It may be that we have no clue where things are heading in the world of sports. Or, it could be plain fiction! Your thoughts to the following article? Fixing NCAA’s problems doesn't appear to be at forefront for U.S. Congress — 'These are big, thorny, tough issues' - Yahoo Sports And this is what Kevin Brockway said about this on X. "We are likely heading to a model where athletes will be paid as employees from a school, budgeted within TV and merchandise revenue, on top of NIL opportunities.
Lol @ rooting for employees doing a job. What's next, going to cheer for the landscaping crew? And no I don't watch professional sports, just not interesting. I don't know why I even bother to complain about it, CFB is obviously gone it's now just D League with school logos. Guess I should stop wasting my time on it.
It has been "prettied up" for us folks. AND so for every bought and paid for mercenary, there are plenty of true student athletes who embrace their school experience and the privilege of receiving a free degree as a result of their athletic prowess and discipline. It worked just fine, as long as there were only a few "creative" programs who were "bought-in" enough to get away with it. Nowadays, any idiot program can spend like a drunken sailor with impunity (until further notice). The NIL was just a crack in the system that looked "profound" on the surface but in reality was the linchpin to the avalanche of where the forces want to take us: A player unionized, nationally administered, minor league setup for the NFL. The universities will have a "relationship" with it as to keep the fans interested, like the gondolas in Venice or the notion of the family farm. The only question is going to be, how long will the fans cheer because that is what they have always done instead of seeing what it is, and that it has NOTHING to do with the university and its mission at all.
I’ve seen it for what it was all along and never liked that part. I’ve still been interested however. I knew there was no way in hell Bama could get the top class every year and win every other title if it were a level playing field. Saban is great but not that great.
I'm guessing the hope for NIL is that it would level the playing field. That's not going to happen unless there are some guardrails for the amount of money one team can spend like a salary cap. Other than that, might as well have a draft for high school players.
At least all teams can spend without getting called out while others cheat and are thought of as great.
I can only imagine the giant can of worms that will be opened if athletes become employees. It is completely nonsensical. For starters, do the athletes "apply" for the job, like every other university employee does? What if the university doesn't "hire" the athlete for whatever reason, criminal record, bad attitude, doesn't think he/she is "qualified" for the job, etc. Can the rejected athlete sue the university alleging some form of discrimination? What if the golf team "employees" are all white? Can a black applicant who was rejected sue for discrimination? Given that most college sports already lose money, can universities drop those sports for financial reasons now? What about Title IX? Are the athlete "employees" eligible for the same benefits as the rest of the university employees? What if the "employees" commit serious crimes such as rape, assault, etc.- something that is guaranteed to happen if history is any indication. Can the university be sued? Does the university have to provide worker's compensation coverage for the "employees"? I could go on. Way too many practical and legal issues here, and the former jocks pushing this are probably the least qualified to be doing so, as they are most likely clueless as to the legal ramifications of an employment model.
When will the NFL make a move here? Are they going to wait until the "bolt from the blue" that Nick Saban predicted would bring the whole edifice of college football crashing down? If I was Tampa Bay, I would go out and buy IMG and make it the foundation of my Youth Academy. Even if kids get drafted out of it by another team, the developing academy could get a piece of that contract via the development contract that the player signed earlier.
Exactly the way the nfl does it. It’s been there done that and all legal ramifications have been worked out.
No, CFB has never had teams composed of free agents that transfer to whatever school has weirdos willing to pay them the most. Sure, there was corruption, but that's the case everywhere. It was mostly made up of student athletes proud to represent their university. Now it's basically contractors who expect to be paid to wear the schools shirts. I'm not very interested in a league of 32 teams that all play the same schemes and basically just license university branding for free (they're not students). That's already a thing with the NFL. Will be interesting to see how this plays out long term. All the other semi pro leagues failed, this one will just take longer. Once enough of the 30+ year old fans die off it'll go the way of the XFL since it's not going to generate new fans. What's the value proposition?
I don’t like it either but it is what it is. The money pay for play is just a larger amount of money. The ability to transfer at the end of every season is the biggest thing that sucks.
I agree it’s gotta have guardrails. I for one am way more upset about the portal- it ruins rivalries, kids education, fan experience… that’s gotta get tightened up. as far as NIL, I just find it off putting that rarely did you hear these cries about money ruining sports when coaches were getting 10mil only to bolt or win 5 games… AD’s we’re making hand over fist, schools were raking it in on Nike and TV deals… it was all good then. And I get there are some differences… but the point is / money ruins stuff… it does. And unfettered unregulated capitalism hurts the small people not the big fish. But now that the “workers” are trying to get a piece… it’s “well we gotta rein this in”. I hear the same crap when workers want liveable wages. CEO driving 4 denalis while his employees are making $12 an hour and then they want an extra $1 and it’s all “but it’ll drive up costs “ lol. Oh but your salary isn’t bub? I find it disingenuous that the SAME group of Adam Smith libertarian free market rules guys who balk at any level of corporate regulation… now want to go to congress to get this regulated. lol. It’s laughable. If I didn’t care when Nike or Saban was raking it in… why do I care when a get is getting a bag? the kids deserve a piece and it needs to be a flat rate coupled with community service. Salary caps and regulations is the only way forward. It’s not gonna ruin the sport. Texas tech has a great model that folks should look at The portal will ruin it though. In so many ways.
I'm still going to watch the gators but tbh it's just out of habit and sentimental value. I've been a fan since I was 5, grew up sneaking into the games in the third quarter, got my BS and then worked there 13 years. It's definitely lost all its character though and I don't watch almost any non gator games anymore.
I have pretty much quit watching the NFL last 10 to 15 years and it’s a lot because of how college football is going right now.
Replace "employee" with "independent contractor" and yeah, pretty much it. I watched as many games this year as I ever had across the board. Ya'll missing out on some really entertaining games while wallowing in the despair of "student athlete" nostalgia. When GT scored the walk off vs UM, I sure as heck wasn't concerned about NIL as I laughed my ass off.
I've been watching Gator football and college football for over 50 years and I don't see myself stopping. These recent development are taking a toll on my give a damn factor though. That sucks.
