A combination of name, image and likeness along with the rising role of the general manager is at the root of a standoff in the California Golden Bears’ football program. In March, Cal hired a program legend, Ron Rivera, to be the football team’s general manager. The position is a relatively new one in college […]
A combination of name, image and likeness along with the rising role of the general manager is at the root of a standoff in the California Golden Bears’ football program.
In March, Cal hired a program legend, Ron Rivera, to be the football team’s general manager. The position is a relatively new one in college athletics and it is not the traditional GM role one might think of in the NFL.
But there is one school where the dynamic is different and that is Cal’s arch-rival, Stanford.
Last year the Cardinal hired former all-America quarterback Andrew Luck to be the program’s GM. Stanford also empowered Luck to be the football coach’s direct report. It was Luck who fired coach Troy Taylor after he learned of allegations of the coach’s behavior toward women in the workplace.
Now, at least some Cal boosters — and major funding sources of one the Golden Bears’ only third-party NIL collective — want Rivera to have the same power.
Earlier this week, SFGate.com reported that two board members of California Legends Collective were withholding funding until Rivera was given similar oversight over the entire football program.
Theoretically, that would mean Rivera could fire head coach Justin Wilcox.
Right now Rivera, a former all-American linebacker at Cal who was a Super Bowl champion player and two-time NFL coach of the year, reports to Cal’s chancellor. Wilcox reports to the athletic director, Jim Knowlton.
But the standoff also puts potential NIL funding for student-athletes at risk at a critical juncture of college sports, with the House vs. NCAA settlement set for its final hearing on Monday.
Boosters have used their influence to help guide hiring before. But in this NIL, transfer portal and revenue sharing era, this collective just wants the org chart to be more reflective of their arch-rival’s.
It comes at a time in which the basketball transfer portal is open and the football transfer portal window for the spring is set to open on April 16. Some players are already declaring their intention to transfer.
The House settlement adds a wrinkle. Some collectives are trying to quickly execute deals before the settlement is finalized, reasoning those deals may be grandfathered into the settlement. Revenue-sharing is supposed to replace any “pay-for-play” NIL deals, though NIL will remain a part of the equation, based on an athlete’s market value.
As for Cal, until the standoff is resolved, at least two major supporters will be keeping their wallets on lockdown.
