I posted this as a reply I’m my NIL thread, but I thought it deserved its own thread. Feel free to correct or add anything.
I actually was able to find some limited info. It really is the Wild West. Nebraska has an official NIL deal with Opendorse.com. Basically anyone can go there and purchase everything from an autograph to signing an endorsement deal. There’s also Athletic Branding & Marketing, which is a for-profit collective. It is ceasing operations next year and turning everything over to the 1890 Collective, run by Matt Davison. There’s also Big Red Collaborative, which connects athletes with non-profits (TeamMates mentoring program, Team Jack and Nebraska Greats Foundation) and is directed by Kris Brown. It also provides financial education for athletes (it’s required to participate). There are multiple other collectives, such as Pipeline Jerky and Lincoln NIL Collective.
Athletes still cannot sign with agents, so these organizations fill that role by serving as intermediaries. State laws can vary, but there is little barrier to starting a collective. They can be non-profit or for-profit. Even an individual can serve as the intermediary, as long as they’re careful to be an intermediary, and not an agent. I don’t how that would work in most cases, but a basketball player for the University of Denver, who cannot sign NIL deals because he’s an international player (student visa?), is acting as an intermediary for his teammates for free. He’s doing it for the experience.
The university does not appear to have any control, nor does it appear they are actively using it in recruiting. Some schools are doing that, but doing it under the radar because it is probably a violation of NCAA rules.
On3.com does valuations for players, even high school players. The legality of high school players accepting NIL deals is regulated on a state by state basis. For example, Nebraska allows it, Texas prohibits it. On3’s highest valued athlete is Bronny James, a high school basketball player from Cleveland, who is valued at $7.4 million. I have no clue how they arrive at valuations or how accurate they are.
Female athletes are benefiting much more than expected, in a variety of sports. Nicklin Hames is the 43rd ranked women’s athlete, and 22nd out of all NU athletes, at $52k.
Anyway, that’s what I found. There’s a fair chance some of it is wrong. I’m certain that it will change the landscape of amateur athletics in the US, both in obvious ways and in ways we never expected. Just as a thought experiment, imagine you’re an elite athlete from Texas. Are you going to stay, where you can’t ink a NIL deal? One athlete, Quinn Ewers, graduated a year early so he could enroll at Ohio State. He inked a $1.4 million deal. And imagine what happens in Texas high school athletics if they legalize it for high schoolers. It will be interesting to see where we are in 10 years.
