forums

Does college athletes getting paid, help, hurt, or nothing changes for Miami.

Advertisement
I think long term, it's impossible to predict but short term it's good for schools like UM. It's not going to drastically shift the balance of power or anything ridiculous. The bag schools will still throw a bunch of money at recruits and they'll still get to pick and choose the guys they want. Where it might benefit other schools is that players won't be forced to make the decision "bag school or nothing". Guys won't have to leave school early because they have family that needs to be taken care of. They'll be able to choose the team they actually want to play for instead of the team that's offering them some cash.

College football has been an arms race for a while and the gap between the haves and have nots gets bigger all the time. I have predicted a split between the two for a long time and the NIL is just the next step towards that happening. There's going to be the big name schools that essentially work as NFL minor leagues and everyone else. To be honest, it's always been this way. They're just being more real about it now.
 
Until proven otherwise, any rule that gets put in place will favor Alabama and hurt Miami. There is always the "this time is different" argument. It certainly could be, but betting on "this time is different" is a really good way to go broke.

I'm hoping this helps Miami, but the schools with massive alumni bases who are rabid about football in ways that our fan base rarely comprehends, and who are willing to do literally anything to win, including covering up rape and other violent crimes, having their "academics" be completely subservient to the football program, etc, etc, will most likely be the ones who are more likely to take the most advantage of any situation.

I agree with others who have said it's too early to tell, and if anyone says they know with any certainty one way or another, ignore them. The above is just the way I would guess right now. If nothing else, hopefully it gives us a bump and some juice for a couple of seasons due to our market size and marketing acumen. If we could just get the ball rolling and win some games and get back to blue blood level prestige, maybe any impacts down the road won't matter.
 
Gi0logy said:
Also curious about what brands align themselves with a program? How does Twitch go after this? UberEats, GoPuff, DoorDash, etc? Red Bull?

My guess is College Hunks targets big time athletes in a variety of markets since I'm pretty sure they're franchised. So franchise owner in Miami paid for King. Franchise owner in Tuscaloosa will pay for Bama player. Columbus for Ohio State player, etc etc etc.

This has my head spinning. 2021-2022 is going to be wild.
Click to expand...
I believe that the contract King signed was through the College Hunks corporate office which is located in Tampa. I saw a photo of him posing with the CEO.
 
RightSaidFred said:
It will help. That's what my giant Yale MBA brain is telling me, being the unquestionable genius I am.

If you wanna get technical, go look up something called Resource Based Theory. In a nutshell, Miami has a huge market, and hype and image sell well in Miami. Those are resources other, small town schools don't have.

I think Miami and USC (California) will be the winners with this.

What we need is for D'Eriq King to get paid in a big way... that way recruits will see that. But overall, I see a competitive advantage for Miami the way this is playing out.
Click to expand...
Exactly, watch how fast GT closed the gap with UGA. And, same thing with Coastal Carolina and South Carolina.
 
Advertisement
Some of you guys are overcomplicating this: This is unquestionably a benefit for UM, possibly more than any other NCAA program. Here's why: Our brand.

It is by far the only elite asset we have, and it's been the only thing no one can pull the rug out from underneath, including ourselves. Not even our location has been able to hold-up.

Miami, the city, is on fire right now, too. So this allows us to leverage both brands to reward the players for associating with it on the up-and-up.
 
HurricaneU said:
Here is the thing about Billy Bob. Now it will have to be above board and reported as duly executed contract for service and will be taxed. It will be disclosed in some fashion. Its price discovery. A necessary condition for a vibrant market.

So I fully support Billy Bob doing what he wants with his money. And the athlete who benefits from it.

But here is the thing: how many Billy Bobs are there and how much can they afford to pay out? I come back to the impact of market size and opportunities.

Another thing to consider. The bag game is strong in some places. We know that. But I would argue that even that game, the prices are depressed because its illegal. What happens when the market opens up and now Billy Bob has to compete with a luxury auto dealership in Miami?

I dont have the answers. I dont see the world in absolutes. I view it terms of options and risks. Its a Bayesian world. I just think there are some strong market forces in favor of larger markets.

Will be fun to watch the fireworks regardless.
Click to expand...
Well thought out commentary! It will definitely be interesting.
 
Miami needs to be providing these kids (should have started last year) education on how to make money as influencers. How to gain followers to increase revenue. How to profit from those followers. How to land sponsorship deals....

While Miami has a great brand in a great market, Bama, ND, OSU, USCw, Texas all have national brands with massive followings.

The bigger question I haven't seen from anyone is how will this negatively impact sponsorships for the programs? Discount Tire can sign King as the Miami QB and likely pay less than signing a sponsorship deal with UM. This will be the case with other major programs as well.

Lastly, now that players can get paid, Does this mean they are no longer considered Volunteers? If they are no longer Volunteers (this will end up in the Supreme Court soon), then universities will be on the hook for long-term health costs due to injuries caused during play. As of today, kids that medically retire are given care until they are no longer on scholarship. Furthermore, it opens the door to lawsuits when a player gets hurt and loses out on NIL money with the thought that the school is partly at fault for the injury (think bad facilities like holes in the field).

Lots to unwind with these changes and I'd say the BIG public schools still stand to benefit the most as governments will support them when those lawsuits happen, governments will still pay staff if sponsorships drop, and big schools have massive followings...
 
If Miami businesses step up this will only help us.. If a kid can make 50k-100k a year and live in paradise why commit to a hick town for a 150k bag?
 
Advertisement
I think it overall helps. Bama will still pay more, but at least now the kids can still get some money by coming to Miami. Maybe you get 200K at Bama, but can still make 50K at Miami.
 
g8rh8rMD said:
Until proven otherwise, any rule that gets put in place will favor Alabama and hurt Miami. There is always the "this time is different" argument. It certainly could be, but betting on "this time is different" is a really good way to go broke.

I'm hoping this helps Miami, but the schools with massive alumni bases who are rabid about football in ways that our fan base rarely comprehends, and who are willing to do literally anything to win, including covering up rape and other violent crimes, having their "academics" be completely subservient to the football program, etc, etc, will most likely be the ones who are more likely to take the most advantage of any situation.

I agree with others who have said it's too early to tell, and if anyone says they know with any certainty one way or another, ignore them. The above is just the way I would guess right now. If nothing else, hopefully it gives us a bump and some juice for a couple of seasons due to our market size and marketing acumen. If we could just get the ball rolling and win some games and get back to blue blood level prestige, maybe any impacts down the road won't matter.
Click to expand...

First, it's not either/or... what helps Miami hurts Alabama or vice versa. This NIL won't hurt Alabama because they have a national brand. But it also WILL help Miami. The ones who are going to get hurt the most by it are the mid-level small town teams like Ole Miss, South Carolina... schools like that. It will start to gut out the middle of the SEC a little bit.

And I think this throws kerosene on the transfer portal as well - if you're a star at Oklahoma State, why not transfer to Miami and cash in?

Second, the big alumni network helps helps with things like donating to the school, but NIL is all about star power and branding. Miami's weakness has always been that so many of our fans didn't actually attend UM, and so our fans aren't going to donate or give money away for free to the school they didn't attend. But we DO have a large national following, and they DO buy things like jerseys, apparel, etc.

Basically NIL opens up a big untapped honeypot for UM athletes, whereas the big bag schools with the booster networks and alumni are already maxing out. The upside for Miami is much higher than it is for most of the big booster schools.

I see Miami, Notre Dame, and USC as the biggest winners in this.
 
Short term for sure it helps....but in the end in my opine...this will end up like everything else in our society with the "haves" and "have nots"...
Meaning - your elite balls out top tier players (or social media darlings) will make the big bread and get the big deals/major sponsors...
The rest will get the crumbs.
It will be interesting to see if major brands (think Nike) will align themselves with schools and/or conferences to maximize their exposure.
 
RightSaidFred said:
First, it's not either/or... what helps Miami hurts Alabama or vice versa. This NIL won't hurt Alabama because they have a national brand. But it also WILL help Miami. The ones who are going to get hurt the most by it are the mid-level small town teams like Ole Miss, South Carolina... schools like that. It will start to gut out the middle of the SEC a little bit.

And I think this throws kerosene on the transfer portal as well - if you're a star at Oklahoma State, why not transfer to Miami and cash in?

Second, the big alumni network helps helps with things like donating to the school, but NIL is all about star power and branding. Miami's weakness has always been that so many of our fans didn't actually attend UM, and so our fans aren't going to donate or give money away for free to the school they didn't attend. But we DO have a large national following, and they DO buy things like jerseys, apparel, etc.

Basically NIL opens up a big untapped honeypot for UM athletes, whereas the big bag schools with the booster networks and alumni are already maxing out. The upside for Miami is much higher than it is for most of the big booster schools.

I see Miami, Notre Dame, and USC as the biggest winners in this.
Click to expand...
Great point. I agree in the sense that kids who play above their rankings would gladly transfer for one year in a big market to get paid. That’s the one part of this I hadn’t thought of until you brought it up.
 
Advertisement
Hard to predict the law of unintended consequences. Who knows what this sport will look like soon
 
I think on balance it absolutely helps us and definitely levels the playing field for big time recruits and for us to keep local kids home that left so they could "feed the fam".

I think the only weakness for us might be the depth of available cash opportunities for the bulk of your roster. Programs in podunk towns in states with minimal or no pro teams probably can have their coaches cajole local businesses into paying mid-level guys on their roster at least some cash whereas Miami businesses most likely aren't going to be climbing over each other to sign our 4th best OL or 3rd best rotational DE to any sort of deal.

This might be where we have to trust Manny to kind of work his off-season magic though too. Get businesses to pay the ENTIRE o-line and use them all as a single marketing tool, etc.
 
Advertisement
Great stuff, @HurricaneU -- I completely agree with your takes on this issue.


My guess is that we see some kind of bell curve on this issue. Something to this effect (over the next decade or so):

  • We'll likely enter an initial phase where kids buy into endorsement programs that are somewhat overseen by university Athletic Department.
  • Then we'll see kids' with aggressive NIL Agent/Managers wanting the top flight kids to strike their own deals. They'll want to maximize their earnings.
  • That will lead to all sorts of issues within programs and locker rooms. (this bullet point will play out like a mini-series on Lifetime Channel)
  • Then we'll see some form of regulation work its way back into the equation, likely from a Federal alphabet agency.
 
Last year when this was being talked about, I mentioned that the #1 thing that made Miami successful over the decades is innovation.

Schelly- changed the game by creating the "state of Miami"
Jimmy- the Miami 4-3
Erickson- the one back offense
Butch- elite at talent recognition

But just like in the corporate world, others copy the innovation so you lose your competitive edge. My one hope for Manny Diaz was that he was smart enough to innovate in some way. The transfer portal looked like something Miami could take advantage of and we were at the forefront for a short while, but its hard to build a team with just the portal. My next suggestion was the NIL. Miami had to position itself as the CFB leader for NIL. Create courses to teach players about signing deals, marketing etc. When kids go on recruiting visits, they would see that Miami was light years ahead of any other program in terms of NIL, and was locked and loaded for them to start making legal money. We had the market, but we needed someone smart enough to see that. I have to say Diaz and Miami exceeded my expectations. Not one minute after NIL became legal, we had multiple players announcing deals.

Oh- and Bama? How many deals have their players announced today? I saw Bama had some 8th string WR claim he had some video game deal getting paid to tweet endorsements, but many other Bama PLAYERS (again, these are players, not coaches) were ****ting on the idea of NIL.

www.al.com

Alabama football receiver is first to announce NIL deal

Traeshon Holden revealed his partnership shortly after midnight Thursday.
www.al.com www.al.com

"[N]ot all players seem interested in the potential revenue opportunity. Freshman defensive lineman Monkell Goodwine posted Wednesday to Instagram, “I’ve decided that i will not be focusing on the name image and likeness, yet I will focuse [sic] more on the upcoming season on and off the field. Junior safety DeMarcco Hellams and sophomore linebacker Demouy Kennedy posted an identical message to Instagram reading, “Don’t let that NIL distract you from the bag you really supposed to be chasing.”'

I'm sure recruits who are interested in NIL are going to love the idea of playing for a coach that hates NIL and to be on a team where their own teammates are going to constantly question their commitment. Clemson? Dabo hates the idea of NIL so much he said he'd retire. On the flip side, Miami has whole marketing program set up to help players get that $$$

Let's check the NIL scoreboard: Miami 1, Bag Schools 0
 
DTP said:
I think a lot of people are way overvaluing the kind of endorsement money football players make. There’s a tiny handful of NFL players with 7 figure endorsement deals and these are world famous athletes playing in major markets in the nation’s most popular sports league. https://finance.yahoo.com/amphtml/news/15-nfl-players-most-money-191616252.html
Click to expand...

True but it’s not so much that everyone will be making millions, it’s more that they’ll be making bag money.

If Auburn bought Cam Newton for 250k, don’t you think he could have easily matched that with an endorsement deal?

That’s really where I’m coming from, you don’t have to make the kids millionaires, you just have to match or exceed the bag money
 
Advertisement
Back
Top