NIL

The stat Texas needs to improve to win a national title

We are in the thick of the offseason, but that does not slow speculation on the 2025 college football season and beyond. You, the listeners of Andy and Ari On3, have questions, and I am here to answer them. From Joe:How much credit does Steve Sarkisian get in college football for the work he’s done […]

Published

2 weeks ago

June 6, 2025

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From Joe:
How much credit does Steve Sarkisian get in college football for the work he’s done at Texas?

From Steve in San Antonio:
No this is not an Arch Manning question. You’re welcome. Maybe it’s just me but I’ve been surprised by Sark being labeled the offensive genius/guru with all of the very obvious and serious red zone and goal line issues they’ve had. Since Sark has had them relevant, regardless of who they are playing, the offense marches up and down the field but once they hit the red zone or goal line, they come to a screeching halt and issues ensue ( I won’t mention Ohio State or Red River 2023).

I don’t know that Sark has gotten the appropriate heat for these deficiencies and had they just been average inside the 20, Texas could have a natty right now.

How does he fix these issues if they’ve plagued Texas multiple seasons with all that high-end talent?

Why has the media overlooked it when it’s of the utmost importance and many in your line of work are picking them to win it all this season? You can’t win it all if you can’t score a TD when you have to.

Steve’s question will help us answer Joe’s question. Because Sarkisian has fixed the most pressing issues Texas had when he got the job in 2021, we now can nitpick him on things like red zone percentage.

In other words, Sark repaired the cracks in the foundation and rebuilt the frame of the house. Now we’re arguing about light fixtures.

This is, of course, huge progress for Texas. And Sarkisian and his staff deserve most of the credit.

The most important repair they made was turning Texas into a program that developed talent again. In the tail end of the Mack Brown era and through the Charlie Strong and Tom Herman eras, the Longhorns simply did not turn the highly touted recruits they signed into NFL players with any regularity. Teams that can’t do that don’t tend to win championships, and they’re susceptible to losses to teams that — on paper — are less talented.

From 2011 to 2022, Texas produced two first-round draft picks (safety Kenny Vaccaro in 2013 and defensive tackle Malcom Brown in 2015). In 2016 and 2017, the Longhorns had just one player drafted. In 2022, they didn’t have a single player drafted.

Before the Sarkisian era, the last Texas offensive player drafted in the first round was Vince Young in 2006. The last first-round offensive lineman was Mike Williams in 2002.

Since Sark took over, Texas has produced six first-rounders (tailback Bijan Robinson in 2023, defensive tackle Byron Murphy and receiver Xavier Worthy in 2024 and offensive tackle Kelvin Banks, DB Jahdae Barron and receiver Matthew Golden in 2025). The Longhorns have had 23 players taken in the past two drafts, and it’s possible they touch double digits again in 2026.

Those are the kind of numbers Nick Saban produced at Alabama and Urban Meyer produced at Ohio State and Kirby Smart produces at Georgia. It’ll win you a lot of games.

Sarkisian has re-opened the Texas NFL production factory. His athletic director, Chris Del Conte, has gotten donors who couldn’t seem to stay on the same page in previous eras to pull in the same direction since the dawn of NIL. Texas has the big-picture issues taken care of.

Now let’s talk about the red zone.

Steve isn’t wrong. Texas was bad in the red zone last season. It’s not just an anecdotal memory of the toss play that Ohio State safety Caleb Downs blew up near the goal line in a one-possession Cotton Bowl semifinal in the fourth quarter. Texas ranked 101st in the nation in red zone scoring percentage at 79.7.

That’s the bad news. The more promising news is that Texas tied with Indiana for second in the nation in red zone trips last season with 69. The difference is the Hoosiers turned 92.8 percent of those trips into points. Indiana scored 55 red zone touchdowns, which led the nation and was seven more than second-place Penn State, which played three more games than the Hoosiers did. Texas, meanwhile, scored 44 red zone touchdowns in 16 games.

To Steve’s point, if Texas can get to a middle-of-the-pack red zone scoring percentage, that probably adds another four or five touchdowns. That could mean the difference between a playoff exit in an earlier round and a national title.

How does Texas fix the issue? Running back play certainly seems to be a factor. When the Longhorns had Robinson in 2022, they finished 19th in red zone scoring percentage. They dropped to No. 90 the next year.

A deeper running back room this season could help. Recall that the Longhorns lost presumed starter C.J. Baxter and freshman Christian Clark to season-ending injuries in August.

Quarterback Arch Manning also will shoulder much of the responsibility. After Quinn Ewers injured his ankle late last season, Sarkisian used Manning in a QB run package. As the starter, Manning’s size and speed should make him an option for which defenses have to account near the goal line.

Red zone percentage will be a critical stat to watch for Texas this season. It’s one of the only things the Longhorns have struggled with during CFP runs the past two seasons. They’ll likely continue to rank among the national leaders in getting inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. If they start punching in a few more touchdowns, they might be unstoppable.

From Tom:
Will we ever get back to a point where power conference teams non-conference games were all against other power conference teams? (For example, Missouri’s 1976 non-conference was USC, Illinois, Ohio State, North Carolina.)

The addition of the 12th regular-season at the start of this century probably eliminates the possibility of all power-conference schedules returning. The TV networks and streaming networks paying the leagues would love a return to this, and depending on how the next iteration of the CFP is set up, we should see more power conference vs. power conference games.

And for certain schools, an all power conference schedule probably would be helpful.

Earlier this week, Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire was complaining about the perception of conferences during an interview on SiriusXM. “We’ve got to take some of the bias out of conferences – that, ‘This is a tougher conference because of this and this and this.’ Let’s fight it out on the field,” McGuire said.

He’s talking about CFP selection, and that would be fine if the conferences were equal. But they’re not. The Big 12 is demonstrably weaker at the top than the Big Ten and SEC. Texas Tech could help itself close this perception gap by playing some Big Ten and SEC teams in the non-conference. That would be fighting it out on the field.

So who is Texas Tech playing in the non-conference this season?

Arkansas Pine-Bluff, Kent State and Oregon State.

Maybe it gets better in 2026.

Nope, it’s Abilene Christian, Oregon State and Sam Houston State.

At least Texas Tech has N.C. State scheduled in 2027 alongside Arkansas Pine-Bluff and North Texas.

Slates like these will do little to help the Red Raiders. Their CFP participation likely will depend on whether they can win the Big 12 title, because they won’t have any quality non-conference wins to bolster their resume if they don’t win the league. So McGuire needs to visit with his athletic director Kirby Hocutt and get some better non-conference games scheduled.

They don’t have to schedule Ohio State and Georgia. But they do need to be trying to schedule teams like Illinois, Minnesota, Ole Miss and South Carolina. And if those teams don’t want to come to Lubbock, the Red Raiders should take a check, hit the road and, as McGuire said, “fight it out on the field.”

From John:

What are the top three books about college football that you would recommend to someone who knows nothing about CFB?

It is beach reading season, so here’s a trio of books that would be great for anyone who either loves college football or just wants to learn more about it.

The Opening Kickoff: The Tumultuous Birth of a Football Nation, Dave Revsine

Revsine isn’t just a great TV host. He dives deep into the creation of the sport. If you thought the NIL era was wild, it has nothing on the turn of the 20th century.

Meat Market: Inside the Smash-Mouth World of College Football Recruiting, Bruce Feldman

To understand college football, you need to understand recruiting. There isn’t a better book on the subject. Feldman spent a year in the early 2000s with Ed Orgeron’s Ole Miss staff, and the result is a fascinating look at how the sausage got made in that era.

The Junction Boys: How Ten Days in Hell with Bear Bryant Forged a Championship Team, Jim Dent

The story of Bear Bryant’s first preseason practice at Texas A&M is the stuff of legend, and it will get you fired up for the season (even though a coach would get put in jail for this stuff now).

My co-host Ari Wasserman also recommends Michael Rosenberg’s War As They Knew It: Woody Hayes, Bo Schembechler, and America in a Time of Unrest. This one delves into the most interesting period in the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry, and it will help you understand why that game means so much to so many people.

If you want a better window into some of the changes in college football now, I’d also recommend a book about a different kind of football. Joshua Robinson and Jonathan Clegg’s The Club: How the English Premier League Became the Wildest, Richest, Most Disruptive Force in Sports explains the dawn of the Premier League in England. And you’ll be shocked at the similarities between English soccer in 1990 and college football in 2025.

A Random Ranking

As I write this, I’m preparing to head to Tampa for a Metallica concert. Time to rank my favorite Metallica songs…

1. One
2. Master of Puppets
3. Sad But True
4. For Whom the Bell Tolls
5. Enter Sandman
6. Fade To Black
7. The Unforgiven
8. Fuel
9. Seek and Destroy
10. Nothing Else Matters

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Nick Mingione Shares Process for Finding Right Transfer Portal Players

Finding the right players within the chaos of the transfer portal is the key to success in almost every college sports program. It has fueled Nick Mingione’s turnaround at Kentucky, where the baseball program appeared to be in a rut, only to be rejuvenated with unprecedented success over the past three seasons. Kentucky won back-to-back […]

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4 minutes ago

June 21, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Kentucky won back-to-back regional championships, culminating with a run to the 2024 College World Series. The Wildcats followed that up with an appearance in the 2025 Regional Championship, the first time the program has ever advanced to three straight NCAA Tournaments.

Advanced Metrics in the Transfer Portal

Kentucky is looking to build on that momentum this offseason by adding talented players from the transfer portal. It’s a vast space with over 5,000 players. The Bat Cats’ 2026 roster is not a finished product, but they currently have a top-five transfer portal class, according to 64Analytics. Mingione shared with BBN Tonight how his staff navigates the talent pool in the transfer portal.

“There is so much video. There’s also so much data that we can capture,” said Mingione. “We’ve created our own little system that we just plug in and crunch the numbers and see how these people do against all of these different things and metrics that we feel are important.”

Kentucky isn’t just looking for players with a good batting average. They’re examining how well players hit the ball against the fastest pitches they faced and how well they hit against certain types of pitches. Additionally, they are just looking at the highlights. They want to see where mistakes were made and if they’re correctable.

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How Players Fit In at Kentucky

That’s just one part of the equation. You heard Mark Stoops talk about finding “the right fit.” Mingione wants players who fit the Kentucky baseball culture and are willing to buy in.

“We put a ton of stock into the phone conversations. It’s one thing to be able to watch the video, to be able to see that they meet the metrics, but are they who we are? Are they going to thrive in this environment? And do they value the things we value, like being a family? Are they committed to winning in all areas of life? Are they into the development piece? There’s so many levels to this, so we put a lot of stock into phone calls. If things go well, then the background checks.”

This isn’t a background check where they run a name through a system. Mingione and his staff are calling coaches and scouts who have been around these players to get a feel for how they are in the clubhouse.

“It takes a lot of phone calls, because it’s one thing to figure out what someone can do skill-wise, but it’s hard to find out what’s in their heart. How do we find that? That’s where I feel like we’ve done a good job of not only having talented players, but the right players,” said the Kentucky baseball coach.

Kentucky Baseball 2026 Transfer Class

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Urban Meyer believes the death sentence in college football no longer serves a purpose

The death penalty in college athletics refers to the NCAA’s power to ban a school from a specific sport for one or more years. There have been multiple instances of this occurring throughout the NCAA’s history. In 1952, the Kentucky men’s basketball team was handed down the death penalty for allegedly shaving points. Southwestern Louisiana […]

Published

28 minutes ago

June 21, 2025

Your Sports Nation

In 1952, the Kentucky men’s basketball team was handed down the death penalty for allegedly shaving points. Southwestern Louisiana was slapped with it in 1973. While several other instances have taking place over the years, the death penalty is most often connected to SMU‘s football program and how in 1987 the program was found out to have been paying its players.

Decades later, institutes may now pay their athletes directly and outside NIL earnings can help compensate them even further. With this in mind, former college football coach Urban Meyer explained the death penalty would be hard to impose within the current state of college athletics.

“No, not with the litigation, the amount of money that’s — think about the 70s. Now, you didn’t litigate back then,” Meyer said. “I don’t believe you did. Once again, I’m not an expert. I wasn’t around much, certainly not to the level of now. Back in the 70s, I mean, team could barely, you didn’t have a training table. Now, you’re talking about NIL and budgets and coaches making millions of dollars, players making money. So it was a much different animal back then.”

While Meyer believes it is much more difficult for imposing a death penalty in the modern age, it’s not impossible. Over 70 years later, the 1952 UK basketball team’s point shaving scandal is still worthy of such a punishment. With gambling becoming a commonplace among sports fans in recent years, there have been several instances of college and professional athletes getting suspended, dismissed or released due to their ties to gambling.

So far, there has been one instance of the death penalty being handed down to a school in the NIL era. In 2024, Notre Dame suspended its men’s swimming team for the entire athletic year for allegedly placing wagers among themselves regarding the results from their competitions. Athletes only bet in-house and only during their swimming meets. In addition, a group chat containing derogatory messages saw members fail to “treat one another with dignity and respect.”

There has been speculation that college athletics may move away from the NCAA in favor of adopting a governing body more equipped to handle its current landscape. What that means for the death penalty in college athletics, just like almost everything else in the ever-changing industry, remains to be seen.

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NIL Gold Rush? College-Style Revenue Sharing and Direct Payments Are Still Off Limits for High School Athletes

Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) rights for athletes are on the rise and have forever blurred the lines between amateurism and professionalism in sports. What began as a fight to compensate college athletes for their contributions to the enormous revenues their schools and conferences were generating from massive media rights and sponsorship deals, merchandise sales […]

Published

29 minutes ago

June 21, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) rights for athletes are on the rise and have forever blurred the lines between amateurism and professionalism in sports.

What began as a fight to compensate college athletes for their contributions to the enormous revenues their schools and conferences were generating from massive media rights and sponsorship deals, merchandise sales and licensing agreements, and sold out venues, has evolved into direct payments to athletes, fueled by all-out bidding wars for recruits and transfers who enjoy virtual and perpetual free agency.

How NIL will be administered on the college level has been resolved, at least for now, following the final approval of a settlement, earlier this month, between the NCAA and lawyers representing members of three different class action lawsuits. The settlement allows schools to share as much as $20.5 million of their revenue with athletes and offer unlimited scholarships. It even set aside $2.8 billion to compensate eligible former college athletes, who did not have the benefit of NIL during their days as a student-athlete.

NIL rights have not stopped at the college level. The last four years have seen a steady movement towards NIL rights for high school athletes with 38 states and the District of Columbia establishing guidelines for high school athletes to benefit financially from their name, image and likeness. Four states – Indiana, Michigan, Montana and Ohio – are actively considering adopting similar guidelines, while only seven states prohibit NIL deals on the high school level.

Those states include Alabama, Hawaii, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Texas, however, recently enacted legislation that would allow high school athletes as young as 17 to sign NIL deals with colleges recruiting their services, but those benefits cannot begin until after the athlete completes his/her high school career.

Some envision a day when financial rights, similar to those granted in the NCAA settlement, will reach the high school level.

Former California high school athlete Dominik Calhoun — now at Boise State — filed a federal class-action lawsuit (Calhoun v. CIF) in Northern California, late last month. He alleges that the California Interscholastic Federation and several media companies, including SBLive Sports, have unlawfully restricted high school athletes from profiting off their name, image, and likeness. The lawsuit claims CIF’s policies violate antitrust laws by barring athletes from receiving compensation tied to broadcast rights, sponsorships, and ticket sales. It also challenges CIF’s transfer rules, which limit athlete mobility and earning potential.

One could never say never in the realm of sports and money, but it is unlikely high school athletes will ever receive the same NIL rewards of their college counterparts. For sure, some prep stars have inked endorsement deals for themselves but not one state has yet come close to allowing student-athletes to be paid directly by high schools or even be compensated for agreeing to attend a specific school.

In a recent article for the National Law Review, Professor Robert J. Romano, JD, LL.M explained some of the restrictions that are generally part of guidelines in every state where NIL benefits for high school athletes are allowed.

“With no national standards regarding NIL, most of the states that do allow for monetization rest upon their high school athletics governing bodies to formulate any and all rules and regulations,” wrote Professor Romano, who is an Associate Professor in the Division of Legal Studies at St. John’s University, where he has taught courses in Sport Law, Sport History, Current Topics in Sport, and Public Policy Issues in the Sport Industry.. “This leads to a variation of standards between states, but there are a few key restrictions present in most of these rules that high school athletes should be aware of.”

Romano cited the following points as being most common:

“In those states where NIL opportunities are allowed, high school athletes have a chance for a significant financial windfall,” added Romano, who played college football at Springfield College and, as a contract attorney, has negotiated employment contracts, public appearances, endorsement and sponsorship agreements for U.S. and international coaches, professional athletes, entertainers, broadcasters, and front office personnel. “However, athletes, their parents, and those advising them must ensure that any NIL agreement is in accordance with the applicable rules of their state, since non-compliance could lead to loss of eligibility to participate in athletic competition, which will certainly jeopardize any future athletic and financial opportunities.”

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Kentucky baseball adds another high-profile transfer prospect

Nick Mingione has landed another high-profile prospect out of the transfer portal. On Thursday afternoon, On3’s Pete Nakos reported USC Upstate transfer outfielder Scott Campbell has committed to play for the Bat Cats. Campbell, who was named First-Team Big South in 2025, becomes the 10th portal addition — and third position player — for Kentucky […]

Published

30 minutes ago

June 21, 2025

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Nick Mingione has landed another high-profile prospect out of the transfer portal.

On Thursday afternoon, On3’s Pete Nakos reported USC Upstate transfer outfielder Scott Campbell has committed to play for the Bat Cats. Campbell, who was named First-Team Big South in 2025, becomes the 10th portal addition — and third position player — for Kentucky so far this offseason as Mingione reloads his roster ahead of the 2026 campaign.

“I think Kentucky plays a very gritty, fast-paced style of baseball,” Campbell told Derek Terry of Bat Cats Central. “They like guys that can do it all, whether that’s speed, defense, little bit of power, but that’s right up my alley. I think it gives me the best opportunity to not only fit in a program, but a program and coaching staff that kinda fits to what I need to be coached to.”

Campbell began his post-high school career at Chattanooga State Community College (2022-23) before moving to Charleston Southern in 2024 and then USC Upstate in 2025. The Macon, GA native started 45 games for the Spartans this past season, hitting for a .388 batting average with 11 doubles, 11 home runs, 54 RBI, a .622 SLG%, and a .498 OBP%.

Campbell is familiar with the Wildcats, having faced Kentucky during USC Upstate’s two-game run in the 2025 Clemson Regional earlier this month. He hit just 1-8 across his pair of NCAA tournament games, but the lone hit did come against UK in USC Upstate’s season-ending 7-3 loss. Campbell will have one year of college eligibility remaining.

Kentucky baseball’s 2026 transfer class

Despite losing 14 players to the portal from last season’s team (only one being ranked among 64Analytics’ top 250 transfers), Mingione is bringing in a 13-man high school class and still returns a key group of core pieces from 2025, headlined by Freshman All-American Tyler Bell. The likes of RF Ryan Schwartz, RHP Nate Harris, and LHP Ben Cleaver will also come back to Lexington for next season. Several more Wildcats, such as 2B Luke Lawrence and OF Carson Hansen, are eligible for the 2025 MLB Draft but can return for another college season.

Join KSR Plus! With a KSR Plus membership, you get access to bonus content and KSBoard, KSR’s message board, to chat with fellow Cats fans and get exclusive scoop.

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Will McEntire posts heartfelt goodbye to Arkansas baseball

After six seasons at Arkansas, Will McEntire‘s time as a Razorback has come to a close. On Friday, the redshirt senior posted a heartfelt goodbye to Arkansas fans. “Arkansas, I’m not sure where to begin. You have forever changed my life,” McEntire wrote. “I got to do things that I never thought were possible as […]

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56 minutes ago

June 21, 2025

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After six seasons at Arkansas, Will McEntire‘s time as a Razorback has come to a close. On Friday, the redshirt senior posted a heartfelt goodbye to Arkansas fans.

“Arkansas, I’m not sure where to begin. You have forever changed my life,” McEntire wrote. “I got to do things that I never thought were possible as a kid. Growing up a Razorback fan, this was always the dream. I never took it for granted, and I am forever grateful that I got to represent this great state. Being a Razorback has meant the world to me and has forever changed me.

“I met my soon-to-be wife, played under some of the greatest coaches, played with the absolute best teammates-who I consider my brothers-and, lastly, got to play for the most passionate fanbase in the country.

“Through ups and downs, I never wavered in my love for this school. I will proudly call myself a Razorback for life and appreciate every single one of you for what you have done in this journey of mine. Forever and always, Wooo Pig.”

McEntire made 17 appearances this season, totaling 25.1 innings on the mound. He posted a 2.84 ERA and 29 strikeouts compared to just four walks.

In his six years with the program, McEntire amassed 82 appearances and a 17-5 record. He collected 233 career strikeouts and a 4.08 ERA. It’s worth noting that McEntire didn’t play during his second season in Fayetteville and redshirted instead.

McEntire’s final appearance at Arkansas was in the Razorbacks’ 7-3 win over UCLA in the College World Series. McEntire held down the mound for one inning but was taken out of the game after giving up two hits and three runs.

Just one day later, Arkansas’ season ended in devastating fashion. The Razorbacks led LSU 5-3 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning. However, the pressure was on Arkansas, with two LSU runners on base.

The Razorbacks collapsed in the clutch. Arkansas left fielder Charles Davalan misjudged a line drive and failed to make the game-winning catch, allowing LSU to score two runs and tie the game.

On the next at-bat, LSU’s Jared Jones hit a laser toward center field. The ball bounced off the top of Arkansas’ Cam Kozeal‘s glove, and LSU ultimately escaped with the win. After the game, Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn reflected on the team’s season.

“It’s hard to say goodbye,” Van Horn said. “I’m not good at saying goodbyes anyway. Great team, fun team, hard-working team. And probably just ‘team.’ Man, they were a team. You could tell by how emotional they were after the game.

“It was a lot of heartbreak, maybe because we lost the game, but honestly, probably because the season’s over and they don’t get to be around each other every day. So proud of them. Proud of the University of Arkansas.”

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Wisconsin, NIL collective sue Miami, allege tampering to land football recruit

The University of Wisconsin and its NIL collective VC Connect filed a joint lawsuit on Friday against the University of Miami alleging it knowingly induced one of the Badgers’ football players to abandon a lucrative name, image and likeness contract to play for the Florida this upcoming season. Allegations of tampering rarely get to this […]

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1 hour ago

June 21, 2025

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Allegations of tampering rarely get to this level and the 23-page lawsuit, which was filed in state court in Wisconsin and obtained by The Associated Press, is unusual. Depending on its resolution, it could have a a wider impact on future NIL deals across college athletics.

The player in question in the filing is referred to only as “Student-Athlete A.” But the case summary describes facts that line up with the situation involving cornerback Xavier Lucas, who last December announced his plans to enter the transfer portal.

Shortly afterward, Darren Heitner, who has been representing Lucas, indicated that Wisconsin was refusing to put Lucas’ name in the portal and that it was hindering his ability to talk with other schools. In January, Heitner announced that Lucas would be playing for Miami this fall.

The situation is fallout from the rapid changes engulfing college athletics, specifically a combination of two things: Athletes went to court and won the ability to transfer with much more freedom and the 2021 NCAA decision clearing the way for them to strike NIL endorsement deals now worth millions of dollars. That has changed the recruiting landscape and forced the issue of contracts and signed commitments to the fore.

“Indeed, student-athletes’ newfound NIL rights will be rendered meaningless if third parties are allowed to induce student-athletes to abandon their contractual commitments,” a portion of the lawsuit reads.

Wisconsin said in January that it had credible information that Miami and Lucas made impermissible contact with each other before the former Badgers cornerback decided to transfer.

Wisconsin and VC Connect allege that the inducement for Lucas to attend Miami happened within days of him entering his NIL agreement to play for the Badgers, and that they incurred substantial monetary and reputational harm. The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages and “a declaration that Miami’s conduct directed towards Student-Athlete A constituted tampering.”

A message left with the University of Miami seeking comment was not immediately returned. In a text message Friday, Heitner declined to comment on the lawsuit but he said that Lucas still plans to attend Miami and play football.

Wisconsin said it had the support of its leadership and the Big Ten Conference in filing the lawsuit, noting its commitment to “ensuring integrity and fundamental fairness in the evolving landscape of college athletics.”

“While we reluctantly bring this case, we stand by our position that respecting and enforcing contractual obligations is essential to maintaining a level playing field,” the statement said. “In addition to our legal action, we will continue to be proactive to protect the interests of our student-athletes, our program and the broader collegiate athletics community.

Lucas, who is from Pompano Beach, Florida, had 12 tackles, an interception and a sack as a freshman for Wisconsin last season.

Heitner said that Lucas hasn’t received any money from Wisconsin and therefore owes no money to the school. Heitner also argued that Wisconsin had violated an NCAA bylaw by not entering Lucas into the transfer database within two business days of the player’s request.

Wisconsin issued a statement at the time saying it hadn’t put Lucas’ name in the portal because he had entered a two-year binding NIL agreement.

In April, the surprise transfers of brothers Nico and Madden Iamaleava from Tennessee to UCLA prompted fresh questions about contracts and buyouts.

Nico Iamaleava, who led Tennessee to the College Football Playoff last season, walked away from a reported $2.4 million NIL contract. Arkansas freshman quarterback Madden Iamaleava entered the portal after spring practices wrapped up.

Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek released a statement indicating he would support efforts by the Razorbacks’ NIL collective to enforce buyout clauses in athlete contracts. Iamaleava reportedly had a contract valued at $500,000 upon signing with Arkansas.