Long Live NIL

The NCAA was finally dealt a blow when the NIL bill was passed. For those that do not know, the NIL means that college athletes can now profit off of their Name, Image and Likeness. This is a big, big deal. As soon as it was passed, at midnight on Thursday, players already started to sign deals with random social media companies.

When I was younger I was of the belief that a scholarship was enough for student athletes. I figured getting your college paid for was more than enough. Then I got older and a little bit smarter. I remember my first breakaway from thinking a scholarship was enough was seeing how Chris Webber, and the rest of the Fab Five, were not even able to eat at a McDonald's, but other people, myself included, were wearing jerseys and shirts with their name, face and number on it. That didn't seem right to me. I was 12 and 13 years old at the time. The older I got the more I said that these kids deserved more than just a scholarship. I go to college football and basketball games and see these kids' faces everywhere. They are on the program, adults are wearing their jerseys, their faces are plastered on t-shirts, there are posters of them everywhere you look. Their faces are everywhere and the only people profiting are the coaches and the university. The schools and the NCAA are clearly taking advantage of the term "student athlete". They have looked away and hid their face in the mud for so long that this seemed like it was going to happen eventually. I'm glad it is happening now.

Just look at recent players who have been stripped of awards and games won. Reggie Bush was on Twitter instantly when this passed, and he is right. Give that man his Heisman back. He did nothing wrong at all. Or what about the University of Ohio State tattoo thing. I despise that school and their football team, but that whole "scandal" was ridiculous. Let these kids get a goddamn tattoo in exchange for some game worn stuff. Who cares? Even outside the "scandalous" stuff, just think about the money some of these colleges have made off these kids. Players I do not like, like Johnny Manziel or Tim Tebow, how much money do you think Texas A&M and Florida made off of their image and likeness? Millions of dollars? Maybe billions? I think so. Michigan put Denard Robinson on EVERYTHING when he was their QB, and they were not very good, save for one season. But I saw so many people with t-shirts with his face or wearing his number 16 jersey. Michigan made a ton off of his likeness. Alabama has made a fortune off of Mark Ingram, Devonta Smith, Tua and so many other NFL players that played their college football there. Clemson probably made money hand over fist the last three years just off of Trevor Lawrence's face. Even a smaller school like UCF probably made millions when Mackenzie Milton was their QB and they were going undefeated. It's the same in college basketball. Just think of the money that Duke, UNC, Kentucky and Michigan State have made off of their one and done guys. Hell, look no further than the Duke-UNC game a few years back that featured Zion. People were not paying 10,000 dollars a ticket to see Duke, they were paying that to see Zion. Former president, and one of my favorite people ever, Barack Obama was at that game, and I assure you he wasn't there because of the rivalry. He was there to see Zion. Zion deserves every penny he may or may not have gotten during his six months at Duke. As do every other college athlete that was not seeing a dime but the school was making a fortune during their time on campus.

This NIL rule is a great, great thing for college sports and college athletes. These kids deserve more than just a scholarship. It is about time they are able to make money off their likeness. This has been a long time coming, but I am glad it is finally here. I haven't understood since I was 13 why these athletes couldn't even get a job but every other student could. Now they have an outlet to make money so they can live a comfortable life on campus. This is a big deal and a big win for student athletes everywhere. Congrats.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.