🏅 Is House v. NCAA finally settled?

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Hey there,

Yesterday might have been the most important day since July 1st, 2021 when NIL became permissible. Today’s newsletter is packed now that a settlement finally has been reached with House v. NCAA, and there’s also coverage of Jalen Rashada’s unprecedented lawsuit against the University of Florida. Let's get right into it.

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KICK-OFF

NCAA Board Settles House v. NCAA Case

On Tuesday, the Big 12 became the first conference to agree to a settlement on the House vs. NCAA case. The ACC and Big 10 followed suit, marking three power conferences that have agreed to terms. SEC and Pac-12 are expected to hold votes today.

The settlement will have earth-shattering ramifications on the college sports landscape. The crucial points of the settlement stipulate that a fund of $2.8 billion will be created to pay former athletes who could not receive payments through their name, image, and likeness. The NCAA will provide $1.1 billion, while schools will pay the remaining $1.6 billion. The payments will be made throughout the next decade.

In addition to the back payments for former athletes, the NCAA will have to share revenue with athletes starting in the fall of 2025. This will give universities the ability to pay players directly. (More)

Georgia QB Sues Florida Head Coach Over Tanked NIL Deal

Georgia QB Jaden Rashada sued Billy Napier for 13.85 million, alleging that Florida made promises for a NIL deal they had no intention of completing. The official claims state, "fraudulent misrepresentation and inducement, aiding and abetting fraud, civil conspiracy to commit fraud, negligent misrepresentation, tortious interference with a business relationship or contract and aiding and abetting tortious interference." 

Rashada had initially committed to Miami, agreeing to a 9.5 million dollar NIL deal with the university. However, he then pivoted to Florida due to the financial promises they offered. Before his deal with UF could be finalized, Hugh Hathcock informed Rashada that he intended to sell his company and thus would not follow through on the NIL payments Rashada was supposed to receive upon attending Florida. 

This is the first time a player has sued a rival head coach, making this one of the most significant NIL lawsuits ever. (More)

Smaller Conferences Are Unhappy With Pay Out of Settlement Deal

A general negative sentiment around the settlement terms seems to be forming outside of the power conferences. The main issue arises around the money that is to be paid out from the schools. Despite generating far less revenue than the more prestigious schools in the NCAA’s premiere conferences, the smaller, non-power conferences are expected to pay out 60% of the settlement money. 

After that, 60% is split among the conferences, and the payments are expected to take up over 20% of those leagues' regular revenue. This has caused a surge in meetings among the CCA22 (the 22 leagues that do not have FBS football), apparently wanting to make a proposal adjusting the terms of the payments.

“This is incredibly unfair and has a dramatic impact. I'm losing about 10% of my operating budget.” said a source from the CCA22. “Do I cut two staff members for money to go to Zion Williamson? Ninety percent of the money in the suit projects to go to Power 5 football and men's basketball players. The 40% payment for the power conference isn't proportionate." (More)

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WHAT’S TRENDING

Ups and Downs

• Viewership on college softball reaches record highs, signaling a growing NIL market 📈

• New Pitt F Cameron Corhen works out a deal with Pitt’s Alliance 412 NIL collective 📈

• NFL may pose a threat to college football as college football players start to be treated as employees 📉 

DOWN TO BUSINESS

Playing for Mark Madsen is Worth Taking Less NIL Money

Potential first-round pick Jaylon Tyson took a unique approach when choosing his transfer destination one year ago. Most young athletes jump at the biggest NIL deal they get, but Tyson believed that playing for Cal head coach Mark Madsen was worth taking less money. 

“Cal was probably the least amount of money, but the opportunity to play for Mark Madsen and that coaching staff, I thought I made the best decision," said Tyson. “I'm glad I had a good circle to tell me that it's not about the money. The money is not the long-term thing.”

Tyson would have sacrificed playing time to go to larger schools that might have offered more NIL money originally. At Cal, Tyson was able to drive his endorsement value up due to increased playing time and development through Madsen. Tyson’s story demonstrates the importance of recruiting in college sports and finding the right fit for players – and serves as a reminder it’s not always about getting the most NIL money.  (More)

• Private capital investment firm Redbird launches a college sports investment fund. The fund could loan up to two million to college athletic departments.

• Sports nutrition brand Honey Stinger signs USC athletes to NIL deals. Their partnerships with USC now include eight athletes across seven different sports.

COLLECTIVE 101

House vs. NCAA Settlement Means this for Collectives

The implementation of revenue sharing has caused many to wonder what the future of NIL collectives will look like. Now that revenue is shared directly with athletes, it eliminates the collective as a middleman between donors and athletes, as donors can now give money to the school to pay athletes directly.

However, the settlement terms include a revenue-sharing cap. Collectives could be used to work around this if a school needs to offer a recruit more money to coax them into committing.

Additionally, there is an argument that Title IX will directly affect NIL payments, causing male and female athletes to be compensated the same. If this is the case, schools would have even less of a budget to work with. Time will tell what collectives will look like in the fallout of the settlement – but one thing is clear: collectives will look radically different in the future.  (More)

• A public look into Wiconsin’s Varsity Collective is now available. The article shows donations received and notes how much was paid out to players. 

• How Southern Mississippi football coach Will Hall is using social media to grow their NIL collective.

ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT

CJ Carr

• School: University of Notre Dame 

• Sport: Football 

• Position: Quarterback 

• Class: Freshman

• Accolades: A consensus four-star recruit, A three-time first team all-state quarterback, Led Saline to an SEC Red championship during his senior season, All-American Bowl participant.

• NIL: CJ used his NIL to sign with Napleton Countryside Mazda, a company equally dedicated to finding a cure for brain cancer. For every car they sell, they donate to the Violet Foundation for pediatric brain cancer—a primary reason CJ partnered with them.

  This freshman QB is using his NIL to battle brain cancer 👏

  Learn more about @13Cjcarr in tommorow’s edition of @NIL_wire 👈

  — NIL Wire | Top NIL Newsletter (@NIL_wire)
  2:02 PM • May 22, 2024

NIL BLITZ

♦️ Tennessee QB commit signs exclusive Leaf partnership

♦️ FSU petitioning for NCAA to rescind punishments

♦️ James Franklin makes direct NIL pitch to Penn State fans

♦️ FSU petitioning for NCAA to rescind punishments

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BATTER UP

Today’s Poll Question:

Last Edition’s Poll Results:

As Universities head towards a potential employment model, should college athletes be able to unionize for better working conditions/compensation?

• Yes - 34%

• No - 67%