By Nick Stevens, Editor-in-Chief of HighSchoolOT
You read the title and now you probably fall into one of two groups – one group of people who are thinking, “Finally! Yes!” Or another group that thinks, “Nick Stevens has officially lost his mind. If that happens, I’m out.”
NIL – the ability for college athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness – was legalized dramatically, suddenly, overnight about a year ago. The rules of amateurism were in effect one day, and the next day they were completely gone. This has created a lot of anger about what this means for the future of college sports, leaving many questions unanswered. It created doubt and uncertainty, things we humans don’t like.
It also created the two groups of people I mentioned in the first sentence — those who are radically in favor of it, and those who think it’s the worst thing to ever happen to college sports.
We’ve learned a lot in the past year, and like most things in life, there’s good and bad. But one thing is not up for debate – college athletes have never had the opportunity to capitalize on their hard work, skills, social media following and fame like they do today, and the sun has risen every day since NIL became legal. You can decide whether it is a good thing or not, but most athletes believe that it can benefit them, and now they see it not as a luxury, but as a right.
And that’s why it’s only a matter of time before it becomes a reality for high school students. As far as the NCAA is concerned, amateurism is gone. The only thing keeping amateurism at the high school level are the rules (and some laws) in individual states and the strongly worded pronouncements of the National Federation of State High School Associations, which have no real enforcement ability. But the restrictions in the states have begun to disappear – and it has happened at a much faster pace and in a more varied way than many probably expected a year ago.
In July 2021, NFHS came out in a press conference and said that the US Supreme Court NIL decisions do not change the high school rules.
As of last month, less than a year after the Supreme Court case was decided and legalized the NIL for college athletes, nine states have decided to allow high school athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness. Some of the largest states are on the list, such as California and New York, but there are also smaller states, such as Alaska, which ranks 48th in terms of the total number of high school students in the country. There are East Coast states that have implemented it, such as New Jersey, and there are plains states that have chosen to allow NIL, such as Kansas and Nebraska. Red states like Utah and blue states like Colorado now allow NIL in high school athletics. Louisiana is the lone Gulf Coast state to grant NIL for high school students.
You can be against it. You’d think that would ruin high school sports. You can say that high school sports will become more about the money and less about the game. And you might be right. But it’s coming. And we have two options – accept it and implement it in a responsible, fair and controlled manner, or wait for it to be forced upon us and turn it into the wild west, which the NCAA has done.
Personally, I don’t think the NCAA is a model I want to follow much.
However, this is where people make a mistake. Not necessarily in an NCAA way or not at all. Every time you get stuck in an either-or scenario, you’re probably missing better solutions.
Let’s talk about some of the benefits of doing this under our conditions in North Carolina. If we are proactive and don’t wait to react, we can create responsible policy and transparency around NIL, and we can create financial responsibility education for high school students, something that will serve them well for the rest of their lives. And high school sports are supposed to teach life lessons, right?
State — either the state government or the N.C. High School Athletic Association. — could create a clearinghouse for NIL trades to ensure transparency and accurate reporting. The NCHSAA could apply extremely harsh penalties to coaches or schools that violate the rules by trying to pay athletes to play at their school, penalties such as a lifetime ban from coaching. There could be taxes on NIL payouts from for-profit companies, similar to payroll taxes. Except for perhaps the most elite of elite athletes, we’re probably not talking about large sums of money.
The high school version of the NIL does not have to be like the college version of the NIL. The state board of education, which sets some of the eligibility requirements for participation, may have a separate set of requirements for athletes to be eligible to receive NIL payments. Athletes could be required to take a financial literacy class, they could be required to maintain a certain GPA or meet attendance requirements. There are ways to preserve the importance of the educational side of interscholastic athletics while allowing high school athletes to benefit from the hard work they put into their sport, something that often limits their ability to hold part-time jobs.
Allowing North Carolina high school athletes to benefit from the NIL will also help get more kids involved in high school sports in our state, and participation is a growing concern for high school sports. As more and more states legalize NIL, you will see some of the top athletes transfer to schools in those states. Athletes don’t know how long they have to play sports, so they might as well make the most of it while they can. It could also be a means for high schools to reassert themselves in the ongoing tug-of-war with club sports. Sure, you might get more exposure in club sports, and club sports certainly have their place in athletes’ lives, but unless you’re one of the top players, there probably aren’t many NIL opportunities for you in club sports. But if you’re a star point guard in your small town’s high school, there are probably some local stores and restaurants that will give you some cash to help promote your business.
There are people who will adamantly say that NIL has no place in high school sports. I think these people are in denial, trapped in the old period of sports – a period that has passed and is not coming back.
During an episode of “The T.J. Thorpe Show,” Thorpe interviewed Cardinal Gibbons High School quarterback Connor Clark. He’s a college prospect as a quarterback, but during the pandemic, he and his younger brother started a company from scratch to make copper-infused face masks. They did about a quarter of the business and made so much money that they were able to pay Cardinal Gibbons’ tuition themselves, set aside money for college for themselves and their younger sister, donate $25,000 to a local hospital, and more. It is (rightly) celebrated. But if a restaurant down the road wanted to pay him $100 to post a photo of his favorite meal on Instagram, he’d be fined and convicted, simply because it was related to his football skills.
We need to step back and ask ourselves this question: “So what?” Why is it important for a child to earn some money for being good at sports? What is the purpose behind it?
It was when I was editing that particular episode of “The T.J. Thorpe Show” that my view of the NIL for high school athletes began to change. Would we punish a marching band member making money at a Saturday night band gig? Of course not. Why should it be any different for high school students? What about high school students who are interested in the media and help us with “HighSchoolOT Live” on Friday nights? We pay them. That’s not a problem. But if we wanted the No. 1 running back stateside to shoot a commercial for us, we couldn’t pay him to do it. Why?
We can pretend high school sports will never change, but they do. They have been changing for a long time. NIL is coming. It might be here next year, it might be here in 10 years, but it’s coming. We can accept it now and be on the front lines of change, giving ourselves the opportunity to shape the future of high school sports and help students embrace NIL responsibly, or we can continue to say it won’t happen until it’s finally forced upon us. Then we are stuck with what we have.
What are the rules for nil?
NIL is the ability of college athletes to monetize their "name, image and likeness" It was launched in July of last year after the Supreme Court inflicted a huge loss on the NCAA. The NCAA has long argued that, as amateur athletes, players cannot make money from things like jersey sales and autographs.
What is a null agreement? A NIL agreement is essentially a contract set up for a student-athlete to earn fair compensation for their time and effort. To market their likeness. See the article : As grocery prices soar, NY boosts food aid for the needy. A NIL agreement can also be an approval agreement at a local or national level.
Is there a limit on nil money?
In the NCAA decision, the Supreme Court ruled that the NCAA cannot set a cap on NIL money. For the rights to his name/image/image, the athlete can earn whatever the market offers. Who would have guessed that the market would bear so quickly? (Just everyone.
What are the new nil rules?
Under current NCAA rules, NIL does not mean pay-to-play, meaning boosters cannot legally agree to pay money for a specific recruit/transfer to commit to a school for money or a guaranteed NIL contract. See the article : FSU College of Business receives $ 10M to establish Dr. Persis E. Rockwood School of Marketing. Under the new ruling, schools with boosters who communicated with players prior to their commitment will be sanctioned.
What percent of high school athletes play in the NCAA?
Overall, just over 7% of high school athletes (about 1 in 13) go on to play varsity sports in college, and less than 2% of high school athletes (1 in 57) go on to play at NCAA Division I schools. To see also : Pitt State All American was previously nominated for the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame.
How many student athletes are there in the NCAA? Nearly half a million NCAA student-athletes – more than ever before – compete in 24 sports each year.
What percent of high school football players play in college?
There are 1,093,234 high school football players in the United States, and 6.5% of those high school players (or 71,060) will play in college. The drop-off from college to the pros is even more dramatic: only 1.2% of players at the college level will be drafted into the NFL.
What percentage of college students are NCAA athletes?
Overall, 14.8 percent reported participating in intercollegiate athletics.
Does Virginia have an Nil law?
Last month, the Senate unanimously passed the bill. Now it goes to Governor Glenn Youngkin. At least 40 states have passed or drafted NIL laws, and Virginia’s law would make its colleges more competitive in recruiting high-profile athletes, Del said.
Which countries have zero law?
What is NIL?
What is NIL? NIL is the ability of college athletes to monetize their “name, image and likeness.” It was launched in July of last year after the Supreme Court inflicted a huge loss on the NCAA.
How many states have passed the nil law?
Currently, six have passed NIL laws at the state level (California, Florida, Colorado, Nebraska, New Jersey, and Michigan).
Who passed the nil?
In the fall of 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the ‘Fair Pay to Play Act’ into law creating a domino effect of subsequent state laws and proposals.
What’s the safest sport?
OVERALL FINAL RESULTS. Analysis: Boys and girls tennis emerged as the safest sport, with very few total injuries, concussions, lost time due to injuries, surgeries, and catastrophic injuries. Not surprisingly, several contact sports (soccer, boys and girls lacrosse, wrestling) scored near the bottom.
Which sports have the fewest injuries? The sports with the lowest training injury rates were men’s ice hockey (2.0 per 1000 A-E), women’s ice hockey (2.5 per 1000 A-E), and men’s baseball (1.9 per 1000 A-E).
Which is the safest sport in the world?
Top 10 safest sports in the world, ranked
- Running – a solo sport.
- Volleyball – especially safe on sand. …
- Cycling is an excellent cardio sport. …
- Baseball – a popular bat and ball game. …
- Swimming – a safe school sport. …
- Tennis – a game with a racket. …
- Football – the most popular sport in the world. …
- Basketball – the world’s ball game. …
