WATERVILLE, Maine (WABI) – Name, image and likeness have been in the headlines in recent years allowing college and high school to be paid. Some have used it as a platform for their passions.

“If you are passionate about something like curing cancer and you want to let people know and you want the world to know, we can go out and tell that story,” answered Founder and C.E.O. of Pliable Marketing Greg Glynn.

Pliable is an N.I.L. company allowing college and high school athletes from the around the country to brand themselves and tell their story.

Two of Greg’s athletes, Hannah Dukeman and Emma Eubank, softball players out of Indiana wanted to use N.I.L. for something else other than money.

“They had told me they wanted to cure childhood cancer,” recalled Greg. “They had raised over four thousand and five hundred dollars because they had created cleats that we put together that said #CureCancer.”

That’s where ‘The Magic Cleats’ came along. A children’s book Greg, along with his daughter Kelsey wrote about the story.

But also in the pages you can find spotlights on other female athletes branding themselves through N.I.L.

“I love seeing all the girls like Maddie Niles, Emma Eubank and Logan Hale and I love seeing them being able to help their communities too and what their passionate about,” said Kelsey.

Greg says it can be a book to inspire younger girls to see firsthand what’s possible. But don’t let the pictures fool you, it’s not just for kids.

“I think parents as well, I know the target audience is children but it’s a reminder to parents that enable your kids to do what they want to do,” commented Greg.

It’s stars like Mia Hamm from back in the day and now Caitlin Clark that have helped prop up the respect, coverage and recognition of women athletes and while Greg says the growth has been impressive, there’s still plenty of room to grow.

“We’re trying to go out there and help women realize that they can do amazing things,” said Greg. “This is not just about making all kinds of money, this is about building your brand and making sure that you are doing the things that you’re passionate about for you and what you want to do in your career and that’s going to lead to your success long-term. I know what’s coming for women’s sports and I know the passion that these women have. They are the underdog story and this story is far from over.”

If you want to check out the book for yourself, head on down to Oliver & Friends Bookshop in Waterville, through a quick Amazon search or head to the Pliable Marketing website here.

There will also be a book signing on August 2nd at Oliver & Friends.

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Southern Methodist University is tapping into the widening nexus between sports and business, partnering with a financial tech company to offer money management options for student athletes.

SMU Athletics and financial tech company Scout will offer in-app finance management and investment assistance, Scout announced in a release. Name, image, likeness (NIL) deals have become increasingly commonplace, creating newfound wealth for student athletes fortunate enough to win large contracts.

“We ask our players to think long-term: to grow, to evolve, to prepare,” Head Football Coach Rhett Lashlee said in a statement. “This partnership is a perfect example of that mindset.”

Contract deals vary widely based on the athlete. But in some cases, big-name athletes are reaping deals of six ― and sometimes seven ― figures, as NIL agreements shake up college sports, minting riches for a new generation of players.

In an acknowledgment of how even professional athletes need wealth preservation skills, RISE Family Office hosted its annual symposium in Frisco last week, which is designed to give money tips to current and former players.

In partnership with Scout, SMU is signaling their long-term commitment to helping athletes and administrators navigate the business of sports – now and in the future.

Scout CEO Michael Haddix Jr., a former Division I basketball athlete and Columbia-educated investment banker, founded Scout with the mission of “helping today’s college athletes take control of the present and plan for a secure future.”

“We look at NIL differently at Scout – for us, it means Name, Image…Lifetime,” Haddix said.

Scout helps users navigate the fast-changing NIL landscape, offering in-app tools for revenue-share distribution, cap management, and personalized financial literacy training. SMU athletes will have access to a secure player wallet app for savings, tax withholding, and investment planning.

Team administrators benefit, too. Scout’s administrative portal allows SMU coaches to securely distribute athlete payments, model salary caps for teams, ensure compliance, and generate reports.

“This partnership with Scout puts the infrastructure in place to support our student-athletes in a dynamic, fast-changing NIL environment, not just for now, but for years to come,” Damon Evans, SMU’s Director of Athletics said.

Since its founding in 2014, Scout has partnered with the University of Tennessee, Iowa, Mississippi State, and Auburn University, among others.

And SMU is joining the fleet, ushering in a new era of student-athlete support as NIL continues to transform college athletics.

“At SMU, we’re not building for the moment – we’re building for the future,” Evans said.

Now that we are getting close to the start of the football season, would you be over or under at an 8.5 win total for the regular season.

8.5 is a far better number than the real 7.5 number on the Illini, in my opinion. While Illinois has a chance to go under 7.5 if things don’t go well, I’d say over 7.5 is far more likely given the roster and schedule — assuming health, of course.

I have to think a lot harder about 8.5, and to be honest, that’s around where my projection will be. Winning nine or 10 games with 10 Power Four opponents on the schedule, including nine Big Ten teams, is very difficult. Illinois definitely is capable, but it’s also capable of going under 8.5 wins as well.

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Division-I colleges and universities were allowed to share revenue with their student-athletes for the first time on Tuesday, which actually creates a competitive advantage for mid-major basketball programs. Smaller schools with FCS football programs are able to distribute more money elsewhere.

It will be interesting to see whether this new era of collegiate athletics allows for more parity on the hardwood.

The last four years of Name, Image and Likeness were largely unregulated. There were no rules. Schools, through their NIL collectives, were able to spend whatever amount of money they wanted on any player in any sport without any guidelines on how to operate. Inducements were common. Tampering was rampant.

Although some of that behavior will surely continue under the table, this new revenue sharing model is supposed to provide some semblance of structure when it comes to finances across college sports. Universities must operate under a set cap for direct compensation. Outside NIL deals must undergo approval from an outside entity. The entire pay scale will be limited. (We’ll see!)

Generally speaking, SEC programs will have a maximum annual budget of approximately $21 million. Approximately $14 million will go to football, $4 million to men’s basketball, $1 million to women’s basketball and $2 million to the other sports combined. Those numbers will obviously vary.

This is where smaller schools might find some common ground if they do not compete in college football on the FBS level. They can pump more money toward college basketball.

Smaller schools could choose to split its revenue share money as follows:

• TOTAL — $4.8 million
  • Men’s basketball: $2.66 million
  • Football: $1.31 million
  • Women’s basketball: $485,000
  • Other sports: $350,000

The $2.66 million for men’s basketball is not too far off from $4 million at SEC schools. That $2.66 million number is more or less on par with high-major programs.

However, those numbers are not the same at every school. Some mid-majors have larger goals for compensation. Others have less.

Athletic departments could spend a similar amount of money on basketball as the “bigger” schools that focus on football to be just as competitive in terms of compensation as, say, Wisconsin. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. How long will those “bigger” schools allow for this somewhat level playing field? When will they starts pumping more money in the direction of men’s basketball?