It’s become the Wild West of pro sports.
Illinois Football Recruiting Thread
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Your pointing blame the wrong way, I think. All the money driving sports off a cliff, or to Saudi Arabia, are from the TV contracts, not the price of tickets. Ironically, the value of tv advertising is dropping like a stone, just while tv broadcast contracts have exploded in price...this can't last too many more cycles. I think the B1G was smart to maintain a diverse array of short term contracts for broadcast rights. It's too early to tell who the real winners will be (i.e. networks, streamers, or in the long term... just the Saudis?), and as things settle out, Josh and the Conference will be aiming to ride the steepest growth curves the longest...so picking the winners is important.
And this impacts recruits. Kids (and their parents) know where the money flows, and that being P4 is the quickest gateway to payday. And I really can't blame any kid who makes the grab, and finishes college with a million or more in the bank. In an era where kids are drowinging under student debt, the fact that some kids get to 'beat the system' and come out ahead, is nothing I'll hold a grudge against. If I'd have had the chance when I was a kid, I would have done it. And blown it all and been in bankruptcy before I turned 30. But that's just me...I needed some hard lessons, and got them.
The magnitude of the money has exploded. I doubt anybody player ever received anything remotely resembling $2m per year under the table. It’s bad enough some stay in the NCAA minor league for their final year of eligibility instead of declaring for the draft because the NFL would mean a pay cut.
See, you say “bad enough”, and I say “the way it should be”.
Get paid what you can now. Especially in sports. Your body doesn’t last forever.
It is just like Illini fans to mad about the state of college football when we are finally GOOD, have a GREAT head coach, a GREAT Athletic Director, and a PROMISING FUTURE.
"Let's go back to the way it was when we sucked," should be something no one says.
"Let's go back to the way it was when we sucked," should be something no one says.
We are his 4th school
Your NIL also won’t last forever. Some kids are getting huge bags but most of them don’t get much. I know a kid that’s in our 2 deep and the staff is very high on. He gets 25k a year in nil. That’s the type of money majority are getting.
Joel Goodson
- how was I to know, she was with the Russians too?
there are myriad reasons why we sucked, but the old system wasn't one of them
at best, it was a minor factor
And that would be on top of regular benefits, like free tuition and room and board.
I meant bad enough that the same player is worth more in the minor league than the major league. That’s upside down.
RabidDawgClassic
- Los Angeles, CA
You are worth what the market says you're worth. The tradeoff is that an initial pro contract might be worth less in the short term, but more in the long term. However, there's no "long term" guarantee for most in the pros, so the trade off is more money now, but a shorter window for a lenghty career.
The money in general is what has destroyed it in my opinion. Exactly that though, only an opinion. I understand that and don't expect anyone to feel the same way. Great points though. I just wish more kids would value the education more along with the degree that you pay for get you plenty of opportunity to make the degree valuable. Too many are told you will make "X" amount of dollars only for the job market to be saturated with more degrees than demand. I mean it's kinda crappy that a good athlete can make as much money in 1 year than a surgeon who took 40 years + 8 years of school to obtain. Think of how great of doctors we would have if they were getting a mill+ bonus for saving "X" amount of lives.
I support “true” NIL when it comes to endorsements. Players should get paid if their jersey is selling, or Nike/Gatorade wants to pay them to endorse their product.
I also support the revenue sharing of the TV deals. Players should get some of that.
What I cannot support and simply can’t understand, are “super fans” paying players directly. Some of them act like the university sports team is their church and putting money in the “offering plate” is standard procedure. Or they look at college sports as a charitable contribution in the same way someone may look at Wounded Warrior Project. It’s just absurd to me.
Even if I had a billion dollars I would not pay an athlete money, directly, to play for my school. I can’t wrap my head around it. Jerry Jones pays the Cowboys salaries bc he makes a profit in the end. Some booster paying 2 million for an athlete ain’t getting anything back.
I also support the revenue sharing of the TV deals. Players should get some of that.
What I cannot support and simply can’t understand, are “super fans” paying players directly. Some of them act like the university sports team is their church and putting money in the “offering plate” is standard procedure. Or they look at college sports as a charitable contribution in the same way someone may look at Wounded Warrior Project. It’s just absurd to me.
Even if I had a billion dollars I would not pay an athlete money, directly, to play for my school. I can’t wrap my head around it. Jerry Jones pays the Cowboys salaries bc he makes a profit in the end. Some booster paying 2 million for an athlete ain’t getting anything back.
Were you this upset when Spurrier signed the first coaching deal for over $1 million annually in the mid 90s, or is money only bad when the players who put their bodies on the line get it?
Has he played at each of the previous three schools?
DeonThomas
- South Carolina
And our next signee will be __________.
Folks if you're not seeing that this is getting better than some rookie contracts in the NFL...you're not seeing that your tickets for a game are going to be stupid shortly...what is a good qb going to make in 2 years...I get athletes need to be paid in college but...there needs to be a cap...
I get that but the point is that’s not life changing money. Very few players in football are getting big money
TentakilRex
- Land O Insects between Quincy-Macomb-Jacksonville
Most likely either:
1. Some dude most of us haven't heard of but turns into a stud!
2. P5 transfer who doesn't crack the lineup because of option 1 and/or freshman
He committed to Kentucky out of HS had an impressive offer list (Michigan, South Carolina, Arkansas, others). Redshirted and just played three games for Kentucky- went to WVU and had a very good freshman year, then was third string after transferring to FSU last year which is odd- he’s a strong side DE type player. Seems to be a great find by the staff, talented guy who didn’t get the PT he expected but has 17 games or so at the P5 level under his belt and you know he can play
The only problem I see is his nickname is Big Tomi- we already have one of those!
Tomiwa Durojaiye
ukathletics.com
Thank you.He committed to Kentucky out of HS had an impressive offer list (Michigan, South Carolina, Arkansas, others). Redshirted and just played three games for Kentucky- went to WVU and had a very good freshman year, then was third string after transferring to FSU last year which is odd- he’s a strong side DE type player. Seems to be a great find by the staff, talented guy who didn’t get the PT he expected but has 17 games or so at the P5 level under his belt and you know he can play
The only problem I see is his nickname is Big Tomi- we already have one of those!
Tomiwa Durojaiye
Recruiting thread anyone?
But it’s not really a free market, is it? The NCAA rules limit who can take those jobs and how long they can hold them.
When the courts knock down the student requirement (and tenure limit), aging NFL players will be able to drop back down to the minor leagues to extend their playing careers. DeVito comes to mind in this respect. Schools with limited budgets will be able to hire talent from a much bigger pool at free market rates to fill gaps in their rosters. Adding salary caps would make it tough for the big schools to buy a title-contending team, leveling the playing field.
To your point on pro contract potential, those initial contracts sometimes lead to better things. Often they’re the end of the playing career. Removing barriers will allow players to move up/down from the majors based on their skills and market demand. It works well for baseball. Why not football too? Each university (already) sponsors an increasingly pro team. Drop the remaining barriers and let the market take over. It seems inevitable, and therefore pointless for the NCAA to resist it. Get out in front and lead.
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This is because the market is artificially constrained by the NCAA. I’m sure there are plenty of capable but ineligible athletes willing to play for less than $2m per year. Let them compete for the jobs and costs will drop.
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