SBJ College: ADs Coming Around On Support For NIL Rights

As a lifelong Orioles fan, I’m too proud to jump on the Nationals’ bandwagon. But after watching Strasburg, Scherzer and Sanchez, I’ve got serious pitcher envy.

Here is what's cooking on campus:

ATHLETIC DIRECTORS MORE OPEN TO NIL

• Opinions are shifting among athletic directors in the name, image & likeness debate. More than half of ADs -- 53.4% -- support an athlete’s ability to commercialize NIL rights, according to an AthleticDirectorU survey of 97 D-I ADs. Those results show that the walls against athlete compensation are gradually coming down. When asked if they supported a free market that would enable athletes to monetize their NIL, 51.6% said yes or maybe. When asked if agents should be allowed to advise and assist college athletes, 58% said yes or maybe.
  
  
• Those numbers are surprising because five years ago you couldn’t find an AD who supported the athlete side of the NIL issue. But that resistance has faded, based on the conversations I’ve had with ADs. I’d describe it as a growing acceptance that, whether through the courts or the NCAA, the NIL issue is coming to their campus.
  
  
• ADs who anticipate change in the NIL rules expect significant challenges. The biggest concern with a market-based model is that boosters will get into bidding wars to attract talent. The NCAA is looking at models that provide a path to NIL rights, while maintaining control of the process. That’s going to be difficult.
  
  
• I found one comment from an anonymous AD especially on point: “By simply redefining ‘amateurism’ in the NCAA rule book to mean that an athlete isn’t compensated by their institution, they could then monetize their own NIL without institutions being at risk.” This gets overlooked all the time: The definition of amateurism is whatever the NCAA wants it to be; it just means the athlete isn’t a professional. Amateurism, in and of itself, does not prohibit the NCAA from permitting athlete compensation.

BIG 12-NAVIGATE BEEF RESULTS IN LAWSUIT

• Chicago-based Navigate Marketing has sued the Big 12 for damages in excess of $1 million. The marketing and research firm alleges that the conference was in breach of contract when it refused to pay for consulting services. The Big 12 hired Navigate in 2015 to provide analysis on whether it should expand beyond its 10 member institutions. Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby in a statement to SBJ said, "Our agreement with Navigate was terminated for cause, and we look forward to the court resolving this matter.” The plaintiffs had no comment when reached today.
  
  
• Navigate is due a commission of 1% on incremental revenue earned by the Big 12 from its media rights, the suit alleges. In 2017, the Big 12 entered into a newly negotiated media deal with one of its broadcast partners, according to the suit. The conference currently has deals with ESPN and Fox. The Big 12 earned $230 million in additional revenue from the new deal, the suit alleges.
  
  
• The case in Cook County court is ongoing. Navigate claims it was hired for four primary duties: 1) Project revenue associated with expansion; 2) Conduct analysis for TV and other media rights; 3) Consult with the conference on how to approach media partners; 4) Ongoing support and consultation.
  
  
• The Big 12 decided in October 2016 that it would not expand after vetting more than a dozen schools. As part of that decision, SBJ reported at the time, the Big 12 negotiated new terms with ESPN for its championship games, which were revived in 2017, and for removing the “pro rata” clause from its deal. Pro rata obligates the network to pay a higher rights fee if it expands.
  
  

SPEED READS 

• Georgetown AD Lee Reed didn't want a repeat of the firestorm around Kansas' controversial Snoop Dogg show two weeks ago. Reed canceled Fabolous' planned appearance at the annual Hoya Madness event after students took issue with the rapper's history of domestic violence.
  
  
• Football attendance continues to be an issue at the season's halfway mark. The Univ. of Texas at San Antonio sold 15,728 tickets for the Roadrunners' loss to UAB in the Alamodome last Saturday, the "fewest in school history."
  
  
• Washington State AD Pat Chun on balancing support for non-revenue programs like volleyball while keeping the necessary focus on football and men’s hoops: “You can’t pick and choose excellence. We don’t have the resources to do that. If coaches aren’t competing at the highest levels, we need to go find coaches that can. … The toughest conferences period are Pac-12 volleyball and SEC baseball at No. 2. Then in women’s basketball, you could finish fourth in our conference and be the sixth-best team in the country. That’s how hard it is in this league.”
  
  
• Clemson Sports & Campus Marketing, a division of JMI Sports, has begun installation of the school's new Campus Digital Network. Plans include eight digital displays on the exterior of Memorial Stadium as a way to provide information to students, faculty and staff and bring added value for corporate sponsors through digital advertising opportunities.
  
  
• Stay tuned for the next title sponsor of the Independence Bowl, which has hired Impression Sports & Entertainment to help find its next suitor. This year's bowl will be the final game with Walk-On’s, and the next partner will join a long line of interesting brands for the game, such as Poulan/Weed Eater, Sanford Brands, MainStay, PetroSun, AdvoCare, Duck Commander and Camping World (all since 1990). One detail to note: the bowl has aired on an ESPN network for 28 straight years, though that deal is set to expire at the end of 2019.

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Something on the College beat catch your eye? Tell us about it. Reach out to either me (msmith@sportsbusinessjournal.com) or Austin Karp (akarp@sportsbusinessjournal.com) and we'll share the best of it. Also contributing to this newsletter is Thomas Leary (tleary@sportsbusinessdaily.com).