Tales From The NIL - Florida QB Commit Wants Out - Show Me The $
Apparently, after a bidding war with Miami, and after the kid has signed the LOI, the NIL Collective at Florida is coming up short of the $13m promised. No way do I want Michigan to ever engage this process of pay for play. I'd rather go 7-5 every year!
https://www.yahoo.com/news/blame-florida-gators-jaden-rashada-194300918.html
January 14th, 2023 at 2:09 PM ^
Username 100% checks out!
January 14th, 2023 at 2:10 PM ^
Agreed. 13M for a kid who hasn’t played a down of CFB is an egregious waste of money. These collectives should switch gears and build low-income housing instead.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:16 PM ^
Texas A&M #HoldMyBeer
January 14th, 2023 at 2:27 PM ^
The market will regulate itself over time, there will be enough 4 & 5 star kids that get paid huge sums that will be huge "busts" for one reason or another. Once that happens these "Collectives" will dial back the money being offered realizing they can't afford those amounts every year when the bust rate going from HS to College is so high
January 14th, 2023 at 2:50 PM ^
Or it won’t, because this is just disposable money for the high rollers who fund these collectives. And they want to win.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:58 PM ^
Agreed. It's ego.
Random billionaire booster...
$50,000,000 which I won't know is missing in order to...
Get a huge ego boost by buying a great football team at Enormous State University.
As the man says...it disposable money for high rollers.
January 14th, 2023 at 4:19 PM ^
There are approximately 735 billionaires in the US and apparently 10,000 with more than $100 million.
https://www.forbes.com/billionaires/
The number of people who have millions to throw at NIL every year is just not that big. The number who wouldn’t miss $50 million is even smaller.
January 14th, 2023 at 5:53 PM ^
I used to work at a jet charter/management company that catered to rich people.
Most of the rich people I've encountered there would bend over to pick up a penny.
January 14th, 2023 at 5:03 PM ^
I mean, $50M for a person that has $1B (presumably liquid) is 5% of their net worth. A semi-average middle aged person that has worked and saved his/her whole life might have $1M in liquid assets. I think that person would be really hesitant to part with 5% of it ($50K) on something that has a decent likelihood of zero ROI.
January 14th, 2023 at 6:18 PM ^
$50 million is “get your name on a school of the University” money, not “get four 18 year olds to commit to play maybe 2 years for the football team” money. No way that’s sustainable.
January 15th, 2023 at 11:20 AM ^
It's not. And it's every year, not just one big bang
January 14th, 2023 at 3:14 PM ^
Except most people, even billionaires don’t enjoy wasting money. If they aren’t getting a good return on investment because these kids transfer, this process will end. This is just bad for college athletics and the athletes. All of this entitlement before they have done anything is just reinforcing immature behavior and that money is the only thing that matters.
January 14th, 2023 at 3:27 PM ^
Exactly. I’ve always found it amusing that people think the uber-rich somehow achieved extreme wealth by NOT caring about how their money is spent.
Trust me, if there’s one demographic that will demand a solid ROI on NIL monies invested it will be those guys.
January 14th, 2023 at 3:41 PM ^
As for the vast majority of them, I agree.
For some with inflated egos*, though....FOOTBAWLLLLLLL!!!
*Think Musk but substitute Texasss A&M for his little tweety-bird toy.
January 14th, 2023 at 5:20 PM ^
Can't agree more. Only met one billionaire in my life when he was taking out my colleagues and me who worked with his daughter (he didn't believe in his kids not working for their own income). I drove one car and he picked up others...we then sat at the Bombay Club in downtown DC for another 25 minute until his group showed up. My colleague told me later that he refused to pay for parking so they were circling around waiting for a free spot.
That said, these boosters are getting something they value out of the deal...its about access to the U and VIP treatment.
January 14th, 2023 at 7:27 PM ^
Some of them won't tip more than 18%, won't drive an exotic car, won't wear a flashy watch, and will only fly corporate jets that are "time shared", not owned - for the sake of privacy and to avoid harassment.
They're humans who just happen to have business plans/ideas go right in a big way.
January 14th, 2023 at 5:55 PM ^
Money is the only thing the uber-rich think about.
January 14th, 2023 at 6:49 PM ^
Not true. They have egos, big ones.
January 14th, 2023 at 6:24 PM ^
Even if they do have $50 million to throw at college football, I’m guessing the smart ones would just endow an NIL collective and pay a few guys a year much more reasonable numbers off the investment income - that buys you VIP access for a lifetime.
January 14th, 2023 at 4:14 PM ^
It’s all greed. It’s quickly becoming a house of cards that one day could easily implode I think it’s sad what college football is quickly becoming
January 14th, 2023 at 4:58 PM ^
Football has already been like this since, at least, the 80s. SMU wasn't the only program throwing tons of money at players.
January 15th, 2023 at 11:23 AM ^
They were buying kids nice cars. Not estates. There is a certain amount of money that become unsustainable considering you need to do it every year.
January 14th, 2023 at 5:48 PM ^
I could see this becoming an addition to sports betting for the really rich. While I don't think it will replace betting on games, I do think it will let someone feel like they have some measure of control over the outcome of a game if they're "sponsoring" specific players. That's "my guy."
January 14th, 2023 at 2:53 PM ^
This is correct, but the mistake is to assume what the long term market clearing rate is
Might be $20 or $30M in 2025, who knows, and a handful of schools may rise above the rest with willingness to pay
Imagine if t Boone Pickens were still alive
January 14th, 2023 at 3:21 PM ^
The market "should" regulate itself. But when emotion is involved people do irrational things. Like giving a 17 year old 13 million dollars with a zero percent chance of getting any comparable return on that investment.
Once you get to the point where money no longer matters, for some, it's all about status and they will do anything to be able to claim they are better. All it takes is a small handful of ultra wealthy people to fully believe that it increases their status among the very small group of the ultra wealthy. To think it will regulate itself is naïve. These people buy homes less than 10 years old for millions of dollars just to tear them down and build a new one. It's all about status.
January 14th, 2023 at 6:26 PM ^
I mean, the problem is precisely that they couldn’t actually make $13 million happen despite being willing to promise that much. So clearly “willing” and “able” have yet to come together yet, at least for those kind of numbers. 10% of that value I might believe.
January 14th, 2023 at 3:34 PM ^
this will be a compelling case study of where the kid is going to be in the next five years.
18 year old being given that kind of money can't be healthy.
January 14th, 2023 at 4:02 PM ^
Zero percent chance that the $13M number is true. This story has so many holes in it. Take a few zeros away.
January 14th, 2023 at 5:09 PM ^
Our priorities are pretty, pretty, pretty fucked. And what's worse, is I feel torn. To really compete, Michigan will need to play this game to some degree. Do we really want this?
January 14th, 2023 at 5:19 PM ^
Let’s assume this money wasn’t ever going to be used for anything altruistic. I’m much happier that a player got this money than the athletic department. Generations of players got fucked over to fund the college athletic departments arms race and coach and administration salary bloat. It’s about time life changing amounts of money flowed to the players
January 14th, 2023 at 6:28 PM ^
Every penny of this that would have otherwise ended up in the pocket of a Nick Saban or Jim Delaney is a blessing.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:17 PM ^
How bad does Jimbo Fisher have to be then? His team engaged in that style pay for play AND went 5-7.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:52 PM ^
Speed, I love how Jimbo coaches and recruits. I also greatly appreciate what Ryan Day has done in Columbus the last two seasons.
January 14th, 2023 at 3:22 PM ^
A roster of entitled 18 year old millionaires who have been told how great they are, not being able to work together or be coachable. Hmm….yes I wonder what it could be.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:17 PM ^
100% of people who bitch about pay for play are the types who love talking about the "hand of the free market". Guess what the market is telling this kid right now? He ain't worth 13 milly.
In a situation where there's no salary cap, michigan should be figuring out ways to get as much money as possible to players. We'd have as much talent as Bama, OSU, and Georgia.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:22 PM ^
I believe in the free market and you are absolutely correct.
I do find it funny that those who love state intervention suddenly support free market solutions like NIL.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:33 PM ^
NIL is not free market, it's (an ostensibly) regulated framework in which players can earn money for non-football activities. True pay-for-play could/would be closer to free market. Some teams treat NIL (and some fans understand NIL) as pay-for-play, but that's not what it is.
Also, most people love state intervention. They just like different kinds. And some people like to claim they don't for some reason
January 14th, 2023 at 2:39 PM ^
In real terms it is loosely regulated which makes it closer to a true free market than not.
Also, people love/hate state intervention. They love it when it benefits them. They hate it when it harms them. Some people love to claim that people love it when in fact people have complicated feelings towards the state.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:53 PM ^
There's no such thing as a free market. All kinds of forces and actors influence markets in various ways, and any economic actor will attempt to manipulate the market as much as they can.
I just want players (the workers of college football) to get the money that their labor creates.
January 14th, 2023 at 3:05 PM ^
There is no such thing as free society or indeed, humans. All kinds of forces and actors influence the behavior of humans. Humans will respond to and often try to manipulate forces and actors to their own advantage. Not even animals are free. They live under the constraints of the natural world.
So if we are being honest freedom is but an illusion.
January 14th, 2023 at 3:51 PM ^
'Someday soon we'll stop to ponder what on earth's this spell we're under
We made the grade and still we wonder who the hell we are'
January 14th, 2023 at 2:51 PM ^
No politics guys!
But economics might not qualify as politics. 100% free markets bring you stuff like Fraud, sharecropping and slavery. Communism brings you stuff like Gulags and Cuba.
We live in a mixed economy where you need regulation, but you don't want so much that it strangles innovation. The big issue is how much is too much and how much is too little. It is a hard question, with many valid opinions but the goal is a stable business environment where people know the rules and the rule breakers are held accountable. Some people are on the extremes because they are anchoring and some are on the extremes because they are idiots. (What do we want?! MODERATION! When do we want it? When the markets and slowly deliberated regulations slowly work their way there!)
This is the problem with the NCAA. The old system was messed up. Some players got an education and room and board while others got some mad cash (and probably little education). There was a system but most people broke the rules. Now NIL is the wild west and good luck regulating it.
Last self-indulgent point. FLA QB is getting $13 Million and Harbaugh is getting flack for a $10 hamburger? F the NCAA. What kind of regulation is that? The fact that someone even wrote that up is preposterous in the current environment.
January 14th, 2023 at 4:59 PM ^
Yes, when we speak of regulation, the question is who is going to regulate? Who watches the watchers?
I think we've all had enough of the NCAA, who have proven to favor some and disfavor others. I have no answer other than to abolish the NCAA and create a new oversight board built from the ground-up to acknowledge the new environment and regulate fairly.
January 14th, 2023 at 5:12 PM ^
Hear, hear!
January 14th, 2023 at 6:57 PM ^
Calling it NIL is a farce in two different ways.
1. It is pay for play no matter how you slice it. You dont play nobody is paying you.
2. Are we ever going to address the elephant in the room? NIL is exactly the reason they should be paid at least a base salary (or compensation as non employees if that is better)from the schools. The schools are making $100 million plus off their NIL trhough tv deals. Its crazy that the one thing that is outlawed is the biggest NIL they should be profiting off of. I watched 800 commercials to see our players on the field effing pay them they are the stars.
January 14th, 2023 at 7:40 PM ^
I think there are in fact multiple things going on.
1. NIL allows players to monetize social media - get lots of followers and get paid for advertising on your social media channel. This is a way that we could all increase revenue for Michigan athletes without actually spending any money. More followers/views equals more opportunities to make money.
- https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2022/02/17/Marketing-and-Sponsorship/NIL-data.aspx
- https://www.rookieroad.com/football/top-10-highest-paid-college-football-players-5615260/
2. Being paid to attend events that people pay to go to, autograph signings etc. if you want to spend a little bit of money, an easy way to contribute. Ann Arbor NIL club does this virtually. Also being done at different scales with, for instance, this event in Traverse City - https://www.on3.com/teams/michigan-wolverines/news/michigan-wolverines-football-nil-j-j-mccarthy-ronnie-bell-ryan-hayes-grand-traverse/
3. Sales of actual merchandise - jerseys etc.
4. What is more akin to pay for play - collectives or individuals funneling larger amounts towards top players. What has always been going on, but somewhat more above board now. Here I think there still needs to be at least a nominal nod towards use of name, image or likeness, but it is still largely pay for play.
We tend to focus the most on #4, but it is clear players are taking significant advantage of numbers 1 through 3 as well.
https://www.rookieroad.com/football/top-10-highest-paid-college-football-players-5615260/ - this suggests how valuable it is for us to follow players on social media
Having read some of the articles I have linked, I will definitely be following additional players on twitter, but am also wondering if there are platforms that would be more valuable.
January 14th, 2023 at 3:14 PM ^
Exactly. It’s because of who is getting paid. These types have no issue with coaches getting paid eight figures and assistants getting paid seven. The value is in the players. Look at officially professional leagues. Players command more because they are worth more. College coaches are paid insane amounts because they bring in the talent.
A good bot of these types follow college basketball rather than pro because pro players don’t “play for the love of the game” or “they’re too flashy”. We know what it’s really about. You don’t see them up in arms over career CEO’s or hedge fund managers. Look at Dave Brandon. He is what he is. He wasn’t any different here than he was at toys r us. He’s a typical CEO. He’s not some Uber talented mind that brings value to companies.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:17 PM ^
Any way you look at it, NIL is a great reason to prefer coaching in the NFL. Having to negotiate million dollar deals with high school kids sounds as enjoyable as a root canal, but refusing to do it may soon foreclose any chance at getting the best players. Enjoy next season. After that, the ship sails into uncharted waters.
January 14th, 2023 at 2:27 PM ^
We are already in uncharted waters. I suspect that there will be limits(de facto if not de jure) soon placed on NIL. The boom or bust nature of high school/college athletes will cause boosters to limit their donations. Spending millions annually for high school/college athletes isn’t really sustainable long term.