A New Landscape for College Athletics: the Introduction of NIL
By: Elizabeth Truelove
Edited by: David Liu and Eliana Aemro Selassie
Following months of legal disputes, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has relaxed its rules regarding a student-athlete’s right to compensation from third parties and called upon individual schools to set their own guidelines in the summer of 2021. This prompted most states to pass laws around the same time, detailing how and if their collegiate athletes were able to participate in Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals. [1] Since then, the college sports scene has been radically changed. However, whether this change is for the better or for the worse remains up for debate.
Student athlete compensation rules are referred to as NIL rules, and deals can entail a student-athlete’s product endorsement, sponsored appearances, social media posts, or any other promotional event like commercials, clinics, and autograph signings. In return, third parties can directly pay the player an agreed-upon sum of money. However, this is highly dependent on the player’s celebrity status, often established in a high-profit sport like basketball or football, or if the athlete already had a strong following on social media or in college athletics. [2] While college athletes deserve compensation for the profits made off their talent, I don’t believe that the introduction of NIL rules appropriately addresses this problem.
Notably, the top earner in college sports fulfills all the criteria for the ideal NIL deal: has celebrity status, plays a high-profile sport, has a visible position, and plays at one of the most prestigious athletic departments. This is none other than Arch Manning, the quarterback at the University of Texas at Austin (UT) and nephew of NFL legends Peyton and Eli Manning.[3] Manning made an estimated $6.8 million through his NIL sponsorships with Red Bull, Uber, Vuori, and others this past season. [4]
While the number may seem particularly high, Manning’s presence on the Longhorns football team certainly increased revenue for the already well-funded athletics department at UT. The team saw record-breaking levels of viewership this season and were ranked number one in the preseason Associated Press poll, but ultimately fell to number 12 by the final week after losses to The Ohio State University, University of Florida, and University of Georgia. [5] Manning faced plenty of outside pressure, and in addition to becoming Texas’s starting quarterback, this likely impacted his mixed results in performance during the season.[6]
Fortunately for Manning, per NIL rules, payment should not fluctuate due to performance. [2] In theory, this not only gives lower division athletes the opportunity for compensation through NIL, but also removes any monetary incentive for athletes to push themselves too far or to transfer universities in search of higher pay from sponsorships. However, in practice, this rule has been circumvented by teams and businesses alike.
For example, at the beginning of the 2024 college football season, quarterback Matthew Sluka started his first year at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). Early in the season, he told his offensive coordinator, Brennan Marion, that he had not been paid what recruiters had promised his agent if he joined the team. Despite the team’s undefeated start, Sluka ultimately chose to sit out the remainder of the season, saving his eligibility after being told this promise would remain unfulfilled. [7] NCAA rules allow players to play up to four games with a team before withdrawing from a season, which invalidates that year of playing eligibility. Sluka retained his ability to “redshirt,” or not play for the remainder of a season and keep his fourth year of playing eligibility, as he only played three games with UNLV. [8]
This sparked considerable debate on social media and sports broadcasting, in addition to criticism of Sluka’s evidently money-motivated decision, since promising a player or a recruit money in exchange for their commitment is illegal. So, how do coaches get away with making these promises? The answer is collectives.
Collectives are a business model that allows, mostly alumni from collegiate teams, to pool together money and outside donations to directly fund NIL deals with their previous team. These businesses maintain close relationships with the current athletes they fund and begin to blur the line between NIL’s purpose for promotional work and a direct “pay for play” procedure, where athletes’ incomes are dependent on their performance, not on their status as individuals.[9] The growing practice of collectives and promising compensation to players has led to constant legal disputes that both the NCAA and college sports fans argue harm the values of college athletics. [10]
Even if the NCAA worked to shut down collectives or pay-to-play loopholes, many fans, coaches, and commentators still worry that NIL deals can cause laziness among athletes. [10] Last college football season, Nick Saban, once legendary coach of the University of Alabama’s football team and now co-host of the beloved College Gameday show, bluntly explained, “If you don’t pay the right guys, you’ll be s—t out of luck.” [11] While Saban supports compensating athletes, he brings up a valid argument. Whether the security of income prompts athletes to lose drive in their sport or becomes their only drive in playing, NIL deals invite athletes to have new motivators for every decision in their careers.
Consequently, the added factor of money in college sports leads its systems and the news surrounding athletes to look more and more like the professional sports industry. This, ultimately, is what drives my skepticism about the benefits of NIL. For so long, college sports, specifically men’s football and basketball, attracted viewers due to their deep-seated traditions and values rooted in team legacy, rather than in individuals. College sports provide the vigor and passion needed in entertainment, while simultaneously lacking the politics of professional sports. However, after the introduction of NIL, the distinct values of college athletics were shaken. While some claim the “magic” of college sports has disappeared, others argue that this “magic” has exploited collegiate athletes for decades, and underneath its politics-free appearance lies deep ignorance for the well-being of student-athletes. Either way, the introduction of NIL deals has transformed and opened the door for a new era of college athletics.
Notes:
Dan Murphy, “Everything you need to know about the NCAA’s NIL debate,” ESPN, September 1, 2021, https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/31086019/everything-need-know-ncaa-nil-debate.
“NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) Explained,” NCSA, January 2026, https://www.ncsasports.org/name-image-likeness.
D’Arcy Maine, “How Livvy Dunne became one of the most famous names in sports,” ESPN, February 21, 2025, https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/43938472/olivia-livvy-dunne-lsu-gymnastics-ncaa-nil.
“On3 NIl Valuations,” On3, February 11, 2026, https://www.on3.com/nil/rankings/player/nil-valuations/.
“AP Top 25 College Football Poll,” AP, August 11, 2025, https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll?week=1.
Will Leitch, “Want to win a college football championship? Stop trying to find the next Nick Saban,” The Athletic, January 6, 2026, https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6943191/2026/01/06/college-football-playoff-coaches-cignetti-golding-lanning-cristobal/.
Bruce Feldman and Stewart Mandel, “$100,000 or $3,000? Inside UNLV and Matt Sluka’s NIL dispute and what it could mean for college football,” The Athletic, October 1, 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5803997/2024/10/01/college-football-nil-matt-sluka-unlv-ncaa/.
Scott Dochterman, “Before Matthew Sluka, here’s how previous four-game redshirt cases worked (or didn’t),” The Athletic, January 14, 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5811417/2024/10/02/matthew-sluka-college-football-redshirt-rules/.
Pete Nakos, “What are NIL Collectives and how do they operate?,” On3, July 6, 2022, https://www.on3.com/nil/news/what-are-nil-collectives-and-how-do-they-operate/.
Jay Bilas, “Why NIL has been good for college sports … and the hurdles that remain,” ESPN, June 29, 2022, https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/34161311/why-nil-good-college-sports-hurdles-remain.
ESPN, “Nick Saban making everyone CRACK UP! + Lee Corso thinks Texas will WIN IT ALL! | College GameDay,” Youtube, August 31, 2024, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mu3rYrA_LWw.
Bibliography:
“AP Top 25 College Football Poll.” AP, August 11, 2025. https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll?week=1.
Bilas, Jay. “Why NIL has been good for college sports … and the hurdles that remain.” ESPN, June 29, 2022. https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/34161311/why-nil-good-college-sports-hurdles-remain.
Dochterman, Scott. “Before Matthew Sluka, here’s how previous four-game redshirt cases worked (or didn’t).” The Athletic, January 14, 2025. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5811417/2024/10/02/matthew-sluka-college-football-redshirt-rules/.
ESPN. “Nick Saban making everyone CRACK UP! + Lee Corso thinks Texas will WIN IT ALL! | College GameDay.” Youtube, August 31, 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mu3rYrA_LWw.
Feldman, Bruce and Stewart Mandel. “$100,000 or $3,000? Inside UNLV and Matt Sluka’s NIL dispute and what it could mean for college football.” The Athletic, October 1, 2024. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5803997/2024/10/01/college-football-nil-matt-sluka-unlv-ncaa/.
Leitch, Will.“Want to win a college football championship? Stop trying to find the next Nick Saban.” The Athletic, January 6, 2026. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6943191/2026/01/06/college-football-playoff-coaches-cignetti-golding-lanning-cristobal/.
Murphy, Dan. “Everything you need to know about the NCAA’s NIL debate.” ESPN, September 1, 2021. https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/31086019/everything-need-know-ncaa-nil-debate.
Nakos, Pete. “What are NIL Collectives and how do they operate?.” On3, July 6, 2022. https://www.on3.com/nil/news/what-are-nil-collectives-and-how-do-they-operate/.
“NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) Explained.” NCSA, January 2026. https://www.ncsasports.org/name-image-likeness.
“On3 NIl Valuations.” On3, February 11, 2026. https://www.on3.com/nil/rankings/player/nil-valuations/.