NIL

Dan Lanning preaches importance of financial literacy in NIL era

The introduction of NIL to college football has put some big-time money into the pockets of players. Especially when playing for a program like Oregon, which recruits at as high of a level as anybody out there in the country. This has caused Dan Lanning to add a few financial lessons to his program. Financial […]

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2 weeks ago

May 7, 2025

Your Sports Nation

The introduction of NIL to college football has put some big-time money into the pockets of players. Especially when playing for a program like Oregon, which recruits at as high of a level as anybody out there in the country. This has caused Dan Lanning to add a few financial lessons to his program.

Financial literacy has become a topic of conversation for Lanning with his players. Even before they step on campus, he is making sure that smart decisions can be made. Players are almost always going to buy themselves something nice and Lanning knows they do not have to go 100% on purchases.

“I think our guys are pretty savvy,” Lanning said. “They all make mistakes. But I always tell them in recruiting ‘You’re about to be taken care of. I don’t need you walking in with a chain that says Taylor on it. We can just have a T, man.’ Let’s be smart. I think the education piece. We spent a lot of time on financial literacy here. We bring people in to talk to our guys. They have to feel comfortable having that conversation with us.”

Lanning was even able to provide a recent example, talking with Bucky Irving. An early draft pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last year, Iriving had a successful rookie season at the running back position. His contract was worth nearly $1.2 million a year over four seasons.

Irving took the time to tell Lanning about some of the smart decisions he has made with the money since entering the NFL. Maybe something the head coach can take back to the current roster with proof of concept.

“I’m talking yesterday with Bucky Irving and I’m so proud of what he’s done with the Bucs but just catching up and he said ‘Hey, here’s the great decisions I’ve made thus far financially.’ How he’s able to put some back and he’s taking some for the future. And I think that’s from lessons learned here. And sometimes, a mistake is a great lesson. Some of these guys will make mistakes and you want them to learn from it and build from it so they can have a long-term future because of it,” Lanning said.

Oregon signed the No. 4 overall recruiting class during the 2025 cycle. The average NIL Valuation of the players they signed was $214,000 — only Texas and Michigan were higher.

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David Pollack calls for an end to conference championship games

College Football Playoff expansion could drastically alter the landscape for conference championship games. In fact, some high-profile analysts are already calling for the end of league title games. Former ESPN analyst David Pollack brought up the topic recently on the See Ball Get Ball podcast. He put things in no uncertain terms. “I think the […]

Published

28 minutes ago

May 21, 2025

Your Sports Nation

College Football Playoff expansion could drastically alter the landscape for conference championship games. In fact, some high-profile analysts are already calling for the end of league title games.

Former ESPN analyst David Pollack brought up the topic recently on the See Ball Get Ball podcast. He put things in no uncertain terms.

“I think the conference championship games will be an interesting discussion point with that,” Pollack said, referring to playoff expansion. “Again, if you’re going to add on more and more games to the body, yeah, I do think (championship games should go away). But that’s also going to be money. That’s also going to be data points. But yes, that needs to go away.”

There’s going to be quite the tug of war between the powers at be in college football over conference championship games. On the one hand, they can be immense wealth drivers. Games like the SEC and Big Ten championship are huge events.

On the other hand, the games themselves are losing importance with the expanded playoff field. At what point do they become redundant or even a detriment to a team’s playoff aspirations?

Then there’s another factor for Pollack. And he’d know a thing or two about it.

“We need to talk about safety of kids at some point,” Pollack said. “Well when you keep putting on more and more games and they’re finishing with 20 games in a regular season, that’s a lot to ask, man. That’s a lot.”

So could conference championship games disappear altogether? Pollack’s take isn’t shared by everyone.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel believes there’s a world where both conference championship games and an expanded playoff can exist. How remains to be seen.

“I think that’s a conversation that’s going to continue to evolve right now,” Thamel said. “I just, my opinion is I don’t honestly think we’ll get there. I think it will go, there will be a conference championship game with guarantees and then there will be play-in games, if you will, on the others.

“And for the ACC and the Big 12, Jim Phillips in the ACC has been pretty open about creating extra inventory. And, look, in an era where everyone’s trying to squeeze out the last dollar, it would make sense to have two play-in games over one conference championship game. Just bottom line financials.”

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Tennessee guard sues for NCAA eligibility

Zakai Zeigler has filed a lawsuit against the NCAA seeking a fifth year of eligibility after his Tennessee basketball career concluded. The lawsuit requests a preliminary injunction to allow Zeigler to compete in the 2025-26 season, arguing that he will suffer irreparable harm without immediate injunctive relief as schools are currently finalizing rosters and settling […]

Published

44 minutes ago

May 21, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Zakai Zeigler has filed a lawsuit against the NCAA seeking a fifth year of eligibility after his Tennessee basketball career concluded.

The lawsuit requests a preliminary injunction to allow Zeigler to compete in the 2025-26 season, arguing that he will suffer irreparable harm without immediate injunctive relief as schools are currently finalizing rosters and settling NIL agreements. It claims Zeigler could earn up to $4 million if eligible in the 2025-26 season based on an analysis from Spyre Sports Group.

Zeigler’s lawsuit attacks the NCAA’s redshirt rule, which allows a player a fifth year of eligibility as long as the player sat out a year of competition. Zeigler played four consecutive seasons and did not redshirt but argues that he should be allowed a fifth year of eligibility and earning potential instead of being essentially punished for not redshirting.

It notes that the fifth year is “the most lucrative year of the eligibility window for the vast majority of athletes.”

“All NCAA athletes should be eligible to compete and earn NIL compensation during each year of the five-year window — not just those selected to redshirt,” the court filings state.

The lawsuit indicates that Zeigler is not challenging the five-year eligibility window, but the four-year competition window within the five years. It notes that Zeigler’s class is the first class in the NIL era to “have their ability to engage in commerce truncated to four years” because prior classes were granted an extra year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The lawsuit alleges that the NCAA’s rule permitting only four seasons of competition within the five-year eligibility window is an unlawful restraint of trade under federal and state antitrust laws,” Zeigler’s counsel from The Garza Law Firm and Litson PLLC said in a statement.

Zeigler averaged 11.3 points and 5.4 assists in his four seasons with the Vols. He shot 33.1% on 3-pointers.

The 5-foot-9 guard had his best season as a senior, averaging 13.6 points and 7.4 assists. He set the Tennessee record for assists when he notched his 227th against Texas in the SEC Tournament to break Rodney Woods’ record that stood for 50 years.

The Wyandanch, New York, native holds the Tennessee record for assists with 747, which ranks third in SEC history. He broke Johnny Darden’s record with his 716th assist in Tennessee’s first-round NCAA Tournament win against Wofford. He also set the Vols record for steals with 215, which is tied for eighth in SEC history.

Zeigler’s 7.4 assists per game in 2024-25 ranks as the fourth-most in a season in UT history. Only Darden and Woods averaged more in a season.

Zeigler won back-to-back SEC defensive player of the year awards and is the only player in conference history to be a four-time all-defensive team selection. He was named first-team All-SEC in his junior and senior seasons after being a second-team pick as a sophomore.

Zeigler came to Tennessee as an unknown. The Vols added him in August prior to the 2021-22 season after seeing him excel at Peach Jam in Augusta, Georgia, months prior. Barnes expected to redshirt Zeigler since the Vols had five-star Kennedy Chandler. Zeigler forced the issue and became a Tennessee fan favorite as a freshman.

The undersized point guard took four-hour train trips in high school to play basketball. He skirted paying for fares he could not afford by jumping turnstiles and hiding in train car bathrooms. He bounced between places to stay when his family lost their home. He nearly gave up on basketball before Peach Jam, which ultimately changed his life.

The Zeiglers lost their home in a fire in New York City in February 2023. A GoFundMe raised more than $360,000 before it was stopped. The Zeigler family moved to Knoxville and bought a house, where they continue to reside.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on X @ByMikeWilson or Bluesky @bymikewilson.bsky.social. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.

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Nick Saban answers whether he will be on Donald Trump’s NIL commission

President Donald Trump has reportedly expressed interest in forming a federal commission to help navigate the Name, Image and Likeness issues within college athletics, but Nick Saban has reiterated that he does not believe that is necessary. Trump delivered the commencement address at the University of Alabama earlier this month. Saban, who was the head […]

Published

1 hour ago

May 21, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Trump delivered the commencement address at the University of Alabama earlier this month. Saban, who was the head football coach at the school from 2007-2023, also spoke at the commencement and introduced the president. A report claimed the two spoke before the ceremony and that Saban shared his belief that college sports needs federal rules to guide the implementation of NIL.

That has led to speculation that Trump could form a commission and appoint Saban the leader. While speaking at his Nick’s Kids golf tournament in Birmingham, Ala., on Tuesday, Saban said he is willing to help but has no plans to join a formal commission.

“I know there’s been a lot of stuff out there about some commission or whatever. I don’t think we need a commission,” Saban said. “I’ve said that before. I think we need — we know what the issues are, we just have to have people who are willing to move those and solve those and create some solutions for some of those issues. I’m all for being a consultant to anybody who would think that my experience would be beneficial to helping create some of those solutions.

“I know President Trump is very interested in athletics. He’s very interested in college athletics. He’s very interested in maintaining the idea that people go to college to create value for the future in terms of how they develop as people, students, graduation rate as well as having a balanced, competitive playing field. If I can be a consultant to anyone who might be able to help the future of college athletics, I would be more than happy to do that.”

Saban: “I know President Trump is very interested in athletics. He’s very interested in college athletics. He’s very interested in maintaining the idea that people go to college to create value for the future in terms of how they develop as people, students, graduation rate as…

— Mike Rodak (@mikerodak) May 20, 2025

Saban made similar remarks last week when asked about the possibility of trying to fix college athletics at the federal level.

Since retiring, Saban has been vocal about improvements and changes he believes should be made to college sports, and specifically college football. He has railed against fake injuries and sought rules to penalize that. He also made clear that the lack of rules for NIL has negatively impacted college sports, making college football players professional athletes of sports.

Even if he does not want a formal title, the 73-year-old Saban would undoubtedly have a role if the federal government stepped in to address NIL issues.

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UConn Lands Former USC Trojans Player Out of NCAA Transfer Portal

While the UConn Huskies women’s basketball team is still fresh off its 2025 NCAA national championship, that doesn’t mean the program’s staff isn’t already hard at work retooling the roster for next season. Of course, with Paige Bueckers (plus Kaitlyn Chen and Aubrey Griffin) now no longer with the team, there are some big shoes […]

Published

2 hours ago

May 20, 2025

Your Sports Nation

UConn Lands Former USC Trojans Player Out of NCAA Transfer Portal

Of course, with Paige Bueckers (plus Kaitlyn Chen and Aubrey Griffin) now no longer with the team, there are some big shoes to fill for Geno Auriemma’s squad. Especially when it comes to Bueckers, her scoring, playmaking, and leadership qualities are nearly impossible to atone for.

However, UConn made a step in the right direction on May 20, as it was announced that they landed former USC Trojans player Kayleigh Heckel out of the NCAA transfer portal.

Heckel announced this with an Instagram post that showed a graphic of her wearing UConn gear with the caption, “k9 by name, husky by nature. see you in storrs! go huskiesss#committed #backhome #blessed”.

Heckel was born in Port Chester, New York, which is about a two-hour drive away from Storrs, where UConn is located.

Heckel averaged 6.1 points per game in 16.9 minutes played during her freshman campaign with the Trojans last season. She is one of several freshmen from USC’s 2024-25 team who have now transferred schools.

It will be interesting to see where Heckel fits in on the roster and whether she can work to earn herself a spot in the starting rotation for Geno Auriemma. What’s for sure is that Heckel is a talented guard who could become an impact player next season, potentially helping the Huskies repeat as NCAA champions.

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Urban Meyer says the Big Ten has passed the SEC (and he’s the reason why)

From the late 2000s to the mid-2010s, the SEC combined its proximity to elite recruits with It Just Means More-commitment to winning to dominate college football. The conference won every national title from 2006-13 and, when including Clemson and Florida State, teams from the Deep South claimed all but one national title from 2006-22. NIL […]

Published

2 hours ago

May 20, 2025

Your Sports Nation

NIL changed the paradigm, allowing moneyed, name-brand schools from the Midwest to legally tilt the playing field in their direction. Those schools can use the tools at their disposal — rich alumni across the nation, NIL, relaxed transfer rules — to build rosters and retain players who otherwise would have turned pro to stay another year and chase a national title. That’s how Michigan beat Washington to win the 2023 national title, and how Midwestern teams (Ohio State, Notre Dame, Penn State) occupied three of the final four spots in the 2024 CFP, and how another Big Ten team (Oregon) earned the No. 1 seed in the field.

That’s the general theory of college football over the past 20 years, one shared by Urban Meyer.

“Well, you know what the SEC’s done? It’s raised the level,” Urban Meyer said, via On3. “But the Big Ten has passed the SEC at the upper part. If you would have told me that 10 years ago, I would’ve said it’s not even close. Because it’s not.”

“When I first got to the Big Ten, even Shelley said, ‘What in the world? This is a slow man’s game up here,’ and I like to think that the Buckeyes really changed that. Then everyone else started investing in their schools,” Meyer continued. “And started recruiting the best player, not just the footprint. As a result, the Wolverine team two years ago was one of the best teams I’ve seen. The Buckeyes team this year is one of the best I’ve ever seen. You’re seeing Penn State, and some of these teams have great success.”

You know what Urban just did there? He gave himself credit for the rise of the SEC and the Big Ten.

The SEC started raising the level with Florida’s 2006 national title. Remember, those Gators were heavy underdogs, considered at the time nothing more than cannon fodder for a juggernaut Ohio State team. Florida thrashed the favored Buckeyes, limiting Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith to 35 passing yards en route to a 41-14 blowout. Indeed, it was a game-changing win, akin to grunge rock blowing hair metal off the radio overnight in the early 1990s. Florida won the title again in 2008, beating an undefeated Alabama team in the SEC Championship before limiting another unstoppable offense (Oklahoma this time) to 14 points in the BCS title game. Alabama eventually surpassed Florida and set a standard that will likely never be equaled — but Florida pushed the Tide to that point first.

Meyer then knocked off No. 1 Alabama en route to the 2014 national title, the only crown won north of the Mason-Dixon Line from 2003 to 2022. It’s a bit of a stretch to get from Ohio State’s 2014 title team to 2023 Michigan, but he’s not wrong in the way he talks about changing Big Ten recruiting. His presence changed the way the conference recruits from a gentleman’s league to a year-round contact sport.

“Urban had won national championships at Florida,” former Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany told ESPN upon Meyer’s retirement in 2018. “He was from Ohio, played at Cincinnati, had success at Utah and had a national presence. Urban articulated the fact that this is a national game and you have to recruit nationally. You have to go after the best players, wherever they are, and I think our coaches have done that.”

Did Urban Meyer’s success at Florida and Ohio State elevate the entire sport of college football? Many people are saying it. Okay, one person is saying it, but I’m not sure he’s entirely wrong.

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Trademark attorney breaks down Arkansas NIL clash with Madden Iamaleava

The dispute between Arkansas EDGE and Madden Iamaleava captured the attention of the college sports world when Arkansas’ athletic director, Hunter Yurachek, announced on X that the collective would enforce the buyout clause of Iamaleava’s NIL deal. Possibly groundbreaking, the potential lawsuit could change how NIL is handled by every athletic program in the country. […]

Published

2 hours ago

May 20, 2025

Your Sports Nation

But the interest doesn’t lie only with sports fans. The legal community is just as intrigued by the situation brewing in Fayetteville. One of those attorneys is Philip T. Sheng with Venable LLP. Sheng is a trial lawyer specializing in intellectual property disputes both nationally and in international forums. He also serves as an advisor on trademark, brand, and NIL protection issues.

Sheng co-authored an article for Venable LLP that argues the impact of the dispute, if it makes it to trial, could set a legal precedent for these types of cases in the future. Fortunately, we had the chance to speak with Sheng about the Arkansas EDGE’s situation involving Iamaleava. He explained some of the specific challenges Arkansas may encounter as it attempts to recover its funds and shared his thoughts on the future of NIL in college sports.

Arkansas EDGE v. Madden Iamaleava Q&A with Philip T. Sheng

Q: I want to start off with a fun question before we get into the nitty-gritty of the dispute between Arkansas EDGE and Madden Iamaleava. Are you a big sports fan? If so, tell me a little about your fandom and what teams you follow.

I’m a huge sports fan. I grew up in Southern California watching the Showtime Lakers and remain a dedicated fan to this day. They’re my favorite pro sports team, but I do follow many others and not just in basketball. For college sports, I’m a diehard BYU fan. It’s an exciting time to be a BYU fan, and I’m not just talking about football and men’s basketball. Go Cougs!

Q: Many fans are not overly familiar with contract law, but it seems strange to them that when a party signs a contract—and acknowledges breaching it—but nothing is done about it. When I did some digging, it seems that if the buyout clause is framed as damages rather than penalties, the non-breaching party is more likely to be awarded compensation. Can you explain the differences between damages and penalties?

That’s what makes the dispute between Arkansas EDGE and Madden Iamaleava so interesting. Contracts get broken all the time, not just in sports, and the legal remedy isn’t to punish the breaching party, but to make the non-breaching party whole. In other words, damages are supposed to put the non-breaching party in the same financial position it would’ve been in if the contract had been honored.

So when a court looks at a buyout clause, it asks: Does this reflect a reasonable estimate of the losses suffered? If the answer is yes, it’s more likely to be enforced. But if the damages seem out of proportion to the actual harm, or if they would leave the non-breaching party better off than if the contract had been honored, then it starts to look more like a penalty—and courts generally don’t enforce penalties.

Q: Mr. Sheng, you specialize in intellectual property disputes, and in my layman’s mind, NIL deals are similar to trademark licensing. Both market another’s “image” for one reason or another. Can you explain a few of the similarities and differences?

NIL deals and trademark licensing do share some similarity. Both fall under the umbrella of intellectual property and reflect a brand or image. And both can be licensed to others for commercial gain. There are some important distinctions, however. Trademarks are usually owned by companies and the primary purpose of a trademark is to identify the source of goods or services.

For example, the Nike swoosh on a pair of shoes identifies the source of goods and reflects a particular brand that may influence consumer decisions. NIL, on the other hand, is owned by an individual, where the individual’s name, image, or likeness is what is intended to influence consumer decisions. For example, a shoe company might pay an athlete to wear its latest shoe at an event in hopes that the athlete’s fame will drive more sales. Ultimately, the core idea between NIL deals and trademark licensing is the same: brand power is being used to drive commercial value.

Q: In college football, head coach contracts often have buyout language as well. Why are those buyouts more enforceable than NIL deals? When breaking coaching contracts, what kind of liquidated damage do they create that NIL deals, on average, don’t?

One reason is that coaches are employees of their universities. They’ll have employment contracts that are heavily negotiated between lawyers and agents and approved by university boards to ensure compliance with state contract and employment laws. A court is less likely to strike down a buyout clause if it is shown that it was negotiated between sophisticated parties represented by lawyers on both sides.

Also, it is easier for a school to demonstrate significant harm when a coach leaves early to join another school, such as having to hire a replacement coach, losing players to the portal, losing donor support, and diminished ticket sales. These aren’t hypothetical losses, and while it may be difficult to assign an exact dollar figure to them, a court will generally view a buyout clause as much more reasonable when the overall harm is significant. Another factor that comes to mind is that there has been a lot of prior cases involving coaches leaving early that have set some precedent as to what a court might find reasonable.

The dispute between Arkansas EDGE and Iamaleava is one of the first I’ve seen where a collective has said it will go to the mat on enforcing a buyout clause against a player. So we’re in some uncharted territory here, and the case has the potential to set some precedent for future cases.

Q: No matter the outcome, it feels like the dispute between Iamaleava and Arkansas EDGE is a turning point in college athletics. Where do you see the future of NIL headed in either scenario?

Especially if the House v. NCAA settlement is approved and NIL deals are entered into directly between schools and athletes, I suspect we’ll see more standardization and stronger legal vetting of NIL agreements. In general, such agreements need clearer terms and compliance mechanisms. But that evolution won’t happen on its own. It will require schools and collectives to actually go to the mat and attempt to enforce NIL agreements against players who breach them in order to shape and develop the law in this area.

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