🏅 The "Allstate 12 Conference"

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Is the Big 12 conference changing its name for money? How are “Income Sharing Agreements” using NIL as a legal workaround? And did the House of Representatives just crush the idea that student-athletes might one day become employees? All that and more is coming up now with NIL Wire. Just keep scrolling to find out more!

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KICK-OFF

The “Allstate 12 Conference”

The Big 12 conference might not be called “The Big 12” for very much longer. The conference is reportedly talking with Allstate Insurance about selling its naming rights. If they end up striking a deal, the agreement could bring in anywhere from $30-50 million a year to divide between the 16 members.

With each university expecting to foot an annual million-dollar-plus bill as a result of the impending House settlement, conferences and schools are being forced to get creative in bringing in additional revenue. Just like corporate logos being displayed on the field, this move will ease the schools’ financial burden. 

Now, the name of the conference is still up in the air. “The Allstate 12 Conference” is the most likely right now, but the “Big Allstate Conference” is also in play. Rolls right off the tongue. (More)

“AthleteCon” Was an NIL Smash

NIL content advisor Sam Green hosted the first-ever “AthleteCon” last week – a gathering of student-athletes interested in building their NIL through content creation. The event, which was boosted by Athletes.org, allowed student-athletes to learn about branding, attend workshops, and even sign NIL deals to create content for brands on-site.

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“70% of NIL deals revolve around brands paying athletes to create content,” said Green, a social media guru, “AthleteCon was the first event where athletes could create content for brands in-person, secure NIL deals based on that content, all while receiving education on how to enhance their brand and optimize their platforms to build a lasting presence beyond their playing careers.” (More)

Income Sharing Agreements and NIL

“Income Sharing Agreements” have gained traction within the baseball world in recent years, specifically because they seem to be paying off. The agreement model – which jumpstarted the career of MLB studs like Fernando Tatis Jr. – essentially grants a prospect funding for trainers, college, and more, with the promise that down the road the player will give a percentage of their income to the investor. 

Now, how those transactions are categorized is really important. If these agreements are loans, certain regulations apply. If they’re something else, however – like NIL payments – investors can skirt regulation. 

Do you remember NFL stud Gervon Dexter’s lawsuit against Big League Advantage last fall? That agreement was an ISA, but structured as an NIL deal. As of right now, it seems like the NIL legal reasoning route is holding up for the investors. (More)

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BEST PRACTICES

NIL, Parents, and the Recruitment Process

When athletes gained the ability to earn money from their name, image, and likeness, we knew recruitment would change significantly. What hasn’t changed, however, is parents being involved radically with their kids’ college decisions. All NIL has done is up the stakes.

According to Howard basketball’s head coach Kenny Blakeney, parents are trying to “Negotiate position, playing time, NIL now … like, ‘Do I get floor seats? If we're traveling, how many tickets can we get?’ And it's an entitlement that seeps into the kid, which seeps into the team. That can really damage and separate a team.”

NIL has created the legal opportunity for significant financial influence in college sports, which many parents are seeking to leverage. Parents, if your child is being recruited, don't let your actions jeopardize their chances of receiving an offer. (More)

DOWN TO BUSINESS

House Committee is Out on Athlete Employment

The NCAA doesn’t want student-athletes to gain employment status for a myriad of reasons, and this week, Congress decided to listen to those reasons. After a meeting on Thursday with the House Education and Workforce Committee, lawmakers decided to approve a bill that would disallow student-athletes from achieving employment status.

The timing of this hearing could not be more important. As the House settlement negotiations continue to iron out, the NCAA wants to protect itself and its member schools from future antitrust lawsuits. The easiest way to do that would be to obtain an antitrust exemption, which could happen if the bill is put up for a vote.

The Power conferences released a joint statement right before the hearing in support of the bill, which you can see above. If you’d like to listen to the entire hearing, you can also do so here. (More)

• The Las Vegas NIL tournament has set the field of teams who will compete for the $1M prize. Big-time programs are participating, including Alabama and Houston.

• The US Golf Association’s CEO thinks they are ahead of the curve on NIL and amateurism. Earlier this year, you might remember, college player Nick Dunlap won a major tournament but was unable to take home the million-dollar purse. 

NIL Will Remain Crucial in Rev-Share Era

Will teams be able to circumvent the impending $22M Rev-share cap? Well… yeah, actually, quite easily. The $22M cap is simply the amount of money a school can share with its athletes – but tons of schools are unlikely to even reach the cap, which is why NIL is just as important as it’s ever been. 

“Any third-party NIL compensation is not going to be included in the cap,” explained sports lawyer Mit Winter, “So, let’s assume that if you’re at a Power Five school, all the schools are going to be hitting that $22 million cap. Then the next level of competition is going to be, ‘All right, how can we figure out a way to get our athletes the most third-party NIL money now?’

“Whether that’s deals with businesses or through collectives as they do now, or some other ways, I think there’s still going to be competition to get your athletes the most compensation,” Winter continued, “It’s just going to be now through a third party if you’re bumping up against that cap.” (More)

• We finally have clarity on the NIL market for baseball: SEC baseball teams are spending anywhere from $800K to $900K on their teams per year.

• Temple University is undecided on whether they will Rev-share with athletes. “Obviously we're going to need to raise more revenue,” said the school’s athletic director, “We may look at how we redistribute scholarships and how we do some of those things.”

ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT

Jaxson Dart

• School: Ole Miss 

• Position: Quarterback 

• Sport: Football 

• Class: Senior 

• Accolades: 
  • 2023 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Preseason Watch List
  • SEC Fall Academic Honor Roll (Fall 2022)
  •  Dean's Honor Roll (Fall 2022, Spring 2023)
  •  Chancellor's Honor Roll (Spring 2022)

• NIL: Jaxson has partnered with EA Sports College Football 25 and became the first athlete to sign with a private jet company, Nicholas Air. Through this deal, he gains access to their fleet for travel, training, and philanthropy.

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NIL BLITZ

♦️ Maryland student-athletes partner with pro-woman educational brand for NIL deals

♦️ K-State QB releases his own line of branded NIL T-shirts

♦️ Louisville’s Pat Kelsey is taking the “adapt or leave” approach to NIL

♦️ Charlie Baker says settlement provides “certainty” for a new system

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BATTER UP

Today’s Poll Question:

Last Edition’s Poll Results:

Is Colorado football's spending potential the real deal, or fools gold?

• Real Deal: Coach Prime brings eyes to Boulder, and publicity will always pay out - 46%

• Fool’s Gold: The NIL infrastructure is completely tied up in Deion’s name - 54%