Hey there,

It’s been a wild week in NIL — when Michigan winning the National Championship isn’t even the biggest story of the week, well, you know there’s a lot to talk about.

Today we’ve got updates on how Alabama’s NIL program is dealing with their new hire, Kalen DeBoer, as well as some massive updates on the legislative side. Plus, the massive NIL scandal that could derail Florida State’s title hopes. It’s all coming up.

ALSO: Want to put your brand or product in front of the fastest growing NIL audience in the country? We currently reach over 20,000 people daily. Reply to this email today and we can send you more information!

— Cole, Justin and Collin

KICK-OFF

Florida State on Probation after NIL Violations

Florida State is set to receive sanctions from the NCAA for various NIL related infractions. The sanctions are expected to be the harshest yet seen in the two-and-a-half-year history of NIL.

The violations involved multiple parties – one of Florida State’s NIL collectives, a booster, and offensive coordinator Alex Atkins – engaging in what the NCAA calls “Level II” infractions, which covers impermissible recruiting activities and contact with an NIL booster. Mike Norvell, who just signed a gargantuan extension with the Seminoles, is not specifically implicated in the sancitons.

On top of the impermissible contact, the booster was offering this particular recruit what the NCAA likely understands to be an inducement: a $15K-a-month deal contingent on the athlete enrolling at Florida State. (More)

Saban Out, DeBoer In

The reverberations of Nick Saban’s retirement are already being felt throughout the college sports world. Much like Deion Sanders at Colorado, Saban’s brand was intimately tied to the Crimson Tide – and now that he’s gone, ‘Bama could struggle to retain brand identity under newly minted signal caller Kalen DeBoer.

That’s already proving to be true, in fact. Five-star wideout Ryan Williams de-committed from the Tide immediately after hearing about Saban calling it quits.

The transfer portal also opens back up for Alabama because of the coaching change, adding to the chaos. With little time to recruit his own players, DeBoer will likely rely heavily on Alabama’s NIL infrastructure to keep players from leaving Tuscaloosa. (More)

Not On the Same Page…

At long last, three lawmakers are working on federal legislation that would standardize NIL at the national level. Perhaps unsurprisingly, however, Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), along with Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) and Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), have not exactly coordinated their efforts with the NCAA.

As you can see, their latest draft currently contradicts NCAA president Charlie Baker’s latest proposal, which would allow schools to pay student-athletes directly. Were Baker’s proposal to happen, it would substantially reduce the role of NIL collectives. (More)

BEST PRACTICES

What is a Recruiting Inducement?

Florida State just got hit with massive sanctions for a variety of violations, including one instance where the school seemed to offer one recruit an inducement. What is an inducement in college sports, though?

According to Katie Lever, “An inducement is an incentive offered to only some athletes to sway their decision to attend a specific university. Think of it as pay-for-play… a college athlete is offered money, perks, or favors by a third party on the condition that the athlete commits or transfers… That’s an inducement, and it’s against NCAA rules.”

NIL has certainly muddied the waters around inducements, there’s no denying that. But it’s important for schools — as well as athletes — to understand the NCAA’s guidelines around inducement so that they don’t get hit with sanctions themselves. (More)

DOWN TO BUSINESS

Adidas Goes All In

Adidas took a gamble when they chose the Huskies’ two biggest standouts – an injury riddled Michael Penix Jr. and Rome Odunze – as their first NIL spokespeople.

Well, it’s looking like Adidas’ gambles are all paying off. Mark Keaney, chief revenue officer at Greenfly, called the deal “a very small side bet with an incredibly amazing result.”

Penix is the true treasure. Despite his lackluster performance in the national championship match, the QB generated “23% of the earned media that Washington has brought Adidas during the College Football Playoff.” (More)

NIL Legislative Hearing Set for Next Week

Capitol Hill is set to hold yet another legislative hearing about the impact of NIL in college sports. It will be the 11^th time such a hearing has taken place since the policy was introduced, although very little has been done thus far to regulate NIL federally.

Notably, this will be the first hearing to take place since Charlie Baker introduced an industry tilting proposal, which looks to professionalize many aspects of college sports. The hearing is set to take place January 18^th. (More)

COLLECTIVE 101

Michigan Reloads NIL Efforts

Michigan isn’t wasting any time gearing up their NIL program for next year. They just launched a new fundraising campaign called “Those Who Stay”, asking fans to donate so that other schools don’t “steal” their players in the transfer portal. 

The campaign has been wildly successful so far. According to their last web update, the school has already raised $650K in NIL donations as part of the campaign. Overall, they’re almost halfway to their NIL goal of $10M – and it’s only January 13^th. (More)

Keeping It In the Family

Two Iowa State non-profits just completed a rather strange transaction. The school’s non-profit booster club, The Cyclone Gridiron Club, just donated $200,000 to the school’s NIL collective, We Will Collective. 

Whereas booster clubs used to give massive sums to athletic departments themselves, NIL collectives have officially taken the baton in terms of sports giving. Schools are increasingly leaning toward NIL because it has an immediate impact on roster development. (More)

ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT

Drew Griffith

Drew Griffith, the track and field star from Butler High School, recently secured an NIL deal with New Balance. Fresh off a win at the Foot Locker Nationals in December, New Balance is making his NIL dreams a reality. 

A Notre Dame commit, Drew reflects on the significance of joining New Balance, his go-to brand for running shoes. “It's like a dream to get an NIL deal before college. I've always looked up to those big names, and now, I'm one of them!”

NIL BLITZ

♦️ Michigan’s Donavan Edwards takes over Raising Cane’s after national title

♦️ Quinn Ewers announces he’s returning to Texas for his senior season

♦️ Lane Kiffin calls the current transfer portal a “terrible system”

♦️ Tennessee wideout lands deal with Nashville Predators

♦️ Why one College QB turned down $800K in the portal

BATTER UP

Todays Poll Question:

Last Edition’s Poll Results:

Which conference will win the National Championship next year?

• Big 10 - 45%

• SEC - 36%

• Big 12 - 9%

• ACC - 10%