N.I.L.: Good or Bad?

[justgladtobehere]

Who's to say there won't be a union in college football or basketball? I never thought we'd see what we're seeing now.

I'm just pointing out that unions most likely would be a prerequisite.

Would this draft bind kids to schools?

 

[doctorquant]

My old boss at the Herald, Bob Sales, used to say schools should make jocks like "quarterbacks in residence" the way they have artists, poets and playwrights in residence. That'd work. You're not quite an employee, but the school pays you directly.

The esteemed Mr. Sales is/was confused about those folks' status ... they are employees, period.

EDIT: I'm sure someone can dig up an exception or two -- Matt McConaughey comes to mind -- but they're decidedly the exception.

 

[dixiehack]

Who's to say there won't be a union in college football or basketball? I never thought we'd see what we're seeing now.

The sport would be in better shape if it was unionized. Then the needed guardrails could be collectively bargained.

 

[Batman]

There are 130 FBS teams. How would you even begin to organize a high school draft in a way that was presumed to be fair to every team? Even if you just take the power conference schools it's still twice as many teams as the NFL.
Or how do you make it fair to players who really do want to stay close to home and play for an in-state school?
"Sorry, Mr. Three-star Offensive Guard from Raleigh. I know three generations of your family went to North Carolina State, and you wanted to play there and they wanted you to play there, but Utah State took a flyer on you in the 84th round of the draft. Whaddya gonna do, you know? Now pack up your shit and fly across the country for spring practice."

 

[PCLoadLetter]

Here's my idea: every school gets a magic goose that lays golden eggs, and those eggs are given to the players, one per season.

Ridiculous? Of course. But it's more likely than creating a goddamn draft of high school players.

 

[Baron Scicluna]

There are 130 FBS teams. How would you even begin to organize a high school draft in a way that was presumed to be fair to every team? Even if you just take the power conference schools it's still twice as many teams as the NFL.
Or how do you make it fair to players who really do want to stay close to home and play for an in-state school?
"Sorry, Mr. Three-star Offensive Guard from Raleigh. I know three generations of your family went to North Carolina State, and you wanted to play there and they wanted you to play there, but Utah State took a flyer on you in the 84th round of the draft. Whaddya gonna do, you know? Now pack up your shit and fly across the country for spring practice."

Or suppose a kid wants to study in a particular major and the school that drafts him doesn't offer that major? Is the kid just shit out of luck?

That's what's silly about the discussion of policing college athletics. If anything is going to kill college athletics, it's going to be the loss of regional rivalries with the constant conference hopping and these super-conferences. Not that players are getting NIL. But the politicians, schools and NCAA don't want to talk about that.

 

[tapintoamerica]

One thing the transfers thing (along with the post-COVID regime re: eligibility) has done for me is underpin my conviction that the "EXPLOITED ATHLETES" narrative is a crock. There are athletes whose marginal product is significantly greater than the cost of the aid package they receive, but those are a vanishingly small minority.

Agreed.
I wonder how the exploited will like it when they win the right to be treated as employees and then get fired for a substandard season. Or even a substandard week.
Caveat emptor, folks.

 

[LanceyHoward]

Or suppose a kid wants to study in a particular major and the school that drafts him doesn't offer that major? Is the kid just shit out of luck?

I think your point is valid about a draft. But a salary cap could be negotiated wit a union. I think that would be workable. It might even be done by conference. The Big 10 and the MAC could have have different caps.

 

[BYH 2: Electric Boogaloo]

I'm glad the athletes are getting some power. It's been a one-way street for far too long. But I do worry it's going to crush the mid-majors, who are finding it increasingly impossible to build programs. And it's absolutely turned college sports into a yearly fantasy draft. Hey my team had a good couple months in the portal! We might be OK this year! Or...my team lost everyone in the portal and loaded up on $1 fliers. We're fucked. As noted, all of this could have been avoided with a little foresight by the NCAA, but that would require infinitely more foresight than the NCAA's ever possessed in its entire pathetic existence.

 

[Baron Scicluna]

Agreed.
I wonder how the exploited will like it when they win the right to be treated as employees and then get fired for a substandard season. Or even a substandard week.
Caveat emptor, folks.

That's already happened for decades. Ever hear of a player getting cut from a team? Or "run off" by the coach?

 

[Alma]

I'm glad the athletes are getting some power.

A few athletes are getting power - the Caitlin Clarks, Angel Reeses, etc. That's a good thing.

Most of the CFB and MBB players getting money have little power, honestly. Money - not much power. The collectives have the power.

Most of the money isn't really NIL. It's a legalized form of the duffel bag of cash. And the athletes didn't have power in 1987, 1997, 2007 or 2017 under that system.

Power, actually, is the free education. The ability to go to school and get a earning-power multiplier degree. But instead of investing more deeply in that - and really developing student-athletes in money-generating majors - many (not all!) end up with degrees that qualify them for $40,000 social work jobs.

 

[Neutral Corner]

$40k social work jobs pretty much require a masters degree to get in the door.