Luke Fedlam is a partner and co-chair of the Entertainment, Sports and Media Practice at Amundsen Davis.With the proposed House v. NCAA settlement on the horizon, the structure of college athletics is poised for a historic shift. Participating Power Four institutions — along with any additional schools that opt in — will allocate $20.5 million annually in revenue sharing to student-athletes.

It’s a long-overdue acknowledgment of the commercial value athletes bring to college sports.

But amidst the financial breakthrough, a foundational promise is being overlooked: education.

The very institutions tasked with preparing young people for life are now direct participants in commercial transactions with their own students. As schools assume the role of an informed and prepared counterparty Name, Image, and Likeness arrangements — helping to facilitate deals, co-brand partnerships or provide NIL-related payments — an inherent conflict emerges.

It becomes increasingly difficult for these same institutions to serve as impartial educators in matters where their own interests are also at stake.

What makes this moment more urgent is the retreat we’re seeing from athletic departments. Faced with tightening budgets and new NIL obligations, many programs are scaling back or eliminating third-party educational resources that student-athletes need now more than ever.

Having worked with athletes across the country — from top-tier high schools to powerhouse Division I programs — I have observed the same pattern time and again: young people (and their families) are navigating complex financial and legal issues without adequate preparation.

And the stakes are too high to let them figure it out on their own.

There are four critical areas where immediate, sustained education is not only advisable — it is imperative:

1. Contract literacy: Student-athletes are signing both NIL marketing and representation agreements that bind them to long-term obligations. Some contracts include perpetual rights to their name and image, restrictive endorsement clauses, complex termination provisions and unfair sublicensing rights. In many cases, athletes and their families have no experience interpreting such documents — and do not even know where to begin. While knowledgeable legal professionals exist in this space, access remains uneven and often unavailable to those who need it most. And to be clear, a marketing agent does not offer the same level of protection, nor unbiased education, to a student-athlete.
2. Tax compliance: NIL earnings are not wages. Student-athletes are classified as independent contractors for tax purposes when it comes to NIL, and therefore, taxes are not withheld from their payments. Unless an athlete proactively sets aside money for tax liabilities, they face potential financial exposure that can quickly escalate. I’ve met with athletes who earned over seven figures through NIL — and failed to withhold money for taxes. The consequences of that kind of financial misstep can far outlast any college career.
3. Financial management: NIL introduces significant income into the lives of student-athletes — many of whom are receiving substantial payments for the first time. Without financial literacy education, these young earners may spend impulsively, make ill-advised investments or provide unsustainable financial support to friends and family. A basic understanding of budgeting, saving and long-term planning is not a luxury; it is a necessity that should be integrated into every athletic department’s student support strategy.
4. Career preparation beyond sports: Despite the attention NIL deals receive, 98% of college athletes will not go on to play professionally. Many will graduate and enter a job market where traditional starting salaries bear no resemblance to the sums they received in college for making a few social media posts or public appearances. NIL is not a career path — it is a temporary and highly situational source of income that is momentary and market-driven. Without a plan for life after sports, and without a dose of realism with post-college starting salaries, student-athletes risk being unprepared, mentally or psychologically, for the professional world when a college career comes to an end.

The ethical obligation for education in this new era is clear.

Schools cannot reasonably benefit from the commercial success of their athletes while neglecting the educational responsibilities that ought to come with it. If institutions are unable to provide independent, conflict-free education internally, they must engage trusted third-party educators, advisors and legal experts to do so. To do otherwise is to profit while abdicating duty.

This is a transformative moment in college athletics.

The financial recognition of student-athletes is long overdue — but compensation without education is exploitation in a new form. The path forward must be built on transparency, empowerment and a sincere commitment to the long-term wellbeing of student-athletes. 

Anything less would be a betrayal of the very principles higher education claims to uphold.

Luke Fedlam is a partner and co-chair of the Entertainment, Sports and Media Practice at Amundsen Davis. He advises athletes and their families, specializing in education, legal protection and long-term planning in the Name, Image, and Likeness era.