Austin Strykowski

Following the College Football National Championship and the first year of the twelve-team playoff, headlines emerged regarding the regulations, or lack thereof, regarding the Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) rules. The major headline following the big game was that Ohio State spent roughly $20 million on its roster heading into the season. Spending like this on individual athletes was unheard of before NIL was legalized for college sports. 

So, how did we get here, and what needs to be done to clean up the current state of college sports?

In June of 2021, the Supreme Court ruled in NCAA v. Alston that the NCAA had a monopoly on college sports and needed to allow schools to give out certain academic benefits besides scholarships, such as laptops, textbooks, etc. However, in Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s concurring opinion, he noted that other restrictions on compensation for college athletes fall under the same window as the ruling initially stated. This cleared the way for the current state of NIL that we see today.

While it is no secret that the NCAA and schools have been profiting off of college athletes since college sports began, there was no system in place to ensure proper regulation of funds to athletes. This has become increasingly evident with allegations of tampering: Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith was reportedly offered $4.5 million to transfer before the transfer portal opened for example, and the NCAA’s seeming lack of interest in incurring fines.

Moreover, high school athletes no longer have the same opportunities to gain NIL deals from colleges unless they attend a smaller school where they can shine and then transfer, or if they are in the upper echelon of recruits. At a larger school, an athlete will likely red-shirt their freshman year, essentially having a year of training before joining the roster without losing eligibility years, and then having to sit behind anywhere from 1-4 players. When a player isn’t playing, they lose out on the NIL opportunities to make money for playing.

When I was getting recruited out of high school for hockey, a similar system already existed. Many hockey players play in various Junior leagues (like playing junior college without actually going to college) and then join a school when their skills are honed. This is similar to what we see now in college, with junior college years not costing a player eligibility, and high school recruiting has fallen off a cliff.

Why does the government need to step in?

It has become incredibly clear over the past few years of NIL that the NCAA will not do anything to regulate the state of NIL while it continues to make money by the fistful. As long as colleges won’t receive fines, minuscule fines at that, they can continue to pay athletes however much they can in order to win a championship.

In 1987, Southern Methodist University had its football team disbanded, called the “death penalty” at the time, as a result of illegally paying athletes. Now, you must pay your athletes merely to stay alive.

Instead of being a sanctuary away from the millions of dollars of greed in professional sports, college athletes are beginning to make more money in college then they would in the NFL. This flawed system is causing college kids to become millionaires before they have the necessary financial knowledge to function with this money; Johnny Manziel is a prime example before NIL existed.

Since the Supreme Court made the mess regarding NIL, it is now the job of any branch of the government to impose regulations on schools regarding college sports.

How can the government fix this?

My suggestion would be to launch an investigation into the NCAA by a Congressional committee, interstate commerce perhaps, that would create a law imposing a maximum roster spending limit for college sports (a salary cap, for example). If the NCAA outright refuses, antitrust investigations can be opened into it and steep punishments can be imposed.

I understand that this may feel like an overstepping of government power, but something must be done before college sports are no different than professional sports. The government must clean up the mess it made when the Supreme Court opened the floodgates. 

If not, college sports will be lost in a sea of cash and chaos rather than an escape for fans and a path to glory for the players.