NIL
Nearly $80 million in NIL deals approved since June; collectives say $11 million more is tied up
The College Sports Commission reported Thursday that more than 8,000 name, image and likeness deals, valued at nearly $80 million, between third-party businesses and student-athletes have been cleared since mid-June, compared to 332 that have been submitted but not approved.
The College Sports Commission reported Thursday that more than 8,000 name, image and likeness deals, valued at nearly $80 million, have been cleared since mid-June, but a group representing dozens of NIL collectives claims millions more dollars are being held up by the slow process.
The CSC said 332 deals between college athletes and third-party businesses have been submitted to the NIL Go online platform and rejected from June 11 through Aug. 31. More than 3,000 deals were cleared in the final 11 days of August alone, the CSC said.
The Collective Association, a trade group for the donor-funded businesses affiliated with schools, also released data it compiled from its members. The association claimed more than $11 million earmarked for athletes has been snarled and called for more transparency and speed from the CSC.
The new enforcement arm of college sports was established by the power conferences to oversee rules related to the revenue sharing system that was agreed to as part of the $2.8 billion settlement of the House v. NCAA antitrust lawsuit.
For the first time, schools are permitted to directly pay their athletes up to $20.5 million per year. Schools can distribute the money to their athletes however they choose. The CSC is responsible for enforcing that revenue-sharing cap and regulating outside NIL deals to ensure they reflect fair market value and legitimate business purposes.
The CSC said more than 28,342 college athletes and 1,227 “institutional users” have registered with NIL Go, which is managed by accounting firm Deloitte to evaluate how athletes are making money outside of what they are receiving from their schools.
“This initial report shows the new system is working as intended: legitimate NIL deals are being submitted, reviewed and approved through NIL Go,” College Sports Commission CEO Bryan Seeley said. “The strong engagement from student-athletes and institutions shows real progress toward the clarity, transparency and fairness that the House Settlement intended. We look forward to sharing our progress on a regular basis as we continue to refine and improve the NIL deal review process moving forward.”
The report said the 8,359 cleared deals range in value up to about $1.6 million.
The CSC was launched in June after a judge gave final approval to the House v. NCAA settlement. Led by Seeley, a former Major League Baseball executive in charge of investigations and enforcement, the commission is also in the process of turning the settlement into detailed policy.
That process already hit a snag in July. CSC guidance to schools initially said that all deals between athletes and NIL collectives — school-affiliated and booster-funded organizations — would be rejected for not serving a “valid business purpose.
Collective operators pushed back, and attorneys for the plaintiffs who negotiated the settlement with the NCAA and conferences claimed that interpretation violated terms of the deal.
The CSC later revised the guidance, allowing collective deals as long as the athlete is promoting “for-profit” goods or services to the public. Collective deals would be considered on a case-by-case basis.
That created a lot more deals to evaluate for the commission, which is still building its staff.
The CSC report said of the 332 rejected deals, 75 have been re-submitted and none are currently in arbitration. When a deal fails to be cleared, the parties involved can request a ruling from an outside arbiter.
The Collective Association, citing data from 25 members, cited 384 deals that have been submitted to date, with 120 rejected, 25 approved and 47 kicked back for more information. The other 192 deals submitted are awaiting a response. The average size of the deals is nearly $29,000, the association said.
The association said it recently polled more than 50 members representing athletes from the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, ACC, American, Big East and Pac-12 conferences.
“While collectives are working diligently to comply, the feedback was unanimous: The current system lacks speed, transparency, and support needed to serve athletes effectively.”
Among the concerns cited were:
- Unanswered questions about how NIL deals for international athletes will be evaluated.
- Uncertainty about how fair market value is being determined.
- Confusion about how athletes can be compensated for time-sensitive opportunities that might arise from an in-game performance that spikes an athlete’s popularity and profile.
- No clear avenue for questions before deals are submitted.
The CSC said the most common issues are delays in providing necessary information for evaluation; contradictory deal terms and misreporting; and deals not satisfying “valid business purposes”.
The Collective Association made several recommendations for the CSC to consider to improve its process, including:
- A real-time help desk or live chat for NIL Go users.
- Allowing users to track progress of deals through the approval process with expected timelines.
- Better defining “fair market value”.
- Clarify rules for time-sensitive opportunities.
- Addressing international student-athlete eligibility.
- Standardizing deal evaluation with templates and examples for submissions.
The Collective Association also called for the creation of an NIL Oversight Task Force that would include athletes, representatives from collectives and athletic departments to review the system.
“The TCA and its member organizations remain committed to supporting student-athletes, operating within the rules, and working with the CSC to establish a transparent, timely, and athlete-first system,” the association said. “Without these improvements, both athletes and collectives face unnecessary uncertainty that undermines the promise of NIL opportunities.”
(Photo: Alex Slitz / Getty Images)
NIL
Adam Breneman Highlights Why College Football Will Fail Under Greg Sankey’s Leadership Amid Transfer Portal, NIL Issues
Former Penn State tight end Adam Breneman, on the Will Ventures podcast, revealed his true feelings on the current landscape of college football and the implications of the decisions made by some leaders in the game.
Breneman, on his podcast appearance, highlighted how no one’s actually in charge of college football, whilst also strongly advocating for a college football commissioner.
“No one’s actually in charge of college football. We need a college football commissioner”, Breneman stated on the podcast.
Despite college football not having a designated commissioner, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey is one of the most powerful college football figures and is often touted to be in charge of college football as a whole.
Breneman further revealed that Sankey is also in charge of other sports like golf, diving, lacrosse, and men’s & women’s basketball, stating that college football needs a commissioner who will make decisions for the betterment of college football, implying that it’s tough to do that while you have other things on your plate.
“Greg Sankey is also in charge of golf and swimming and diving and men’s basketball and women’s basketball and lacrosse has to make the best decisions for those sports as well. No one’s actually in charge of college football”, Breneman highlighted.
“We need a college football commissioner who actually is in charge of college football and can make decisions for college football because what’s best for college football is not what’s best for men’s basketball”, he further elaborated.
The former ASU tight end coach’s comments come on the backdrop of college football going through a turbulent period as far as player transfers, NIL issues, and the overall backlash the playoff committee is facing as far as the selection of the 2025 playoff teams is concerned.
Greg Sankey Pushes for Expansion to a 16-Team College Football Playoff
Sankey recently appeared on The Rich Eisen Show this December, emphasizing the need to adopt a 16-team playoff format, potentially moving away from the current 12-team format, while also keeping in mind other conferences and their playoff qualification, which was a point of contention amongst analysts and fans alike.
Meanwhile, the college football portal, which is set to officially open in January 2026, has already seen a record number of entries, with the likes of star QBs like DJ Lagway and Dylan Raiola entering, potentially fueled by NIL incentives.
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USC defensive tackle Devan Thompkins, a 6-5, 290-pound veteran who started 12 games in 2025, announced his intention to enter the NCAA transfer portal on December 17.
Thompkins finished the 2025 season with 31 combined tackles (18 solo), three sacks, two pass breakups, and a forced fumble; across three seasons at USC, he compiled 56 total tackles (32 solo), 4.5 sacks, and five pass breakups.
Those figures made him one of the more productive interior linemen on a unit that struggled at times but improved to finish ranked and bowl-eligible.
USC closed the 2025 regular season 9–3 (7–2 Big Ten) and will face TCU in the Valero Alamo Bowl on December 30, a season that left the program ranked inside the top 25 (No. 16) but short of College Football Playoff contention.
The Trojans’ record and bowl bid reflect progress under head coach Lincoln Riley while also exposing lingering gaps across the roster.
Those gaps have since been amplified, as Thompkins’ departure brings USC’s total number of players set to test the transfer market to 15.
The list of known departures is sizable and spread across position groups.
According to 247Sports, the 15 players who have announced portal entries include: WR DJ Jordan, RB Bryan Jackson, CB Braylon Conley, DE Gus Cordova, OL Makai Saina, S Steve Miller, LB Matai Tagoa‘i, DL Carlon Jones, S Anthony Beavers Jr., OL Micah Banuelos, LB Garrison Madden, RB Harry Dalton, WR Prince Strachan, TE Walker Lyons, and Thompkins.
That grouping hits starters across the trenches, secondary, and skill positions — areas that will require immediate replacements via the portal, incoming freshmen, and retained depth.
After a successful five-year run at Oklahoma from 2017 to 2021, Riley took over as USC’s head coach in November 2021 and has delivered steady results built on quarterback development, high-powered offenses, and aggressive recruiting, highlighted by USC securing the No. 1-ranked 2026 recruiting class.
The current exodus provides the latest test for Riley as USC works to build toward a stronger Big Ten finish in 2026.
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Texas Tech Red Raiders coach Joey McGuire spoke to the media ahead of the Orange Bowl against the Oregon Ducks, and McGuire was quite complimentary of Oregon coach Dan Lanning and the Ducks program. Much has been made about Texas Tech’s increased spending in the name, image, and likeness (NIL) era of college football, and similarities between the Red Raiders and the Ducks have come up ahead of their College Football Playoff matchup.
Powered in part by Nike co-founder and philanthropist Phil Knight, Oregon’s rise in the college football world has been a unique one. On the other hand, Texas Tech’s NIL collective is led by billionaire booster Cody Campbell, whose investment into the Red Raiders program has helped the team climb up the ranks.
What Joey McGuire Said About Oregon and Texas Tech
McGuire was asked to compare Oregon’s rise to Texas Tech’s, and the Red Raiders coach gave a thoughtful answer:
“First, they’ve done a good job of hiring coaches, and Dan (Lanning) was a slam dunk. Second, you know, they made it cool to be an Oregon Duck,” McGuire said. “I mean, they’ve got every uniform known to man, and players love that. So I think we’re really fortunate with Adidas, our partnership with Adidas and Patrick Mahomes, that we’re doing the same thing. We’ve got some some great looks.”
“And then, they have a great booster in Phil Knight that really said, ‘Hey, we’re going to go win at the highest level, and there’s no excuses whenever it comes to finance.’ You know, you turn around, and I think that we’ve shown that we’re doing that, and I think we’re really comparable,” McGuire continued.
“We’ve got guys that have really stepped up and done a great job. I kind of call them the big five whenever you talk about Cody and John and Mike, Dusty, and Gary. I mean, those guys have, along with everybody else in Red Raider Nation, but those guys really led the charge. And so whenever you’re talking, we’re kind of comparable on and off the field in this team. They’ve just done it for a little bit longer and that’s what we’re trying to do,” McGuire continued.
Oregon Ducks’ Sustained Success
As mentioned by McGuire, Oregon has been on the cutting edge of college football uniforms as well as facilities, thanks in part to the program’s relationship with Knight and Nike. In the NIL era, fans often mistake how often Nike is involved in recruiting other than the brand power that Oregon has. Still, Ducks quarterback Dante Moore and wide receiver Dakorien Moore have NIL deals with Nike.
MORE: Oregon Ducks vs. Texas Tech Playoff Betting Odds Make A Clear Statement
MORE: Oregon Loses Two More Players to Transfer Portal Amid College Football Playoff Run
MORE: Dan Lanning’s Frustration Could Ignite Oregon vs. Texas Tech
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Under the leadership of Oregon coach Dan Lanning, Oregon has had success on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal, bringing in top prospects like Moore and Moore. Other contributors on the Ducks’ current roster came through the portal, including safety Dillon Thieneman, defensive lineman Bear Alexander, and offensive linemen Alex Harkey, Emmanuel Pregnon, and Isaiah World.
While financial stability and resources are paramount in the current era of college football, Lanning has also created a culture at Oregon that is seemingly built to last. After the Ducks’ dominant win over James Madison in the first round of the CFP, Lanning and his team were quick to acknowledge that they can play better.
Oregon and Texas Tech will kickoff from Miami, Florida, in the Orange Bowl at 9 a.m. PT on New Year’s Day.
The last of the Power Four college football head coaching openings remains available at Michigan.
The Wolverines decided to part ways with head coach Sherrone Moore on Dec. 10 due to inappropriate relations with a staffer. Michigan had its sights set on Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer, Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham and Washington head coach Jedd Fisch.
Though nothing was made official, Fisch was the first to bow out of the race. Alabama’s College Football Playoff victory over Oklahoma eliminated DeBoer from the conversation, and Dillingham inked an extension with Arizona State on Saturday.
With all of those candidates off the board, one who has emerged in the next round is current Wolverines interim Biff Poggi. The interim said he had been interviewed for the job on multiple occasions this offseason.
Biff Poggi says he’s had multiple interviews for Michigan’s HC position. He also has some blunt words about the program’s shortcomings under Sherrone Moore, calling Michigan a “malfunctioning organization.”
“Everything that happens in this building has to be reevaluated.”
— Austin Meek (@byAustinMeek) December 22, 2025
Poggi began his college football coaching career as an assistant with stops at Brown, Temple and the Citadel in the late 1980s. He coached at his high school alma mater, The Gilman School, as an offensive coordinator and offensive line coach from 1988 to 1995. He spent the next 20 seasons as Gilman’s head coach before returning to the college ranks.
The now 65-year-old spent two prior stints with the Wolverines under Jim Harbaugh. He worked as an analyst with the 2016 team and served as Michigan’s associate head coach in 2021 and 2022.
Poggi was hired away from Michigan to succeed Will Healy as Charlotte’s next head coach in the 2023 offseason. The 49ers were 3-9 in Poggi’s first year at the helm, tying for eleventh place in the American Athletic Conference.
After a 3-7 start to the 2024 season, Charlotte decided to part ways with Poggi. The 49ers hired Tim Albin as his replacement for 2025.
This will not be the first time Poggi has served as the Wolverines’ interim head coach. He was the interim for Michigan’s games against Central Michigan and Nebraska.
The Wolverines accepted an invitation to the Citrus Bowl at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida. No. 18 Michigan (9-3, 7-2) will face No. 13 Texas (9-3, 6-2) on Dec. 31 (3 p.m. EST, ABC).
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Bob Chesney was hired at UCLA at the beginning of December, with the official announcement released Dec. 6th.
He spent two whirlwind days — Dec. 8th-10th — in Westwood for his introductory press conference and a few other media moments.
He then spent most of his time back in Harrisonburg, Virginia, preparing his James Madison team to face Oregon in the first round of the College Football Playoffs.
On Saturday, the Dukes lost, valiantly, to Oregon, 51–34. That ended the JMU season and Chesney’s coaching tenure there.
And the Bob Chesney era at UCLA begins.
Of course, the coach was doing UCLA-related things for the past three weeks, but now he’ll be fully focused and engaged as UCLA’s new coach.
What to do, what to do?
One of college football’s greatest rivalry games is set to come to an abrupt end as it was about to celebrate its 100th anniversary.
The annual Notre Dame vs. USC football rivalry game is no more after the schools failed to reach an agreement on future matchups, ending one of college football’s most recognizable traditions, according to Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger.
Representatives from both schools had been involved in negotiations to preserve the rivalry over the last several months, but could not agree on terms going forward, at least temporarily ending a football series that had been ongoing since 1926.
Gone, but not for good?
Yes, there is some hope that we could see USC and Notre Dame on the same field in the future.
Administrators from both schools did reach an agreement to resurrect the series as soon as the 2030 season, according to the report.
Until now, just a world war and a global pandemic had prevented Notre Dame and USC from playing each other every season, but now the pressures of the modern college football season, and its postseason format, appear to have played a role.
Whose fault is this?
Concerns about scheduling and how the game would affect College Football Playoff positioning were the decisive factors in bringing an end to the rivalry, according to the report.
Most of that concern seemed to arise from the USC side of the equation, which felt that certain precedents established by the selection committee in punishing teams for losses put the program in a disadvantageous position.
USC hinted this would come
USC head coach Lincoln Riley signaled as much when speaking on the future of the rivalry last year.
“There [have] been a lot of teams that sacrifice rivalry games,” Riley told reporters at Big Ten Media Days last summer.
“As we get into this playoff structure, and if it changes or not, we get into this new conference, we’re going to learn some about this as we go and what the right and best track is to winning a national championship, that’s going to evolve.”
Still, even amid those comments, reps from USC signaled a desire to keep the Notre Dame rivalry, and Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman was adamant on keeping the matchup, too, reflecting the position of his school.
Instead, Notre Dame is poised to finalize a home-and-home series with BYU over the next two seasons that will take the place of USC on its schedule, according to the Yahoo report.
We saw this coming
A recent Sports Illustrated report indicated that USC was hesitant to pledge itself to a long-term agreement with Notre Dame, citing concerns over the future of the College Football Playoff format and the Trojans’ existing schedule and travel demands.
“I want to play USC every year because I think it’s great for college football, that rivalry, USC-Notre Dame,” Marcus Freeman said.
“Before I even got to Notre Dame, everybody watched that game. Everybody remembers moments from that game that just stick out in their mind.”
Another college football tradition bites the dust
Losing a historic rivalry of this pedigree would be another stark reminder of the very strict conditions that schools have to work in in a new environment where playoff selection, and appeasing the College Football Playoff committee, is king.
Known as the greatest intersectional rivalry in college football, USC and Notre Dame have met almost every year since 1926, with World War II and the Covid pandemic being the only exceptions.
Now, to that list of historical anomalies, the very format of modern college football itself could be the decisive factor that puts this great rivalry on the shelf.
(Yahoo)
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