By Kol Popkin, Carter Moran and Erika Watt

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (Nov. 5, 2024)

Kai Connor massages his temples as he looks over the list of multiple colleges that have reached out to him for the third time. The countless years of memories on track teams throughout his life playing in his head. Alabama, IU, Purdue, Columbia, and more had invited him for unofficial visits offering him differing athletic scholarships and promises. Ideas of money, publicity, and deals swarmed his mind, the dim lighting of his room starting a slight headache. Connor knew prospects of making money off of himself in college could be a genuine factor in picking his future.

His fingers tapping the desk as he took in every coach and teammate’s opinion that’s been said to him. Through all the confusion of the picking and choosing recruitment process, the only thing that provided clarity was remembering his love for running. The dedication and passion he’d put in to get where he is today further leading his motivation to continue past high school. With his competitive nature and love for track, he finally knew what college he wanted to pick and why. 

In 2021, the NCAA changed its rules to allow college athletes to profit from their name, image, and likeness. Taking away these restrictions after so many years of them being in place left many athletes and professionals in the field questioning whether this will change the motivation of athletes. Will effort levels decrease or increase if the ability to make money is available to them? Are athletes performing for the wrong reasons? We talked to multiple athletic experts on their understanding and thoughts on this.

Junior track and cross country runner at University of Alabama, Kai Connor, shared his own NIL experience and gave us his take on how making money affects college athletes. He has had involvement in deals with brands such as Reebok, CVS, and HeyDude. With the many opinions surrounding enjoyment, motivation, and pressure with NIL, we asked him how he thinks deals have affected the way athletes enjoy they’re sport. Connor said, “Not too many downsides when it comes to making money because that’s how it always should’ve been. You always should’ve been able to promote yourself on your own and reach out to companies. In sports you can only have a certain amount of scholarships, but now with NIL you can put more kids on full scholarships which is helpful. Taking away financial stress definitely increases being able to enjoy your sport.” While it could be believed that having the ability to make money at a younger age would add more pressure, Connor highlights how helpful NIL can be with financial burdens for college students. The recruitment process is also very controversial given schools that can offer more money would get the best players. However, players’ reasoning for picking colleges and motivation for their sport cab be a lot more complex than that. We see that in Connor’s situation. Knowing Alabama just finished 4th in the nation last year in track and is a top 10 program in cross country, Connor came to be pushed athletically. He said, “I wanted to be challenged, you know I didn’t want to be like the best guy coming in. It definitely makes you compete harder.” He further points out that his reasoning for picking such a competitive program was related to passion and work. 

As well as track, NIL deals are very popular in football. We interviewed IU Bloomington’s backup quarterback Tyler Cherry. He described how since he’s only a freshman, his personal experience is limited. However, he still has a lot to say around the controversy of college athletes making additional money. When asked if he thinks NIL deals will impact the future of college athletics he said, “I think NIL deals are the entire future of college athletics. I think that’ll affect a lot of recruiting situations if the schools are close, like whoever offers more money might end up getting the recruit to come to their school.” Cherry believes, like many others do, starting to make money at that age will affect the process surrounding applying and choosing schools for high school seniors. However, his beliefs for college athletes such as himself differ. While he believes NIL has completely changed the game of football, when he was asked if he feels NIL opportunities have affected his motivation to compete he said no. “I approach it the same, just want to do my best and if you’re playing good you can get some opportunities. I think some athletes may be more focused on NIL, but it doesn’t really affect the way you train. Like in high school, it’s just football that you love to do and want to do. But in addition to that, you can make good money and get opportunities off the field.” This simple statement describes how love for a sport can outweigh money-making aspects. 

Many professionals working in the athletic area believe regardless of the motivation behind someone’s work, they have the right to be able to make money off of themselves. This is the case with Galen Clavio, professor at Indiana University and NIL expert. He said, “Everybody in this room as an adult has rights of publicity. You have the right to profit off of your name, what you look like, and how your likeness is utilized within any form of media or advertising or business.” It could be said that the age of college athletes is too immature to be able to make a certain amount of money. That they’re too impressionable and may prioritize the potential deals that could be made instead of their passion for the sport. However, does that make it okay for other people to decide if they can or can’t brand themselves? Clavio believes this is a right that already exists and is not granted, “This is not a case of new rights being granted to college athletes. It is instead the removal of restrictions that were being imposed by college athletic departments upon college athletes. Essentially telling those people you do not get the same rights as the other people that are college students.” Athletes like Tyler Cherry and Kai Connor uphold this notion that the passion for a sport exceeds the prospect of making money in college. This freshman football player and junior track competitor provide the same insights that getting deals is just an additional prospect to the hard work, dedication, and commitment put into college athletics. In addition to the fact that according to Clavio, this restricted right should be given regardless of the motivation. These professionals point to incentive and effort not being an issue within NIL.

Interviewees express their opinions on NIL. They explain why or why not they like NIL, along with how they think it affects a college athlete’s motivation for their sport.

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By: Mayah Weeks, Sophie Doyne, Alaina Moore
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (Nov. 5, 2024).

It is a regular Monday morning in October. A typical iPhone alarm sounds at around 9:30 AM, and Ramsey Gary has around 30 minutes of everyday life before being thrown into her crazy schedule. Gary, a 5 ‘7 sophomore volleyball player at Indiana University, spends many hours on her sport; when asked, she states, “Outside my sleeping, like over half my day (is spent on volleyball), like 14 hours”. The rest of her time is spent on student life. However, Gary brought up another aspect of her volleyball life that goes over most of her fellow students’ heads. Her constant focus on how she presents herself as a person, her NIL. With this in mind, a question was brought up as we look deeper into NIL and college athletes. Is there a difference between the type of NIL deals male and female athletes receive? 

NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) is a fairly recent oddity in the collegiate world regarding pay. Until now, collegiate athletes have only received scholarships, but social media highly influenced the conversation about NIL. Collegiate athletes are able to earn sponsors and get paid to make social media posts, in addition to their hard work in their respective sports. Galen Clavio, a sports-media researcher, states that “up until April 2025, colleges can take athlete’s money.” So currently, two different aspects of NIL provide an income for college athletes. Clavio brings up being a good athlete and attracting television viewers, and two, being good at social media and being paid that way. With this, a topic stands out the most: the difference between NIL in female and male athletes. Women athletes must work harder and face more challenges than their male counterparts to secure NIL deals, which are often overlooked. 

Being a woman and playing a sport comes with added pressure to make your name known on and off the court, while men focus almost solely on just playing the sport. To gain brand visibility, women must capitalize on their marketability, personality, and social media following. At the same time, male athletes tend to get NIL deals based on their field performance and media coverage. In fact, women were the first to benefit from social media and NILs. When asked about this topic in a panel, an athletic advisor at IU, Jeremy Gray, states, “Women make up an outsize portion of it (NIL), they’re way more effective on social media, and that male counterparts have yet to master the art of NIL.” Although it is much easier for female athletes to gain a following on different platforms, male sports still receive more attention than females. When asked about this, many students at IU stated that they are more educated on men’s sports than women’s. This caused women athletes to become their own marketers and create individual content that makes them seem appealing to brands. Women’s leagues lack the same audience male leagues get, causing brands to avoid giving these deals to women, initiating athletes to work much harder and focus on many other factors their male counterparts never have to consider. 

[Kaltura]https://iu.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/t/1_f6fadi5y[/Kultura]

We interviewed various Indiana University students to find out their thoughts on how gender affects NIL. The interviews highlighted the societal standards placed on collegiate female athletes. 

Women have gender stereotypes they have to keep in mind while trying to secure these deals. Brands mainly look for women to do beauty, fashion, and aesthetic deals. A great example is the LSU gymnast Olivia Dunne, who is the most followed NCAA athlete on social media. Most of her followers do not keep up with her sport but rather her beauty. NILs like this leave broad or even sports-related sponsorships for men. Stereotypes like this force women athletes to work harder because they must look for brands that fit these beauty categories. In addition, women athletes spend more time off the court interacting with their fans and creating content. “You’re working on your NIL every day of your life, and people are always judging you, looking at you in a certain way. If I hold the door for someone, I am portraying my core values,” Gary adds. Even with the extra time and effort women athletes put in, NIL deals are not evenly distributed by gender. 

Women’s sports have to face lower salaries and receive less funding than men’s. This creates a more significant focus on receiving NIL deals, which is even more important for female athletes when looking for the support they need to keep the sport alive. Most of the time, NIL money is put toward hiring better coaches and providing for transportation costs. With these smaller budgets, brands giving these NIL deals to female athletes have to make sure it’s worth the investment, and this causes women to have to do what I mentioned earlier – work harder, interact with their fans, and perform on and off the court. NIL is important for all sides of the field, whether man or woman. However, women have worked for years to gain the attention they deserve. Recently, their efforts have benefitted them more now than ever as “there has been a large increase in women’s sports watchers,” according to Clavio, so despite the revenue gap between the two genders, there is still hope for these fighting women to make the money they deserve and hopefully catch a break.

By: Xander Yeh, Kyla Dunigan, Lindsay Iaquinta

BLOOMINGTON, Indiana (Oct. 25, 2024)

INDIANA – New NIL Rulings Impact More than just Young Athlete Financials

On a bright, fervent afternoon in Indiana University, the quiet air is shattered by the roar of the crowd, rumbling the courts and echoing throughout the Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. The game has approached its last moments—every second counting, Indiana University’s shooting guard Anthony Leal shoots and sinks a basket, scoring his team the final point needed to bring home a victory. The packed stands deafen the stadium with cheering, Leal and his peers hug and triumphantly celebrate. It was a moment to savor, but for Leal, it reminded him the importance of giving it everything he had.

As the noise fades and the players head to their locker rooms, many athletes shift their focus, now facing the responsibilities of life beyond the court. But for Leal, the game is everything and passionately is able to continue developing his skills and legacy on a new playing field—the NIL landscape. Due to the recent Supreme Court ruling, NCAA v. Alston, student-athletes finally have the opportunity to benefit from their name, image, and likeness. But this change does not come without scrutiny.

With disparities in earnings and the status of student-athletes in the spotlight, NIL has sparked debate and controversy—a backlash and legal battle that affect the careers of many athletes like Leal. Critics and some athletes who struggle to leverage their identities claim that is unfair and distracting. As tensions boil and new regulations take shape, many student-athletes push back with their own narratives—Leal and his teammates see things differently, believing that such concerns are overblown.

“(NIL) makes you want to perform even better,” said Anthony Leal when asked directly about how the ruling affects his gameplay. “The better you play the more opportunities you might have.”

Leal and his team’s performance have not shown signs of decline attributed to competing NIL deals—it appears to have strengthened. On the court, Leal’s team enters a flow state, focusing on their shared goal of victory; NIL is only embraced as a bonus for after the final buzzer. Concerns of internal conflict—driven by jealousy or envy—appear to stem from outside observers, failing to align with the athletes’ reality.

“We are all aware that we are a lot better off this way (and) we are still mainly focused on trying to win games—NIL is kind of on the side,” said Leal when asked his opinion on concerns of internal dynamics. “It is not like this player is making more than me or I am making more than this player—that sort of thing has never really come up.”

The rising controversy has intimidated many aspiring athletes, stirring resentment and debate. But concerns over equity and team dynamics often overshadow the broader appeal of NIL, reflecting something much deeper than financial gain. To many athletes and directors, success in the industry is multi-faceted, requiring more than just game performance. NIL is argued to fill these gaps, providing student athletes the opportunity to develop skills that last beyond their athletic bubble and time in college.

“There is still the mission of turning young people into functional professional adults,” said Senior Associate Athletic Director Jeremy Gray when interviewed about NIL implications outside the field. “If you go through the NIL landscape you learn how to brand yourself, (how to manage) taxes, how to present yourself and how to run a business.”

Leal corroborates NIL’s opportunistic benefits, voicing how “Real estate deals for NIL have opened up a career possibility” and emphasizing how he has “(gotten) more into the business world and outside of the sports world.”

The pursuit of academic paths often provides students with a skillset and sense of independence that lasts long after college years. This raises an important question: why should student-athletes be limited from gaining the same kind of advantages?

Jeremy believes that “(NIL) is an excellent training ground for them… it’s like the world’s coolest group project… it gets them ready for a professional role.”

For many, the ruling represents more than just an opportunity, but a foundational right.

“Everybody in this room as an adult has a right to publicity,” Galen Clavio said during a class presentation about the topic of NIL for student athletes. “You have a right to profit off your publicity… (it) is not a case of new rights, it is instead the removal of NCAA restrictions.”

The clash between the echoes of tradition and the consequences of progression continues to pave the future of sports. Now, thanks to the Supreme Court ruling, players like Leal can step off the court into a new age of college athletics, defined by holistic opportunity and growth. NIL may have complicated the industry forever, but it is clear that the game is no longer confined to the courtᅳand for athletes like Leal, that makes every moment worth playing for.

Students and a professor near Franklin Hall voice their opinions on NIL and its impact. The interviewees were chosen arbitrarily and express support for NIL, emphasizing how the system is fair and rewards hard work.

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By Ava Fletcher, Sofia Harari, and Titan Williams

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (Nov. 5, 2024)

“What’s NIL?” This was the first thought that popped into Mijntje Hagen’s head as she sat through Indiana University’s freshmen athletic seminar with her fellow athletes. Coming from the Netherlands, this was the first time Hagen had heard of benefitting off her own name, image, and likeness. Bright eyes around the room twinkled with thoughts of dollar signs as IU administrators explained how to connect with brands on social media. At a time of excitement for many college athletes, Hagen sat through the rest of the meeting in silence after learning that these opportunities were out of reach for someone like her. Due to the current regulations placed on international collegiate athletes, Hagen and thousands of other foreign athletes are left out of the NIL goldmine.

The July 2021 Supreme Court ruling of NCAA v. Alston granted collegiate athletes the right to profit off their name, image, and likeness, commonly referred to as NIL. Since then, individual states and universities have established clear guidelines for how their athletes should handle NIL engagements. The same clarity is not found for international athletes. With high restrictions and little education of NIL policies for international athletes, these students are often left in a vulnerable position.

While it may not seem like a high-profile issue, international athletes do hold a strong footing in the NCAA. According to NIL Daily, 12.8% of NCAA D1 athletes are international students, with men’s basketball slightly surpassing this average at 15%. Like their American counterparts, international athletes have worked extremely hard to be recognized and selected by their universities, yet they still cannot pursue the same NIL opportunities. Hagen says she and many of her international peers have given up hope in benefitting from their NIL. “I just think that a lot of international students don’t really pay attention to these things because they know they won’t be able to receive a real deal,” Hagen said.

“Name, image, and likeness in college sports has rapidly become one of the most misunderstood things,” Dr. Galen Clavio, Associate Dean of the IU Media School, said. A common misunderstanding is that foreign athletes cannot receive any form of NIL. Benefitting off NIL as an international athlete is possible, but only through passive engagements. NIL engagements are divided into two parts: passive and active. Passive engagements essentially require no work from the athlete and is completely based on their popularity alone. The athlete gives a company license to use their name, image, likeness, voice, and jersey number for merchandise, video game characters, or other products. Active engagements do require some form of work from the athlete, like social media postings or public appearances. Active NIL engagements are much more popular and ultimately more lucrative than passive engagements.

A key word to note in the difference between passive and active engagements is “work”. Whether an international athlete must do work to complete the NIL engagement determines if activity is permitted, and this goes back to the F-1 visa. The F-1 visa is reserved for foreign students studying full time in the United States. This visa comes with several restrictions, especially in terms of employment. Students on an F-1 visa can only work on-campus jobs or in programs that relate to their prospective careers, making them ineligible to participate in active NIL engagements.

In November 2023, BAL Immigration Law Firm discussed NIL with D1 NCAA schools from across the country and within each of the NCAA Power-Five Conferences. The discussions resulted in five key themes, from student guidance and vulnerability to NIL’s effect on the economy and the college athlete experience. Calls for student guidance was the most common request, with administrators wanting complete clarity on what athletes on the F-1 visa can and cannot do regarding NIL. The current guidelines have led some colleges to look for loopholes, promising foreign athletes NIL benefits despite the F-1 restrictions. Such activities put these athletes at high risk of violating their visa, resulting in the loss of F-1 benefits or even deportation. The barriers for international athletes to participate in active engagements could also cause tensions between them and team members who can. “Anytime there’s paid discrepancies in the workplace, it can change a dynamic,” Jeremy Gray, Senior Associate Athletic Director at Indiana University, said.

With growing concern and awareness of the issue, there has been attempts to create equality for international collegiate athletes. Most recently, Congressman Mike Flood and Congresswoman Valeria Foushee proposed the Name, Image, and Likeness for International Collegiate Athletes Act this past April.  The main goal of the act is to allow athletes on the F-1 Visa to accept active NIL engagements. This would also allow them to participate in lucrative NIL collectives, which fall under the active category. As the bill is simpler than most in that it only focuses on a single issue, the bill’s outlook is positive.

“Everybody in this room as an adult has rights to publicity,” Clavio said. But due to their citizenship status, or lack thereof, international collegiate athletes cannot simply be guaranteed the same rights, creating complicated dynamics across the NCAA. The Name, Image, and Likeness for International Collegiate Athletes Act has potential to enable international athletes to participate in active NIL engagements, but until then, Mijntje Hagen her peers have decided to stay focused on their athletic and academic careers at Indiana University.

Bloomington residents express their thoughts on NIL rights for international collegiate athletes. International athletes competing at U.S. universities are currently prohibited from certain NIL engagements due to the restrictions of their F-1 visa.

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By Brooks White, Emily Gustitus and Gracie Peltier

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (Nov. 5, 2024) — One year ago, nobody would have imagined Indiana University football being undefeated and being the fourth-highest-ranked Big Ten team. 

The Indiana Hoosiers are 9-0 for the first time in the program’s 137-year history. The Hoosiers have already equaled the program’s previous winningest season. The record hasn’t been touched in 57 years, and in Head Coach Curt Cignetti’s first year at the helm of the program, the Hoosiers see themselves on the brink of a College Football Playoff berth. 

On November 30, 2023, Curt Cignetti was hired as the Head Coach of the Indiana Hoosiers. Exactly one year later, his team will face cross-state rivals, the Purdue Boilermakers, with the chance to cap off the historic regular season with the Old Oaken Bucket. But how did Curt Cignetti’s dominant team come to be? 

The simple answer is the transfer portal and generous donations from members of Hoosiers Connect, Indiana’s NIL collective. “Hoosiers Connect made it public after the hiring of Curt Cignetti that they were willing to spend 4.5 million on the roster,” said Jeremy Gray, Senior Associate Athletic Director for Strategic Communications and Director of the Cuban Center. The Hoosiers anticipated an emphasis on NIL’s use in Curt Cignetti’s first year as the head coach of the Hoosiers. 

Cignetti signed up for a rebuild when he took the head coaching job at IU. When he left James Madison University, 13 players came with him, joining another 17 transfers to round out the 2024 Hoosier roster. The most notable of these transfers is quarterback Kurtis Rourke. Formerly an Ohio University Bobcat, Rourke was named the 2022 MAC Offensive Player of the Year after a season with over 240 completed passes and multiple records set at Ohio University. Rourke is a redshirt senior who transferred to Indiana for his last year of eligibility. 

So far this season, Rourke has posted the second-highest quarterback rating (QBR), at 91.6. Furthermore, the $4.5 million promised to Cignetti by the NIL collective, Hoosiers Connect was used to recruit the current rushing and receiving leaders, Justice Ellison and Elijah Sarratt. The trio of Rourke, Sarratt, and Ellison has accounted for 28 total Touchdowns and has the Hoosiers firmly in contention for the Big Ten Title and a College Football Playoff berth. All three of these players received deals from Hoosiers Connect in October.

Ellison is contracted through Hoosiers Connect to post content on social media related to Indiana athletics and boost engagement with the athletic department. Tyler Harris, Executive Director of Hoosiers Connect, says, “our big mission is to have athletes that are interested in IU. They know that when they come to IU, they can really maximize this opportunity off the field.” The focus of Hoosiers Connect is to promote the student-athletes and the programs that Indiana has to offer. Hoosier Connect also works to supplement costs not covered by athletic scholarships. The goal of the Indiana football team and its partnership with Hoosiers Connect is to spread engagement with the Hoosier community by providing athletes with opportunities to profit from their name, image, and likeness.

“Coach Cignetti is an unbelievable coach. 1000% credit to him and what he’s built,” says Harris. Cignetti has made remarkable strides for the Indiana Hoosiers, and much of that comes from the transfers he brought this year. He has recruited numerous well-rounded athletes who have contributed significantly to the 9-0 record for the Hoosier football team.

Indiana football isn’t the only team on campus with a big budget; Indiana University’s men’s basketball has NIL stars of their own. After losing six of their top players after the 2023-24 season, Head Coach Mike Woodson needed to do some recruiting over the off-season. “Allegedly,  IU men’s basketball spent close to $4 million in NIL money bringing in players this off-season. That’s the name of the game,” Galen Clavio notes in his press conference with our C250 class. Clavio explains that much of the NIL money gets imputed into the football and basketball rosters.

The Hoosiers brought in six powerhouse players, most notably Oumar Ballo and Myles Rice. Ballo is a 7-foot center from Arizona, and he reportedly received $1.2 million in NIL money after committing to IU. As a junior in the 2022-23 season, he was a part of the All-Pac-12 first team and had a career-high 14.2 points per game. He still has one year of eligibility left due to COVID-19, making this year his sixth college basketball season.

Another part of the All-Pac-12 first team, Myles Rice, has also joined the Hoosiers this season. The guard was also named Pac-12 Freshman of the Year for the 2023-24 season, in which he averaged 14.8 points per game. Rice has a uniquely inspiring story as he redshirted the 2021-22 season, and then missed the 2022-23 season to recover from Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He transferred from Washington State after the 2023-24 season.

The NIL collective has been an integral part of the recent success of IU’s athletic programs, and the Hoosiers are continuing to look for opportunities to keep the winning streak going across the board.

While interviewing people on the street, we got multiple perspectives on the current NIL landscape. These people told us about how NIL has shaped Indiana University athletics and the dynamics of the teams this year. 

By Riley Leichliter, Roland Liu, and Brooke Daugherty

BLOOMINGTON,  Indiana (November. 4, 2024) –

There’s nothing like performing well within your college sport, hearing everyone cheer and feeling an immense amount of pride in your athletic ability. Athletes like Indiana University Division 1 wrestler Anthony Bahl and American University lacrosse player Deirdre Brown have experienced this firsthand. While athletic skills remain important in college recruiting, a strong social media presence, and marketability are now influencing factors.  NIL is tied to fan engagement,  many programs have recognized the value of recruiting athletes with the potential to build a school’s brand.

However, Dr. Galen Clavio, director of the National Sports Journalism Center at IU, warns that focusing too heavily on popularity could undermine the core values of athletic competition. “You don’t see professional sports teams signing athletes solely because they are popular on social media,” Clavio noted, emphasizing that recruitment should prioritize athletic skill over online presence.

Anthony Bahl, a wrestler at Indiana University, sees a balance between talent and marketability. “Skill is the most important thing,” Bahl emphasized, “but if an athlete has a strong social media presence, it can bring more attention and fans to the program, which can be valuable. But at the end of the day, skill and hard work should still come first.” These abilities can benefit both athletes and schools.  Bahl’s perspective speaks on creating a recruiting environment that favors well-rounded recruits with an athletic and public appeal.

Deirdre Brown, a Division 1 women’s lacrosse player at American University, agrees that while social media can give insight into a recruit’s character, it shouldn’t overshadow athletic scholarships. “I think that while it can be a tool used within recruiting, I do not believe that a decision should be solely made based on someone’s social media presence. At the end of the day, you are there to play a sport and do a job,” Brown said. Clavio’s view echoes Brown’s, in that coaches are now having to navigate the balance between recruiting athletes that have a social media following and those with athletic potential.

For incoming athletes, the ability to earn money from NIL deals can play a huge role in deciding where to pursue college sports. While many still prioritize the strength of the athletic program and quality of coaching, NIL considerations have introduced new criteria. Bahl remembers that when he was looking at schools, NIL opportunities factored into his decision-making. “NIL was definitely something I thought about. It’s a big chance to earn money from a brand, so I wanted to choose a school that would support that,” he said.

Both athletes acknowledged the appeal of going to a school with a team as well as a social media presence. Bahl talked about IU’s fan base and popular sports culture as factors that influenced his decision. “The school’s popularity and strong fan support make it a great place to compete,” he said. Brown, too, was drawn to American University’s active engagement on Instagram, where content allowed her to see the team’s character and unity. “AUWLAX at the time had a large following, and they consistently posted videos of the team,” she said. “It allowed me to see inside the personality of the team.”

Both athletes compared their busy schedules to full-time jobs. With practices, games/meets, classes, and studying the time commitment can easily exceed 40 hours per week. Although NIL earnings and scholarships provide financial support, they both stressed the importance of rewards like personal growth, being a part of a team, and skill development.

Bahl expressed that, while scholarship and NIL money are helpful, “the real reward is in the experience and everything I learn along the way.” Brown echoed this highlighting the life lessons and values developed through balancing academics and athletics. “The reward is my education and personality development,” she said. For these athletes, NIL is a meaningful addition to their sports journey, yet it does not overshadow the significance of their educational and personal achievements.

Dr. Clavio has a more cautious view of NIL’s future, warning that programs could be at risk of prioritizing money over athletic tradition. “The NCAA, for a variety of reasons, has been desperately trying to fight against external parties… like being able to make direct payments to athletes,” he explained. He suggests that NIL could challenge the NCAA’s sports model, and change collegiate athletics. “With this, we could see a lot of college athletic programs revert back down to what some would consider club status,” Clavio said.

For less prominent sports, however, Brown sees less impact of a NIL impact on recruiting. She thinks that sports like football and basketball will leverage the NIL heavily, potentially recruiting athletes with high social media status to boost funding. “To some teams, it may be to their benefit to recruit a higher-status player, in order to bring in more fans, attendance, and money to the team,” she says.  But, for smaller sports, Brown expects the recruiting process to remain relatively unaffected, with coaches continuing to focus on athletic skills and team fit over marketability.

The NIL policy has changed the NCAA sports  world,  reshaping recruiting and athlete choices. In this new era, athletes like Bahl and Brown are witnessing how opportunities to profit from their name, image, and likeness are influencing both their personal decisions and broader institutional approaches. Indiana University, like many others, is adapting to these changes, preparing athletes to not only excel in their sports but also to manage their brands and navigate NIL. As the policy evolves, so too will the roles and expectations of student-athletes where athletic talent, personal branding, and financial opportunity will cross paths.

On Friday Oct. 18. on Kirkwood Avenue, various students and visitors were intreviewed about their thoughts on the potential impact NIL could have on recruitment. Overall, those interviewed believed that athletes should be judged based on skill over marketability when it comes to recruitment. 

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Money is one of three things.

Money is good. Money is manipulative. Money is powerful.

Dave Ramsey, founder of Ramsey Solutions, once said, “We’re blessed to be a blessing, to bring light to a dark world… I want to find how many ways a $20 bill or $100 bill or more can become a generosity butterfly.”

Money is good.

Jordan Belfort was one of the most successful people in all of America in the 90’s. Belfort was not born into wealth but rather created it himself through his company Stratton Oakmont, a stock brokerage firm. Belfort was eventually arrested and convicted on charges of fraud and money laundering. Years later when he was asked about why he did it, Belfort said, “I got greedy.” A man who came from nothing got the taste of money and lost everything because of greed.

Money is manipulative.

When President Donald Trump was running for election in 2016 a lot was asked about his business and specifically what he did with his money. He made one remark saying when he was a businessman, he would give to both republicans and democrats. Why they asked, “because when I needed a favor, I knew who to call,” said Trump.

Money is Powerful.

Knowing the strong impacts of money makes the topic of name, image, and likeliness (NIL) so interesting, and specifically the impacts it has on recruiting. Can it all get chalked up to being a good thing that college athletes are being paid or is there more to it. Is money manipulating kids into making decisions on where to attend school or giving universities power over young adults?

During this current football season, the quarterback from UNLV sat out of games and ultimately transferred due to not receiving a payment he was promised during recruiting. Dr Galen Clavio, an expert on NIL, said, “If he was promised all of that money and it wasn’t delivered (then) why should he stay.”

UNLV was undefeated and ranked prior to the quarterback’s decision to transfer out. Knowing this must make one ask, was going to UNLV only about the money and not the school or quality of the team? Also, Did UNLV use the incentive of money as power to get a recruit?  It would not be outrageous to assume so, considering how it all played out. And if this is going down at UNLV, a Group of 5 school that wouldn’t nearly have the source of revenue and donor money a Power 4 school would have, is this happening at a much larger level elsewhere?

We interviewed three different Division I athletes and asked them all the same questions. First what NIL deals do they have, was money brought up during recruiting and if so, what impact did that have. Finally, what made them decide to go to school where they did?

Drew Thompson, a freshman that plays soccer here at Indiana University, said, “My only NIL deal is through the school with the Indiana NIL Store, but nothing with outside companies or anything like that.” He then said, “Money was never brought up in recruiting and had no impact. I landed on IU because of the coaches and the success of the program. But also, it’s close to home and I’ve always been a fan.”

Spencer Porath, the starting football kicker at Purdue University, had a similar response to Thompson on the first question, saying, “My NIL deals come through the school at our (NIL) store. I don’t have any other deals with companies but some of my teammates do.” When asked about how they go about getting those deals, Porath said, “It just depends on person to person.” I then asked him about his thoughts on NIL impact on recruits, Porath said, “I can only really speak on my own recruiting process but I’m sure that it might affect more people than others, personally though it didn’t even really come to my mind.” I then asked him if NIL was brought up during recruiting and he responded, “No I didn’t even know how it would work until I was signed.” Finally, I asked what made him choose Purdue. “I liked the kicking coach a lot and it came down to scholarships and play time. The rules for offering kickers scholarships are different [from] other positions so Purdue could offer me a full ride and I could start as a freshman.”

Our final interviewee chose to stay anonymous. He is a football player at a Power 4 school now after transferring in from a Group of 5 after two seasons there. “Here, I have one through the school and two with local companies on campus.” When asked how that compared to his previous school, he said, “There really wasn’t NIL where I came from.” We then asked what impact that had on his decision to leave, he said, “It was one factor but not everything. I wanted to leave because I could play at a higher level of football and that would help with my ultimate goal of making it to the NFL.” Ultimately, when asked why he chose the school he did over other schools he had offers from to transfer to, he said, “Coaching was a factor for sure, so was money. I was promised some money to come here which was obviously appealing but also just the goal of getting to the next level, I thought that was most obtainable here.”

As a new generation of athletes, many of which have had the influence of social media and the internet around their entire lives, become more and more involved in different schools’ programs, it’s clear that while NIL is certainly a factor students are paying more and more attention to. However, it seems that lately it still remains only one factor taken into consideration along with things like scholarships and coaching, as these athletes work to reach their goals.

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By Cordelia Ellis, Will Sowle, Brynn Stewart and Caroline Brackett

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (Nov. 5, 2024) – Saturday is game day. Thousands of students across the country flock to stadiums to watch their team take on their newest weekly opponent. Saturday November 2nd, for example, the Arkansas Razorbacks are playing Ole Miss, Oregon is playing Michigan and Indiana University will take on Michigan State. Tailgate leftovers will be littered around the grass, loud music will make people’s ears ring and the smell of grilled hamburgers and hotdogs will filter through the air. That is the tradition of Saturday game days for colleges. 

One question: Did you know that the Indiana ice hockey team will face off against DePaul or that the Indiana Men’s swim team faces off against the Texas Longhorns, also on Saturday? No tailgates, no grilled hotdogs and certainly not thousands of students flocking the stands.

The popularity of collegiate sports is the same as anything else. The same as Sororities and Fraternities, there are levels, a hierarchy of sorts. At the collegiate level Football and Basketball stand tall amongst the rest. Winning or losing, their fans pack the stands, scream and yell, shout obscenities against the other team and wear their school colors with pride; with the added bonus  of media and television exposure to add monetary benefits. 

“It’s all about exposure,” Van Mathias said “until we have major TV deals we won’t have that limelight.”

As the Director of Ops for Indiana Swimming, Mathias swam for IU during the years of 2016-2020. The popularity of collegiate sports was still heavily prevalent, however nowadays the popularity isn’t just in the sports, but the athletes as well. 

Collegiate sports have become just as much about free agency as it has skill and capabilities. The newest addition to collegiate athletes lives is Name, Image and Likeness (NIL).  A 2021 Supreme Court ruling allows collegiate athletes to benefit and make money from the commercial use of who they are and their positions as athletes. Allowing them to have the right to market themselves as their own personal brand for a profit; gaining endorsement deals, selling merchandise and appearing in advertisements. 

“They have intrinsic value as individuals in the marketplace,” Dr.  Clavio said.

Working as the Head of the Sports Media Program at IU, Dr. Clavio has seen how NIL has evolved over time to allow collegiate athletes to market themselves and build a brand off of their name, image and likeness. However, the NIL spread hasn’t reached all collegiate athletes the same. The spread of NIL works side-by-side with the popularity of the sports themselves, however is this spread fair for the athletes? Does NIL leave too many holes and missed opportunities for a whole group of collegiate athletes from less recognized sports? 

Jerry Jorgensen, former D1 Track & Field mid-distance runner for Nebraska, spoke on the fairness of the attention spread given to different collegiate athletes based on sport. “It’d be awesome to make the amount of money these football players are making,” Jorgensen said, “but I think in the real world those players from basketball, football, those big three, four sports are bringing in a little bit more popularity to the school, little more attention in the media so in all fairness they should probably be making the big bucks.” 

Kennedy Neighbors, Sophomore midfielder for Indiana University’s soccer team also spoke on this, “It shows how the fan bases and popularity of certain athletes and teams play a role,” Neighbors said, “With football getting around 50k fans per game and basketball players being so recognizable, it’s tough to generate the same NIL money when we don’t have the same level of revenue.” 

Both athletes from less recognized sports understand that there is a popularity scale regarding the possible NIL money that can be received. Organizations want to endorse athletes that have larger media and fan engagement rather than athletes who lack in both. It is inconceivable that all sports would receive the same disbursement or opportunities as others. Not all sports generate thousands of seats per game,  earning thousands of dollars for their schools. 

The IU Men’s swimming team is currently ranked #1 and in previous years they have stayed in top 5 ranked positions. Even though sports like swimming are less recognized in collegiate popularity, they still hold a good reputation and players are able to receive NIL deals. However, without the same exposure, is it fair that athletes from more recognized sports receive additional attention, regardless of whether their season is ‘successful?'” 

“Appraisal of athletes, personally I think it should be off of merit,” Van Mathias said, “if you go to a school and ride the bench it should be based off of performance and merit.” 

Mathias’ idea of merit is shared by soccer player Kennedy Neighbors, “I think it should ultimately be a balance,” Neighbors said, “I think it’s important for the athlete to be recognized athletically for their hard work and commitment, but I think popularity can boost things like engagement with others and the overall visibility of the brand.” 

Acknowledging the athletes abilities and achievements in their sport is no longer as important as it once was.  Having a popularity or media engagement that a brand can build on is now just as important. A proper balance between the two is needed for athletes to receive endorsements and properly market themselves to potential brands. 

Not every sport fills out stadiums and has tailgate leftovers littered on the grass, but every athlete works hard to achieve both athletic achievements and proper marketability.

Indiana University students answered questions about NIL. They talked about their thoughts and opinions about the fairness of NIL in different sports. 

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NIL helps create more opportunities for college athletes

By William Reeves, Victoria DiRocco, and Amy Hansen

BLOOMINGTON, IN (Nov. 5, 2024) – If you were to tell college athletes 10 years ago that they could make money while still enrolled in college, people would call you crazy.

Today, it has become a reality for these athletes because now they are able to gain profit by promoting a product through social media and commercials. In 2021, the NCAA ruled that college athletes would now be able to make money using their name, image, and likeness (NIL) for commercial purposes. This allows the athletes to have merchandise with their credentials on it, appear in advertisements, and other various opportunities to promote their fame. Before 2021, college athletes weren’t able to make money off their NIL, which made them have to rely on the scholarship money they were given by the university. Now, athletes, like Shawn Asbury II, can make money by not only playing their sport but by promoting their NIL through various forms of advertisement.

Our angle for this story was to navigate through college athletes who benefit from NIL deals, and how and if they are beneficial. To give more insight into this news story, we asked three different people what they thought about this rising trend in sports; Shawn Asbury II,  Luke Maslin, and Galen Clavio. Asbury is a Defensive Back for the rising Indiana Hoosiers and is currently a Senior, who had recently transferred from Old Dominion University. Maslin is a senior at IU and is studying Sports Management and Marketing. Clavio is the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education for the Media School and is a Professor of Sports Media.

Asbury has two NIL deals, so we asked him about his experience securing those opportunities. “It was pretty easy,” Asbury said, “a lot of them reach out to you especially because I transferred in, so a lot of them want to get onto the new players early. ” Next, he discussed with us how being able to profit from his NIL changed his approach to college athletics and academics. “It definitely changed that perspective because I’ve never been part of that,” Asbury said.

“Coming from a smaller school, it was definitely cool to see a school that has more money because they’re able to do a lot more things so you’re able to create a lot more different designs that you might not be able to create at other schools and you’re able to have different opportunities you might not have somewhere else.” Asbury has become a fan favorite to the IU fanbase, so why not hear from an IU fan what they think about NIL deals?

Maslin is a proud IU fan, we asked him how the introduction of NIL deals has changed his views on college sports. “I feel like there’s a difference where some athletes are specifically going to schools just for the money,” Maslin said. “And specifically the last few years of basketball and football, I would say, are the two biggest examples of this.” We then asked him if NIL deals help create a connection with local businesses and the community. “Definitely creates more focus on local businesses,” Maslin said. “If you look at IU, definitely some of the bigger names will be attracted by the bigger brands, but you have places like BuffaLouie’s and Eric Gordon’s Greek’s Pizzeria. All these local shops where they’re sponsoring local athletes in order to get them some money and also to help promote them. It allows for the local businesses to grow a partnership with these athletes, teams, and the school themselves because at the end of the day, they’re all local so they’re doing their best to stick together.” The fans love that NIL deals benefit the community around them, but an expert’s opinion can always strengthen a news story.

In Clavio’s press conference, we picked out one question that our team liked the most. “Do you think the rise of Women’s Basketball has affected NIL disproportionally?” “I wouldn’t say disproportionally,” Clavio said. “I think a couple of things are happening with women’s sports. There is clearly a groundswell of spectator interest in women’s sports from where we were ten years ago, even five years ago. I think that was probably always going to recur as media became more decentralized, you think about your viewing habits and what you’re interested in. It’s easier to follow sports that are not in primetime on television now than it was 10 years ago because of the rise of digital television services and streaming services and whatnot.” With the world of media we live in the fans can watch the most popular teams as they are shown more often and this is the case for IU Women’s Basketball.

To learn more about what our fans thought about NIL deals, we went through the streets of Bloomington to learn what the community thought about the rising trend. These three interviewees provided interesting thoughts on the topic and great information.

Three interviewees were from the streets of Bloomington, Indiana on a Friday morning. Our group interviewed three people to learn more about their thoughts on NIL deals.

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By  AnaCecilia Cornejo, Aisling Zarate, and Sonny Hoekstra,

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (Oct. 30, 2024) – Eyes focused, heart racing, a weighted metal ball in hand, patiently awaiting the announcement to throw. The track team can be heard from across the sidelines, screaming and radiating energy for their team. Drew Franklin can feel his muscles tense up as the time is ticking, quickly planting his feet to get his proper foot positioning. Transferring all his energy from his legs to his core, he slings the ball forward and it lands. The judge quickly goes over to measure the distance, now all that awaits is the results.

The results are in and Franklin has successfully set a new record in his Shot Put event! The whole crowd and team erupted in cheer as they stood to give a standing ovation. After the meet Franklin takes to social media to share his accomplishments with his followers. Like many athletes, Drew Franklin, a current sophomore at Indiana University Bloomington, has seen how the role of social media corresponds with Name, Image, and Likeness deals.

NIL, short for “Name, Image, and Likeness,” grants college and high school athletes the right to profit from their own image. NIL rights allow athletes to engage in endorsement deals, advertising, merchandise sales, and paid social media sponsorships. Previously, there has been a lot of controversy surrounding the NCAA, which prohibited student-athletes from monetizing their NIL deals. But that has since changed following the 2021 U.S. Supreme Court ruling. In 2024, the NCAA reached a settlement that further expands NIL rights, allowing colleges to compensate their athletes and allocating nearly $2.8 billion for past and current athletes. Athletes can now leverage from NIL rights by signing contracts and working with brands.

Since NIL has been established, athletes like Franklin have been able to explore the territory of NIL with social media and leverage financially. This has changed the game completely. With many social media sites, such as TikTok, increasing in popularity IU athletes have been taking advantage. “A lot of attention comes from TikTok” , said Franklin. He explained how companies look into your profile and audience. “Athletes on my team who have more followers and overall likes, are getting asked to do promotions more often”, said Franklin. This new era of athlete influencers has transformed social media with the utilization of social media as a professional asset to gain profit opportunities.

NIL has also been a great opportunity for brands to work with collegiate athletes. By using athletes, brands can expand their reach to various audiences. College sports are becoming more and more popular in recent years, so by using a popular athlete’s image there is an opportunity to reach a larger audience within a specific demographic. This allows brands to connect with consumers on a more personal level. Professor Joe Glennon at Indiana University has seen his fair share of brand building. Professor Glennon was the department chair of Advertising and Public Relations at Temple University and is now a senior lecturer for Indiana University’s Media School. “There’s a direct relationship between share of voice and market share. That’s on the consumer and brand side, but there’s a parallel to that on the athlete and NIL side”, said Glennon. The marketing metric, share of voice (SOV) Glennon mentions, measures how much a brand is being talked about compared to its competitors. The value and image of the brand is helped when having a relationship with athletes on social media, especially when the athletes image aligns with theirs.

Indiana University Athletics has demonstrated the importance of how real-time content in sports has affected the engagement of their social media posts as well as their athletes. Jack Venegoni, a current Indiana University Athletics Social / Digital Media Intern knows personally how IU’s efforts has boosted athlete visibility. Working with the Cuban Center for Sports Media Venegoni has worked with various teams such as football, men and women’s basketball, volleyball and many others. During basketball season, Venegoni would receive photos during the games and begin uploading them live during the game. “The athletes are able to use all photos and videos we take of them on their personal counts”, Venegoni said. Player highlights being posted online in real time boosts their personal brand, fans from all over the country interact as the emotions are at an all time high.

Venegoni also noted about an NIL deal that became a huge deal in Bloomington, the Malik Reneau burger. After his freshman year, Indiana University’s basketball power forward Malik Reneau signed a NIL Deals with Big Woods restaurant to get his own item on the menu. The burger has been advertised all over Reneau’s social media and brought a lot of publicity to Big Woods. The restaurant has gained a lot of social media attention because of this and “It became a big deal and became a meme, it soon got more people to realize that they haven’t even tried it and gave them more publicity”, said Venegoni. Through partnerships like this, athletes and business both mutually benefit and drive significant business growth. Social media is important within NIL deals because the influence and fanbase from a collegiate athlete can create buzz and attract new customers for business and brands.

The relationship between social media and NIL deals has benefitted athletes, brands, and business. As seen through athletes like Drew Franklin and Malik Reneau, the use of social media has increased their reach, turning their athletic accomplishments into a valuable resource for themselves and partnering with businesses. Online presence allows for brands to interact with college sports audiences while providing athletes with opportunities to take advantage of their likeness. NIL deals are more than just partnerships with brands, athletes and brands now work together to build connections and relationships that are shared online.

Indiana University students share their opinion on how social media effects college athletes. Many college athletes have taken to social media to build themselves a personal brand.

Featured photo taken by Lauren Bacho.

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