Thought this was a good conversation that discusses the current landscape and how things have changed with NIL. I found it interesting that he seems to share the same concerns that we've all voiced, considering he's in the SEC.
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A list of misc. thoughts...
Also, attributing "more money, more problems" to Jay-z (not biggie) is criminal.
EDIT TO ADD:
I understand that these kids are raised in hyper competitive environments where on field success is rewarded above everything else (literally), so I understand why adding money into the mix further distorts their reality. But the correct move isn't to refuse to give these kids money; it's too change the environments their raised in. That responsibility belongs to parents, coaches, teachers, and all the other adults these kids interact with throughout their childhood. If you don't fix that, the issue will always exist.
Like I said in another thread in the last week its always the guys msking way more than everyone complaining. If that was so great why isn't Lane donating all his money and living like that? This guy made just shy of eight figures last year not including any NIL deal he had.
Money is like air, it's not a problem until you don't have any.
Yeap exactly.
Just say that NIL has made your job (as a college football coach) a lot harder (it has). I'm sympathetic to that. Lobby congress for an antitrust exemption. Talk about how we need collective bargaining so we can agree to contracts. Talk about the need for centralized authority.
But if you're going to say that the kids don't need money (because they have 'warmth' 🙄), conveniently omit that you're in the top 0.01% of income earners, and want your conference to continue to operate without any oversight... dawg, get fucked.
I dont really have any sympathy for some ones job getting harder when they make $10mil. THATA WHY YOU GET PAID THAT.
Also - Lane, no one considering Ole Miss in the last 30 years is asking about graduation rates. Don't even try to lie and say that, before NIL, kids' families were asking about that lmao
Its not just college coaches that are going to be dealing with NIL. I listen to Steve Czaban on a Milwaukee radio station via IHeart radio in the morning on the way to work, and this morning, I kid you not, they had a Wisconsin high school recruit doing a commercial for IronJock underwear (they're a Wisconsin based company). He was spouting off about he was a 5-star recruit, and how many P5 offers he had. It's really discouraging where this is heading.
Yeah you are going to see these deals happen especially at the Sports Mills Academies like IMG and here in NOVA it will be The St James Academy.
This shit is direct evidence that the problem is the adults around this kid. High school kids don't go out looking for advertising opportunities.
But should a high school kid turn down a bunch of money to read an advertisement?
Nope. But parents/adults shouldn't have access to it either other than helping to put it in a trust in the kids best interests.
Interesting some of these kids aren't 18 yet. Who is signing the contracts?
Not saying parents shouldn't be signing contracts. I'm saying their handlers shouldn't have access to the money. Same thing as Hollywood.
Look, the details of the situation matter a lot. First of all, the business shouldn't be directly approaching a minor. Secondly, If this kid has a good support system, then this could be a great learning experience about branding/marketing. But if that's not the case, this situation gets icky really quick.
In a weird twist of events Theo Von is on the field in Blacksburg.
Seems to me like he's saying a lot more of the things Saban was saying or wanted to say when he retired. This sport is a mess, it's been completely upended, and it's never going to be what it once was. If I'm going to have to deal with hearing about agents, NIL deals, and mass turnover every year then I'm going to dedicate 100% of my interest at the NFL where I at least have a franchise that knows wtf they are doing to address those needs.
That's less than half the franchises, so pick wisely.