re: Are NIL deals structured like common employment agreements?

quote:

---

How’s that work

---

Because you are paying for use of the athlete's Name, Image, and/or Likeness, which they personally own regardless of where they play ball (or it they play at all)...not their performance. A contract in exchange for specific performance is akin to an employment contract. Which is unauthorized in college sports. The players aren't "employees."

For example, if you (car dealership owner) signs a player to a contract that allows you to use the player's NIL to promote your business, that player still owns his NIL whether he plays for LSU, Alabama, Texas, USC, etc. So if you are locked into, say, a 3 year contract with the player and he decides to transfer to a different school they dealership owner would still be obligated to abide by the contract even though the player is no longer at the dealer's preferred school. But if you put in terms that ties the contract to the player playing for a specific school, it could be looked upon as an unauthorized "pay for play" contract. That's why most NIL deals are very short in duration (6 months to 1 year). No one wants to be forced to pay a guy who transferred and is now playing for your rival school.

Now, we all know in practice it is a pay-for-play agreement. But the terms of the contract can't be structured as such. Why? Because college players aren't, and can't be "employees"

quote:

---

NIL deals you receive, how much money you get,


Capitalism disagrees

---

And so does the Supreme Court.

quote:

---

It’s cute you think it works like that.

---

that's exactly how it works.

players signs a contract with whatever NIL company.
which is a legally binding document.

and nowhere in that document can the deal be tied to what school the player attends, how much playing time he gets, grades, stats, etc.

so when Quinn Ewers (just as an example off the top of my head) signed that NIL deal for over $1mil to go to Ohio State, that deal followed him to Texas when he transferred. And he's still getting paid by them.
Because that contract cannot legally tie him to any one university.

the "out" clause is that most NIL deals require the kid to meat certain criteria (autograph sessions, commercials, etc.).
as long as he meets those requirements, he gets his money.
even if he transfers to the most hated rival of whatever school he initially signed with.


there is nothing a school can do legally to prevent it.

quote:

---

that's exactly how it works.

players signs a contract with whatever NIL company.
which is a legally binding document.

and nowhere in that document can the deal be tied to what school the player attends, how much playing time he gets, grades, stats, etc.

so when Quinn Ewers (just as an example off the top of my head) signed that NIL deal for over $1mil to go to Ohio State, that deal followed him to Texas when he transferred. And he's still getting paid by them.
Because that contract cannot legally tie him to any one university.

the "out" clause is that most NIL deals require the kid to meat certain criteria (autograph sessions, commercials, etc.).
as long as he meets those requirements, he gets his money.
even if he transfers to the most hated rival of whatever school he initially signed with.


there is nothing a school can do legally to prevent it.

---

Not anymore. That Quinn Ewers deal was done before most collectives even existed.

You're extremely naive if you think that's how it works for most DI FB and MBB athletes today.

quote:

---

Based on academic eligibility… not so easy with some of these guys

---

That's always been the case with transfers.

But because of APR, schools have an incentive to make sure even their portal-bound players are academically eligible at their next stops.

quote:

---

You're extremely naive if you think that's how it works for most DI FB and MBB athletes today.

---

dude, it's literally written into the NIL rule.

quote:

---

An NIL agreement between a PSA and a booster/NIL entity may not be guaranteed or promised contingent on initial or continuing enrollment at a particular institution.

---

quote:

---

NIL agreements must be based on an independent, case-by-case analysis of the value that each athlete brings to an NIL agreement as opposed to providing compensation or incentives for enrollment decisions (e.g., signing a letter of intent or transferring), athletic performance (e.g., points scored, minutes played, winning a contest), achievement (e.g., starting position, award winner) or membership on a team.

---

that part of the rule has not changed.

nowhere in your contract with your NIL deal can there be anything requiring you to sign with or stay at a specific school, or even being on the team at a specific school.

quote:

---

Are NIL deals structured like common employment agreements?

---

quote:

---

It’s hurting the sport and will continue to do so.

---

Yes it is. This thread really gave me no faith that things will ever get better so why I've moved on from the one sport entertainment love I had. Sad really.

And gave me more reason to continue to not support canes. Chicken strip shrinkflation, trashy face tatted post Malone ads, and now knowing they are a part of destroying the sport.

quote:

---

I’ve always thought they are structured around the transfer windows. If it’s a 1M/yr deal, then maybe it’s set up as a $333k deal 3x a year. I think that’s how Gordon structures his at least. That way he’s not still paying someone like Logan Diggs who is at Ole Miss now.

---

Best way to do it.

A 5* or 4* player will have national appeal and it doesn't matter where they go.

Everyone else is valuable only because of where they play.

quote:

---

randomly grabbed 6 states in the SEC footprint

---

what the hell, Let's do the rest of the SEC

Mississippi - NIL Law

quote:

---

No postsecondary educational institution, booster, third-party licensee or any other individual or entity shall provide a prospective or current student-athlete compensation or enter into a name, image and likeness agreement as an inducement for the student-athlete to attend or enroll in a specific institution or group of institutions. Compensation for a student-athlete’s name, image, or likeness may not be conditioned on athletic performance or attendance at a particular postsecondary educational institution.

---

Against State law to tie the deal to attendance at a particular school

Oklahoma
Oklahoma - NIL

quote:

---

A student athlete shall not earn compensation in exchange for his or her athletic performance or participation in intercollegiate athletics or sports competition. Compensation shall not be provided as an inducement for athletic performance or to attend or enroll at a particular institution.

---

NIL cannot be tied to a particular school

Arkansas
Arkansas - NIL Law

quote:

---

A student-athlete may rescind a publicity rights contract with a third-party licensee or a contract for professional representation related to publicity rights without being held liable for breach of contract and with no obligation to return payments received before giving notice of rescission if the student-athlete is no longer:
Enrolled at an institution of higher education;
Eligible to engage in any varsity intercollegiate athletics program at an institution of higher education; or
Participating in varsity intercollegiate athletics at an institution of higher education.

---

Worded differently, but once again no NIL contract can bind the student to any particular school.


Missouri
Missouri - NIL Law

Missouri's law does not specifically mention anything allowing or forbidding NIL being tied to one specific school

Kentucky
Kentucky - NIL LAW

quote:

---

A student-athlete may receive compensation for the use of the athlete’s name, image, or likeness through a name, image, and likeness agreement with a third party. Such compensation shall be consistent with prevailing market rate of the authorized use of the athlete’s name, image, or likeness.
A person or entity shall not give or promise compensation for the use of the name, image, or likeness of a current or prospective student-athlete to recruit or induce the athlete to enroll at any Kentucky institution.

---

against state law to tie NIL to enrolling at any particular school


South Carolina
South Carolina - NIL Law

quote:

---

Activities related to an intercollegiate athlete’s use of his name, image, or likeness for compensation cannot be contingent on a prospective intercollegiate athlete’s enrollment at a particular institution of higher learning or its athletic conference and cannot otherwise be used as an inducement by an institution of higher learning or a booster.

---

against state law there too.

quote:

---

No one really knows what NIL contracts look like, except for the collectives and the players.

---

And the government?