How South Carolina college athletes might make money if NCAA rules are rolled back
In some ways, a future landscape for endorsements across college sports could well reflect the unevenness of that space itself. Many schools play many sports, but for the most part a small slice of each drives the most interest and revenue.
On Wednesday, the NCAA announced it would take steps to allow student-athletes to earn money for their name, image and likeness. That change comes out ahead of multiple laws seeking to force that arrangement on the college sports world and opens up a host of new questions about scale and what’s allowed.
And one of the more pressing is, what are the actual avenues by which a player would be able to earn money?
The standard refrain is about local ads, whether it be a car dealership, restaurant or real estate agency. But there’s more to it than that.
Dan Everett runs ESM, a group that provides sports marketing representation for more than a few well-known athletes. With offices in Atlanta and Greenville, ESM handles marketing for former South Carolina Gamecocks Deebo Samuel, the recently drafted Clemson receiver Tee Higgins, and others.
Everett said the number of athletes earning large sums of money is relatively small, but the small-scale impacts could be wider.
“I just think this is going to make a dramatic impact,” Everett said. “For probably 50 football players and 30 basketball players ... this would actually be a potential six-figure to seven-figure revenue stream.”
He gave the example of an All-SEC offensive tackle at South Carolina perhaps only getting one deal of $500 to $1,500, if that. But a higher-profile football player, say a skill player, likely would be in better position.
The first thing to note is the NCAA proposal doesn’t allow for shoe or apparel deals, as the agreements with schools are already in place. Those often account for 15% to 20% of a rookie NFL player’s marketing.
Everett used Higgins, who was just drafted at the top of the second round as an example, running through his set of endorsements:
▪ National endorsement deal with Nike (college athletes couldn’t get this under the NCAA approach).
▪ Panini trading card deal: “A large six-figure trading card deal, so they can produce cards with both his collegiate and his NFL licensing on them. And then he autographs those cards and is compensated handsomely for it.” The plan is for 30,000-35,000 cards his rookie year, and Everett said top-60 picks can make $10-$70 per card.
▪ A deal with EA Sports (this gets into a murky area with the NCAA Football video game).
▪ Headphone deal with Beats by Dre.
▪ Local endorsement with BMW of Greenville.
▪ Deal with Buffalo Wild Wings.
▪ Deal with Hot Wheels
▪ Deal with a supplement company Ascent Protein.
▪ Exclusive memorabilia deal worth six figures.
Athletes can also get paid for camps held for young players as well as public appearances. (Everett said camps can generate five figures of revenue in a player’s rookie year.)
The profile of a player can have a dramatic impact on what a deal might be. Everett used an example of a deal to endorse Campbell’s soup.
“For certain players, the value of that deal is $5,000,” Everett said. “And for certain players, like a high-profile top-end quarterback, the value of that deal is a quarter-million dollars.”
Social media influencer opportunities are also a new frontier in all this. Everett said if an athlete has 100,000 followers, he or she can earn $1,000-$3,000 per post for social media promotions.
Through a spokesman, South Carolina Athletics Director Ray Tanner referred questions to a statement released by the SEC.
“We will reserve further comment on specifics of the NCAA report until we have the opportunity to review its contents,” the statement from SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said. “We will work to understand how the actual proposals will be implemented fairly on a national level while also ensuring that student-athletes are protected.
“Among the complex issues that must be addressed is the role ‘advisors’ will have in guiding student-athletes and the process for certifying and regulating these advisors. We must also develop a system to effectively monitor endorsement agreements to ensure compliance with policies and rules that will be established.”
Those questions linger on all sides, schools, conferences and representatives. The NCAA has not been agent-friendly at many stops. But having an experienced negotiator might be key in an athlete working out a deal, especially when those young people have almost no sense of that market.
“We don’t really understand, in this ruling, what are the boundaries?” Everett said. “What are the rules and the regulations? Who’s gonna be in charge of advising these young men on these situations and on these values. Making sure the deliverables match the value.
“I’m very excited about the direction it’s going. ... But I don’t think anyone should get too-too excited by it so until we see actually what the rules and regulations around it will be.”
This story was originally published April 30, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
