By Jaxon McElwee, Bixby High School
Name, image and likeness has a major effect on their current and future athletes, especially so at schools like the University of Oklahoma where sports has greater prominence relative to many universities.
On June 19, Sports Illustrated ranked college sports programs based on revenue, listing OU was in its top 10. NIL allows student athletes to capitalize on their publicity in ways the NCAA didn’t previously allow.
Toby Baldwin is the OU executive associate athletic director responsible for NIL as well as operational advancement. He worked his way up through the program, and was appointed his position just over a year ago.
Baldwin’s main job is primarily overseeing all NIL activities. He also is responsible for educating all athletes and donors about the NCAA and state laws. Another key part is educating donors on how to properly get funds distributed. Lastly, he helps keep coaches up to date on what is happening and making sure they are involved through the process.
With NIL being only two years old there are still kinks being worked out within OU’s program and the NCAA at large.
“We’re able to impact student athletes’ lives because of compensation that they received from their reputation as a student athlete at the University of Oklahoma,” Baldwin said of the pros of NIL. “As a result of that compensation, we’re able to educate them on life skills too, assist them and be prepared for life.”
Being able to prepare a student-athlete for adulthood is key because while not all will make it professionally, all will need to know how to manage money properly.
“The cons of NIL are negatively looked down upon because of some of the social issues and competitive advantages schools have because of NIL,” Baldwin said. “It takes away from the purity of the sport, the student athletes who used to be true amateurs were not compensated because of their athletic ability.”
OU has an organization that works with athletes called the Crimson and Cream collective, which describes itself as being created to help student athletes achieve at the highest level in the classroom, on the playing field and in life. People can support OU athletes by paying for a monthly subscription, which goes to the athletes. In return, subscribers receive special benefits such as meet and greet sessions with the athletes, a player-only podcast and specially autographed items. The collective gives the athletes opportunities to market themselves in an exciting way.
Student-athletes have a lot more to offer than just being an athlete. Everyone has their own personality that meshes well with certain markets and brands.
NIL is still in early development so the future of what’s to come for athletes is still in question.
One thing that athletes may not be sure of yet is what is their mission, or what kind of value an 18- to 22-year-old holds in college. Players are now able to create clothing, shoe or hat lines with their personal logos. Oklahoma quarterback Dillon Gabriel has done just that, and has used some of his money to take the wide receivers, running backs, tight ends, offensive linemen and other quarterbacks on retreats. Players get away for one weekend to a lake, where they played golf and spent quality time together.
In this new era, players are learning how to market themselves. One thing athletes must learn is how to engage fans on social media and to grow their brands in different ways.
NIL not only affects college athletes, but also influences how high school athletes make their college choice. With the transfer portal being a large part of college sports, universities now find themselves recruiting players at all level of the college experience.
Brody Duffel, an offensive lineman at Bixby High School, is living right through the thick of NIL in recruiting. He said discussions about NIL have been big not only for himself, but his parents.
“They’ve been really heavy on having some sort of financial literacy class or some sort of program for their players,” Duffel said.
Beyond teaching athletes how to market their brand, colleges are also starting classes on how to invest, save, and spend the money they earn.
Some high school coaches are involved in recruiting, while others let the player handle it with their family.
At Bixby, coach Loren Montgomery is active in the recruiting piece.
“So as far as it goes with our coaching staff and with Montgomery, he’s very involved with us, you know, he’ll do just about anything for us,” Duffel said. “He’s the greatest coach out there, his record proves that and he helps along with this process.”
Athletes’ parents are being directly affected, too.
“For my parents though, they absolutely love the idea of it,” Duffel said. “They love the idea of their son getting a free education as well as you know getting to invest.”
