Among the most important recruits on the NCAA gridiron, diamond or court may be state legislators. With the NCAA having washed its hands of policing athletes’ name, image or likeness (NIL), state lawmakers are in a position to give their universities an advantage in signing the best athletes in the nation. As a result of a U.S. Supreme Court decision, athletes can obtain professional representation for contracts relating to the use of their NIL without losing their amateur status. In 2021, Gov. Greg Abbott signed a law giving college athletes the freedom to earn money from the use of their NIL.
The way it works in Texas is that universities maintain control over NIL contracts signed by their student-athletes. Athletes are prohibited from entering any NIL contract that conflicts with a provision of the student-athlete’s team contract, a provision of an institutional contract, a policy of the athletic department or the honor code of the university. The significance is that these contracts are likely subject to public information requests, making them available to the media and the public.
Read the full piece in the Waco Tribune-Herald.
