Connect with us

NIL

COLUMN

In the past few years, college sports have shifted dramatically due to the introduction of the name, image, and likeness (NIL) regulations, along with expansion of the transfer portal.As mentioned, the most damaging thing is the lack of loyalty and commitment. Players are opting out of bowl games, which are supposed to be a reward […]

Published

on

COLUMN

In the past few years, college sports have shifted dramatically due to the introduction of the name, image, and likeness (NIL) regulations, along with expansion of the transfer portal.As mentioned, the most damaging thing is the lack of loyalty and commitment. Players are opting out of bowl games, which are supposed to be a reward for a good season, causing teams to play without their star players. One team had to forfeit their bowl invitation due to a lack of players because so many opted out. That is not fair to those who worked hard all season to reach a bowl, and it is not fair to the school or their fans.In some instances, the student athleted become more focused on themselves than being a loyal teammate and showing pride and commitment to the school paying them. Students are claiming injury and watching from the sidelines, counting their money while their teammates are in the trenches, battling on the field.
One complaint is similar to past ones, in that big name schools with large donor bases still have the advantage. Only now instead of offering a good education with some enticing perks, 18- to 22-year-olds are being offered hundreds of thousands and sometimes even millions of dollars to sign with a certain school. In essence, schools are buying players, bringing into question their supposedly amateur status.In looking at the NIL, many schools, coaches, and fans alike are asking if it is really an empowerment of the student athlete or if it is more of an exploitation. The policy now allows athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness. They can now sign endorsement deals, monetize their social media, and basically become entrepreneurs and businessmen and women. However, this newfound freedom has led to many unintended consequences.In a recent bowl game, a starting quarterback played the first half, breaking several records and leading his team to a solid lead at halftime. For the second half, he opted out and stood by, watching his team lose the game. These actions are only teaching that money and personal glory are more important than loyalty, commitment, and teamwork.

That leads us into the complete disaster known as the transfer portal. Originally, the portal was there to allow a student to switch schools to help them find their best fit and to build their skills. Instead, it has led to students jumping from team to team, looking for more money and more playing time. This causes coaches to have to rebuild teams and rosters every year, and programs to consistently learn to work with new players and personnel.These deals bring added pressure to the student of their performance, along with the supposed pressures of business dealings. Some feel student athletes are more focused on their business dealings and money than on playing the sport and living up to their commitment to their schools.Randy Gibson is CEO of RDG Communications Group LLC.However, it seems to be damaging to the schools, the students, the teams, and to the sport itself.It is true that student athletes bring in millions to schools because of their play, and they should reap some of the financial benefits. However, the system has major flaws. The NCAA needs to take a step back and reevaluate how this can be done. Right now, it is broken and is leading to the ruin of college sports.These changes, many argued, would be good for the student athlete as it would allow them to access often needed funds, with the thought of keeping universities from secretly breaking the rules. In addition, it was felt that if players weren’t a good fit for certain schools, they could more easily change schools that would allow them more playing time or a school with a better atmosphere for their own personal growth.

NIL

NIL not the Biggest Factor for Florida Gators Five-Star OL Target Felix Ojo

GAINESVILLE, Fla.– Despite making five-star offensive tackle Felix Ojo’s top eight, the Florida Gators were considered by many to be on the outside looking in. After his official visit in Gainesville, Ojo considers Florida very much in the running. “They sit very high on my list, and they most definitely have a chance in my […]

Published

on


GAINESVILLE, Fla.– Despite making five-star offensive tackle Felix Ojo’s top eight, the Florida Gators were considered by many to be on the outside looking in. After his official visit in Gainesville, Ojo considers Florida very much in the running.

“They sit very high on my list, and they most definitely have a chance in my recruiting process,” he said after leaving his visit. “If anyone thought they didn’t, they most definitely do now.”

The No. 1 offensive tackle recruit in the country, Ojo plays a position with high NIL demand, as seen by five-star Jackson Cantwell’s commitment to Miami. For Ojo, however, NIL won’t be the largest factor when making his decision, which he hopes to have sometime near the end of the summer.

“NIL is definitely a factor. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t, but I’ll say, I’m going to college for relationship building more than NIL,” he said, also citing development and potential NFL earnings as more important than “college money.”

Ojo did note that Florida is competitive in that field.

Outside of that, Florida’s investment into developing offensive linemen stands out to Ojo as well under two position coaches in Rob Sale and Jon Decoster, who has primarily recruited Ojo. The two’s experience as position coaches in the NFL play into Ojo’s desires to be properly developed at the collegiate level.

“It was nice, especially with all the NFL experience,” Ojo said. “Just talking ball with them and talking how they run their offense and just seeing how their offense correlates to my skill sets.”

While Florida took a significant step forward in their chances for Ojo, this recruitment is still far from over with the five-star set to visit Ohio State on May 30, Michigan on June 6, Texas on June 13 and Oklahoma on June 20.

Texas is considered the leaders by multiple outlets, but Ojo is still considering all options in front of him. He explained that what current players on each team will also play a big role in his decision.

“Spending time with the players is the main part because the players don’t lie to you,” he said. “Really building a connection with them because that’s who I’m going to be playing with and building a brotherhood with.”

As it stands, Florida has no offensive line commits in its 2026 class, which grew to two pledges on Sunday after a pledge from three-star defensive lineman Jamir Perez. Florida Gators on SI is tracking all of the Gators’ recruiting moves in our 2026 Recruiting Tracker.



Link

Continue Reading

NIL

Texas Tech Red Raiders – Official Athletics Website

LUBBOCK, Texas – The No. 12-seeded Red Raiders (48-12) advanced to their first ever NCAA Super Regional after defeating Mississippi State (39-19) 9-6 on Sunday night at Rocky Johnson Field in front of a record crowd.   Texas Tech used 14 hits and eight RBI and needed all it to get past the Bulldogs, who did […]

Published

on


LUBBOCK, Texas – The No. 12-seeded Red Raiders (48-12) advanced to their first ever NCAA Super Regional after defeating Mississippi State (39-19) 9-6 on Sunday night at Rocky Johnson Field in front of a record crowd.
 
Texas Tech used 14 hits and eight RBI and needed all it to get past the Bulldogs, who did not quit despite going down 5-0 early in the third inning.
 
Hailey Toney went 3-for-4 with two home runs out of the nine hole and Mihyia Davis also went 3-for-4 from the lead off spot. Toney and Davis combined to score five of the Red Raider’s nine runs and set the tone for the offense.
 
NiJaree Canady got her 28th win of the season going 5.0 innings, striking out four batters and allowing six runs, three of which were earned. Chloe Riassetto picked up her team-leading third save of the season after throwing a phenomenal 2.0 innings that featured a crucial double play ball to get Tech out of sixth inning jam.
 
Lauren Allred led the team with eight RBI on the weekend including three in this game thanks to a two-RBI single in the second inning and an RBI double in the sixth inning which gave Tech some insurance.
 
How it happened:
Tech was the designated visiting team in the game and got a run in the opening after a Davis single and Allred walk got runners at first and second. Bailey Lindemuth came up to bat and after a few early strikes made the adjustment and lined a ball down the left field line to bring home Davis.
 
The Red Raiders added three more runs in the second inning with an RBI from Alexa Langeliers after Demi Elder, Logan Halleman and Toney loaded the bases on three straight singles which featured some great small ball action by Halleman and Toney. Allred cashed in two more runs with a long single into right center field to give Tech a 4-0 lead.
 
Canady retired the first six batters she faced as the Red Raiders were in firm control heading into the third inning.
 
Tech added another run in the third inning after Lindemuth doubled again and came around to score on a Bulldog error.
 
A pair of errors by Tech allowed Mississippi State to get back in the ball game in the third as they added three runs, all unearned, on three hits but also left two stranded. Toney responded quickly to lead off the next inning as she launched her fifth homer of the season over the left field wall on the first pitch.
 
Alana Johnson got things started for Tech in the fifth inning after the Bulldogs scoreless fourth. Johnson drew a 17-pitch walk which got the crowd and the team hyped up and she would later score off a sacrifice fly from Elder to make it 7-3, Tech.
 
The Bulldogs added three more runs in the fifth inning thanks to two doubles and a single and made things interesting heading into the sixth inning with the score at 7-6.
 
Toney again got Tech back on track as she led off the inning with a solo shot to left followed by an RBI double from Allred to score Davis from first and give Tech some more insurance with a 9-6 lead.
 
Riassetto came in for the final two innings and was masterful as she got one of the best hitters in the SEC to ground into a double play and allowed just one base runner in the final two innings via a hit by pitch. Tech got the final out on a fly out to right field as the nearly 2,200 fans in attendance cheered on the team’s historic accomplishment.
 
UP NEXT: Tech will travel to Tallahassee, Florida to take on the No. 5-seeded Florida State Seminoles.



Link

Continue Reading

NIL

NCAA D-1 Tennis Player Files Explosive Objection to NIL Settlement Against Duke University, Citing Broken Promises and Retaliation

In a dramatic twist to the ongoing College Athlete NIL Litigation, Duke University tennis player Samuel Landau, an NCAA Division I Athlete, has filed a limited objection to the proposed House settlement, accusing the school of luring him with false promises of NIL payments and retaliating when he spoke out. $45K NIL Deal, Potential False […]

Published

on


In a dramatic twist to the ongoing College Athlete NIL Litigation, Duke University tennis player Samuel Landau, an NCAA Division I Athlete, has filed a limited objection to the proposed House settlement, accusing the school of luring him with false promises of NIL payments and retaliating when he spoke out.

$45K NIL Deal, Potential False Rumors, and Anti-Semitic Accusations Surface in Filing

The objection, which was filed on Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Oakland division, claims that Duke Men’s Tennis Head Coach Ramsey Smith promised Landau $45,000 in NIL compensation in addition to his scholarship to secure his transfer to Duke in late 2023.

According to the objection, Coach Smith assured Landau and his family multiple times, including in an April 2024 text message to Landau’s mother, that the player would be “well taken care of.” However, once Landau joined the program, he alleges that the NIL money never came through.

The objection, filed by Landau’s attorney, Rodger Landau, paints a troubling picture of alleged misconduct within Duke’s athletic department. It accuses the university of retaliating after Landau raised concerns about the NIL payments. According to the filing,

Coach Smith allegedly spread false rumors that Landau had a drug problem, citing a false statement from University of Texas coach Bruce Berque, which has since been denied in writing by the Texas program.

The filing alleges that Duke officials wrongly suspected Landau, who is Jewish, of running a social media account that was critical of his own team members, invoking what the family describes as an anti-Semitic trope. Landau argues that the current language in the proposed settlement is too broad and could allow Power 5 schools to escape liability for NIL misconduct, including false inducements and broken promises.

He is urging the court to revise the settlement to include expanded audit rights and establish an arbitration process for student-athletes to seek compensation for unpaid NIL deals. He proposes allowing arbitrators to impose penalties of up to $5 million per athlete for proven fraud or retaliation.

If such revisions aren’t made, Landau is calling for Duke University to be excluded from the House Settlement altogether. He argues that Duke, with its $12 billion endowment, has demonstrated an unwillingness to honor NIL commitments and has weaponized its institutional power to suppress dissent.

The NIL era has meant that college athletes can now earn money from their name, image, and likeness through endorsements and sponsorships. Earlier, college athletes were not paid and did not gain monetary benefits from the revenue generated by prestigious college sports programs.





Link

Continue Reading

NIL

Why the Ohio State football program has mastered the transfer portal

The Ohio State football program has had to navigate a lot of changes in recent years to the game. From having a new College Football Playoff format, to NIL, to the transfer portal, the Buckeyes have done their best to navigate uncharted waters. Figuring out the transfer portal has been a multi-year process. It has […]

Published

on


The Ohio State football program has had to navigate a lot of changes in recent years to the game. From having a new College Football Playoff format, to NIL, to the transfer portal, the Buckeyes have done their best to navigate uncharted waters.

Figuring out the transfer portal has been a multi-year process. It has changed every single year since players were allowed to transfer as many times as they want. Now, the Ohio State Buckeyes have to recruit their own players to stay at the end of every season.

That’s something that Day and his coaching staff have been able to do very well over the years. That was on display during the Spring transfer portal window when Ohio State didn’t lose a single scholarship player. That shows that they have mastered the transfer portal.

Ryan Day and the Ohio State football team have mastered the use of the transfer portal

The other good thing about what Day has done is that he hasn’t tried to build an entire roster with just transfer portal players. He has supplemented his normal recruiting with transfer guys. Kids out of high school will always be the priority under Day, which is how it should be.

Day has done a very good job of landing elite players and depth pieces in the portal. Getting guys like Caleb Downs, Will Howard, and Quinshon Judkins is always great, but now he has gotten guys like Phillip Daniels and CJ Donaldson, who will help the depth of the current starters.

The Buckeyes have done one of the best jobs of anyone in the country when it comes to figuring out how to recruit kids from the portal. Day deserves credit for a lot of things, but that’s certainly something that he needs more credit for moving forward.



Link

Continue Reading

NIL

Ohio Buckeyes star Jeremiah Smith adds to NIL empire with Wahlberg deal

As college athletes continue to reshape the business of sports through NIL deals, Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith continues to rise to the forefront of the movement. The standout freshman, who played a key role in the Buckeyes’ national championship run last season, is seeing his NIL profile soar once again after securing a […]

Published

on

Ohio Buckeyes star Jeremiah Smith adds to NIL empire with Wahlberg deal

As college athletes continue to reshape the business of sports through NIL deals, Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith continues to rise to the forefront of the movement.

The standout freshman, who played a key role in the Buckeyes’ national championship run last season, is seeing his NIL profile soar once again after securing a new endorsement agreement.

Shedeur picked the player he’s most excited to swap jerseys with, leaving the elite players aside

Jeremiah Smith’s $4M NIL valuation rises again

Smith, just 19 years old, has already become one of the most recognizable names in college football.

Report: 49ers QB Brock Purdy Signs Five Year, $265 Million Extension

After a record-setting freshman season with 76 receptions, 1,315 yards, and 15 touchdowns, he now holds a $4 million NIL valuation, making him the most valuable non-quarterback in the country, according to On3 Sports.

That number is expected to climb further after Smith announced a partnership with the Mark Wahlberg Auto Group, a Columbus-based dealership co-founded by the actor and entrepreneur.

The agreement with Wahlberg’s brand strengthens Smith’s growing influence both on and off the field.

Standing in front of a luxury vehicle, Smith confirmed the collaboration on social media, joining a roster of brands that includes Red Bull, Nintendo, Lululemon, and Ricart Automotive.

The financial terms of the new deal have not been disclosed, but it’s another notable addition to what’s quickly becoming one of the most diverse NIL portfolios in college sports.

Smith’s continued marketability reflects not only his on-field talent but also his presence as a marketing figure.

Ranked No. 4 overall on the On3 NIL 100 list-behind only Arch Manning, Cooper Flagg, and Carson Beck, Smith has managed to stand out in a field typically dominated by quarterbacks.

While reports earlier in the offseason suggested other schools made attempts to lure Smith away with their own NIL packages, he has remained committed to Ohio State, even as the program prepares for a major transition at the quarterback position.

With two years of eligibility remaining before he can enter the NFL Draft in 2027, Smith’s role in the Buckeyes’ offense is expected to grow even larger.

As his influence expands, so does the blueprint for what it means to thrive in the modern college football era.

Continue Reading

NIL

Quinn Ewers Makes Ultimate NIL Admission

The Texas Longhorns are without Quinn Ewers after he left for the 2025 NFL Draft.  The Miami Dolphins drafted Ewers in the seventh round of the draft. In a recent interview with On3’s Nick Schultz, Ewers used the word unconventional to describe his NIL experience in college football.  NIL became legal in college football in […]

Published

on

Quinn Ewers Makes Ultimate NIL Admission

The Texas Longhorns are without Quinn Ewers after he left for the 2025 NFL Draft. 

The Miami Dolphins drafted Ewers in the seventh round of the draft. In a recent interview with On3’s Nick Schultz, Ewers used the word unconventional to describe his NIL experience in college football. 

NIL became legal in college football in July of 2021. 

Ewers started his college career with the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2021. He was the top recruit and quarterback in the 2021 class. He played in one game for Ohio State in the 2021 season and then hit the transfer portal.

He was the No. 2 quarterback in the On3 Transfer Portal Industry Rankings, committed to Texas, and the rest is history. 

“The way that it’s kind of been set up for me has been nothing short of unconventional, I think I would say,” Ewers said. “Skipping my senior year to enroll at Ohio State early, and then be there for not even a whole calendar year, and then decide to go back to my home state of Texas, and really, turn around a program that hadn’t really won anything in years, consistently.”

When Ewers left Texas, his NIL valuation was $4.5 million. 

He threw for 9,218 passing yards, 68 touchdowns and 24 interceptions. 

Not everyone agreed with Ewers’ decision to leave for the NFL. If Ewers had stayed at Texas for another year, he reportedly would have made $8 million in NIL money, per 247Sports’ Chip Brown

Some criticized the move, but not Josh Pate. Pate credited Ewers for focusing on legacy more than NIL. 

Now that Ewers is gone, Texas’ starting quarterback for 2025 is expected to be Arch Manning. The Longhorns have already looked in the portal for Manning’s backup, bringing in former Troy quarterback Matthew Caldwell

Texas opens the 2025 season against Ohio State on Aug. 30. 

Continue Reading

Most Viewed Posts

Trending