint of trade regulations while striving to construct some agreements on issues such as academic standards for the talent and "free agency." Creating new regulatory entities will be extremely difficult. Many diverging interests.
While many schools might object to having their athletic talent being viewed as professional, the talent's coming o
hustleplays
Member
I'm sorry for not having finished the above post! :-(
Here is the last sentence: While many schools might object to having their athletic talent being viewed as professionals and as employees, the athletes themselves and employment laws seem to be aligned toward that outcome. The employee construct might provide a necessary umbrella for re-introducing shared standards and practices.
Here is the last sentence: While many schools might object to having their athletic talent being viewed as professionals and as employees, the athletes themselves and employment laws seem to be aligned toward that outcome. The employee construct might provide a necessary umbrella for re-introducing shared standards and practices.
hustleplays
Member
Did y'all see the news that UNLV's QB, Matthew Sluka, is stepping away from the team due to an NIL dispute:
apnews.com
I would appreciate hearing from our lawyer friends, such as Stray Gator, as to how these disputes will interact with legal issues.
btw, UNLV is 3-0!
Note the NCAA's acknowledgement that its power is limited [nonexistent?] here: “The NCAA fully supports college athletes profiting from their NIL, but unfortunately there is little oversight or accountability in the NIL space and far too often promises made to student-athletes are broken,” the NCAA said Wednesday without mentioning Sluka by name. “Positive changes are underway at the NCAA to deliver more benefits to student-athletes but without clear legal authority granted by the courts or by Congress, the NCAA, conferences and schools have limited authority to regulate third parties involved in NIL transactions.”
The NCAA accurately points out that conferences and schools also have limited authority to regulate NIL transactions among third parties.
Why is UNLV QB Matthew Sluka walking away from his undefeated team?
One of the leading authorities on NIL in college athletics said Matthew Sluka’s decision to end his season at UNLV after three games because of a disagreement over a pay arrangement could tempt other players to bail on their teams to pursue better opportunities.
apnews.com
I would appreciate hearing from our lawyer friends, such as Stray Gator, as to how these disputes will interact with legal issues.
btw, UNLV is 3-0!
Note the NCAA's acknowledgement that its power is limited [nonexistent?] here: “The NCAA fully supports college athletes profiting from their NIL, but unfortunately there is little oversight or accountability in the NIL space and far too often promises made to student-athletes are broken,” the NCAA said Wednesday without mentioning Sluka by name. “Positive changes are underway at the NCAA to deliver more benefits to student-athletes but without clear legal authority granted by the courts or by Congress, the NCAA, conferences and schools have limited authority to regulate third parties involved in NIL transactions.”
The NCAA accurately points out that conferences and schools also have limited authority to regulate NIL transactions among third parties.
hustleplays
Member
UNLV is 4-0.Did y'all see the news that UNLV's QB, Matthew Sluka, is stepping away from the team due to an NIL dispute:
Why is UNLV QB Matthew Sluka walking away from his undefeated team?
One of the leading authorities on NIL in college athletics said Matthew Sluka’s decision to end his season at UNLV after three games because of a disagreement over a pay arrangement could tempt other players to bail on their teams to pursue better opportunities.
I would appreciate hearing from our lawyer friends, such as Stray Gator, as to how these disputes will interact with legal issues.
btw, UNLV is 3-0!
Note the NCAA's acknowledgement that its power is limited [nonexistent?] here: “The NCAA fully supports college athletes profiting from their NIL, but unfortunately there is little oversight or accountability in the NIL space and far too often promises made to student-athletes are broken,” the NCAA said Wednesday without mentioning Sluka by name. “Positive changes are underway at the NCAA to deliver more benefits to student-athletes but without clear legal authority granted by the courts or by Congress, the NCAA, conferences and schools have limited authority to regulate third parties involved in NIL transactions.”
The NCAA accurately points out that conferences and schools also have limited authority to regulate NIL transactions among third parties.
Sorry for this error.
brevity
Member
Duke GM Rachel Baker joins a panel discussion at New York Advertising Week 2024 about NIL collectives, and Front Office Sports has the video:
Just make college football and basketball athletes professionals (with employee labor laws) associated with universities and be done with the charade....Maybe this is an unpopular opinion here (and elsewhere) and it certainly will NOT happen because schools don't want it, but I'd rather these programs just live as different "entities" than the academic mission of the university. Problem is universities are SUPPOSED to be not-for-profits....Players can choose the path they want to take as professional athletes or students just like soccer academies in Europe vs going to university. They have a choice.
In this case, the "Academies" are simply under the umbrella of universities since they've always had athletic programs in this model and have established brands/followings already. Then, you can have salary contracts/NIL/whatever you want to do. Heck, make it unlimited eligibility years if you want. We already see a bunch of 27 year old professional soccer players from Portugal/Brazil/elsewhere join Marshall's soccer team this past year. There's already been a monumental shift -- might as well make it official and keep it separate from the academics of the school. Players can then solely focus on improving their main mission/craft of athletics as they pursue to monetize it as much as they can early in their careers.
In this case, the "Academies" are simply under the umbrella of universities since they've always had athletic programs in this model and have established brands/followings already. Then, you can have salary contracts/NIL/whatever you want to do. Heck, make it unlimited eligibility years if you want. We already see a bunch of 27 year old professional soccer players from Portugal/Brazil/elsewhere join Marshall's soccer team this past year. There's already been a monumental shift -- might as well make it official and keep it separate from the academics of the school. Players can then solely focus on improving their main mission/craft of athletics as they pursue to monetize it as much as they can early in their careers.
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JasonEvans
Host, The Duke Basketball Roundup
When I was speaking to the parent of a prominent player over last weekend they raved... RAVED... about how good Rachel Baker is. Said she is thinking of things 5 or 8 steps down the road and is just super smart about advising guys how to play the NIL game. They said other programs have folks in that role but none of the other ones they have met hold a candle to Rachel.
I get the impression she is a major, major asset to Duke when it comes to recruiting.
I get the impression she is a major, major asset to Duke when it comes to recruiting.
sagegrouse
Member
The majority of D-I athletic programs are at state colleges and universities, which are not covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act and some other legislation. Although, to be fair, I understand that a number of states have chosen to grant state employees similar rights.
LeadingEdge
Member
An alternative approach is to just repeal amateurism. You don't need a union and a collective bargaining agreement. Allow outright pay for play, whether by schools paying players or collectives. Almost all of the NCAA's legal woes flow from trying to restrain the free market.
This would not compel a school to pay players or even give scholarships. As an individual school, do what you want in a free market and accept the results that flow from your spending decisions.
It would be an unlevel playing field, but that's been the case for decades, and college sports remain popular on TV.
If there were a will, the way to clean things up is to crack down hard at the NCAA and school level on requiring that student-athletes be students first and athletes second. Do more than lip service. Make changes in academic eligibility to travel and compete, allowed practice time, and the volume of classes that can be missed, and always require sitting a year if you transfer. The latter has been attacked on antitrust grounds, but it should stand up if done as a part of reforms to increase academic integrity.
I'm not hopeful for elevating academics, though. Most fans (including powerful donors/boosters) just want to see their team win and are willing to look past just about any academic illegitimacy as long as the wins pour in. Those at universities (e.g., presidents, provosts, admissions officers) who know about how dirty the academic side is in major college sports (especially football and basketball) are appalled but won't lose their careers over raising a stink.
This would not compel a school to pay players or even give scholarships. As an individual school, do what you want in a free market and accept the results that flow from your spending decisions.
It would be an unlevel playing field, but that's been the case for decades, and college sports remain popular on TV.
If there were a will, the way to clean things up is to crack down hard at the NCAA and school level on requiring that student-athletes be students first and athletes second. Do more than lip service. Make changes in academic eligibility to travel and compete, allowed practice time, and the volume of classes that can be missed, and always require sitting a year if you transfer. The latter has been attacked on antitrust grounds, but it should stand up if done as a part of reforms to increase academic integrity.
I'm not hopeful for elevating academics, though. Most fans (including powerful donors/boosters) just want to see their team win and are willing to look past just about any academic illegitimacy as long as the wins pour in. Those at universities (e.g., presidents, provosts, admissions officers) who know about how dirty the academic side is in major college sports (especially football and basketball) are appalled but won't lose their careers over raising a stink.
SkyBrickey
Member
College basketball is doing its best to make me dislike it.
JasonEvans
Host, The Duke Basketball Roundup
For comparison, here is what NBA teams will be paying the top picks in next year's NBA draft (Cooper Flagg, Ace Bailey, and so on) --
As a reminder, those players are asked to play in more than twice as many games, in stadiums generally significantly larger than what the kids do in college.
For $7-9 million, you could have probably paid for the entire roster of UConn and Purdue last year.
As a reminder, those players are asked to play in more than twice as many games, in stadiums generally significantly larger than what the kids do in college.
For $7-9 million, you could have probably paid for the entire roster of UConn and Purdue last year.
If true, that sounds like a salary cap management fail.
p.s. On reflection, if you need a sports analyst to say hyperbolic, ridiculous things, Goodman is the person to turn to.
