College football coaches appear to have found a workaround for rules barring them from soliciting name, image and likeness deals for their players.
Just create a sense of panic.
Two months ago, Ohio State coach Ryan Day told local business leaders that his team would need $13 million in NIL money to keep its roster intact. A month later, Rutgers coach Greg Schiano reportedly informed a group of boosters that his team required an infusion of cash to keep players from being poached by more NIL-savvy teams.
In each case, the message was clear to any fan, booster or business listening: Show us the money.
UCLA coach Chip Kelly said Saturday that he could only support his team’s NIL endeavors from afar.
“I think people have kind of convoluted the whole rule,” Kelly said. “Name, image and likeness is the student-athletes can make money off of their name, image and likeness, but coaches can’t be involved in brokering deals for student-athletes. This is not pay for play, this is not recruiting inducements.”
Yet isn’t building a robust NIL program important for recruiting and retaining players?
“Well, you shouldn’t have to do it in retaining them because schools can’t recruit people off your roster,” Kelly said. “So that would be an NCAA violation if that were to be occurring. So I think if the enforcement arm of the NCAA catches up to the rules of the NCAA, I think we’ll be in a great situation.”
Several Bruins have forged notable NIL success. Quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson has made enough off his deals to cater a barbecue dinner and two-hour boat ride for the entire offense, complete with Uber vouchers to and from Marina del Rey. Receiver Kam Brown said he has secured about 10 deals, including one with Mercedes-Benz.
Some deals involve only free products, such as the clothing brands that have secured receiver Jake Bobo as an endorser. But Bobo said teammates who have enjoyed more significant NIL success have not lorded it over everyone else.
“There’s some playful jabs here and there, some jokes being thrown around like, ‘Use some of that NIL money, some for us,’ or something like that,” Bobo said. “But I mean nothing real, it doesn’t create a divide or anything down there in the locker room. That’s a…