🏈 Recruiting Tulsa inks impressive class on early signing day

[Chris Harmon]

The early signing day was a big success for the Tulsa football coaches, who put together one of the best TU recruiting classes in the past 15 years. The class is currently rated No. 63 nationally on Rivals, which is the highest since finishing No. 59 in 2009.

InsideTulsaSports - Tulsa inks impressive class in early football signing period

Tulsa Football added a bevy of talent during the early signing period on Wednesday.

tulsa.rivals.com

 

[drboobay]

How Tulsa became the most popular college among Dallas-area senior football players

Tulsa has become the most popular college among Dallas-area senior football players. Why?

www.dallasnews.com

 

[rusty-c]

How Tulsa became the most popular college among Dallas-area senior football players

Tulsa has become the most popular college among Dallas-area senior football players. Why?

www.dallasnews.com

The article is behind a pay wall....

 

[drboobay]

The article is behind a pay wall....

Open in incognito mode.

 

[TU 1978]

Open in incognito mode.

Unlike the Tulsa World, that doesn’t work.

 

[drboobay]

Unlike the Tulsa World, that doesn’t work.

It did for me!

 

[quincy101]

Here's a couple tidbits from KDub's presser after signing day. Maybe you've read the bios from this class. They are exceptional, one and all. According to KDub, many schools are heavy in the portal. This is why, in general, many top HS guys were available and the quality of our recruits (for TU) was above average. Still, our staff had many battles with P-5 schools to get these HS guys. This includes our HC who worked his tail off to get many of them, including driving by himself throughout Texas & OK.

As to NIL, not 1 cent to anyone. He mentioned a school in our league which offered $41k to walk on to a kid we were recruiting. And a Big 12 school offered $25k to another to walk on. However, KDub said that scholarships get maxed out with academic bonuses of up to $10k for keeping grades up. The money for which made available through the efforts of our AD, Rick Dickson. So with this, a valuable degree from a prestigious University, the city of Tulsa, and a small but attractive campus and small class size are what our staff used to sell TU....and it obviously worked. NIL $ might come, but none now.

Finally, there are 10 -12 more schollys that can be used to fill this class, according to KDub. They are looking hard for another QB, whether HS or transfer, and a couple more LB's to fill a hole there. Do not doubt that they will fill these holes with quality people.

 

[Gmoney4WW]

Finally, there are 10 -12 more schollys that can be used to fill this class, according to KDub. They are looking hard for another QB, whether HS or transfer, and a couple more LB's to fill a hole there. Do not doubt that they will fill these holes with quality people.

And lineman, I assume both offensive and defensive. Also a safety.

 

[drboobay]

Here's a couple tidbits from KDub's presser after signing day. Maybe you've read the bios from this class. They are exceptional, one and all. According to KDub, many schools are heavy in the portal. This is why, in general, many top HS guys were available and the quality of our recruits (for TU) was above average. Still, our staff had many battles with P-5 schools to get these HS guys. This includes our HC who worked his tail off to get many of them, including driving by himself throughout Texas & OK.

As to NIL, not 1 cent to anyone. He mentioned a school in our league which offered $41k to walk on to a kid we were recruiting. And a Big 12 school offered $25k to another to walk on. However, KDub said that scholarships get maxed out with academic bonuses of up to $10k for keeping grades up. The money for which made available through the efforts of our AD, Rick Dickson. So with this, a valuable degree from a prestigious University, the city of Tulsa, and a small but attractive campus and small class size are what our staff used to sell TU....and it obviously worked. NIL $ might come, but none now.

Finally, there are 10 -12 more schollys that can be used to fill this class, according to KDub. They are looking hard for another QB, whether HS or transfer, and a couple more LB's to fill a hole there. Do not doubt that they will fill these holes with quality people.

I thought we had NIL.

Are we simply not using it as an inducement? In other words, within the rules?

 

[Gmoney4WW]

I thought we had NIL.

Are we simply not using it as an inducement? In other words, within the rules?

We are using payment over the amount of tuition as an academic reward/inducement. The funds are given by donors, and can be as much as 10k over tuition, but no more. It isn't nil, it's scholarship money. Any student is eligible for this if they receive a scholarship that wants to pay them in excess of the tuition.

 

[drboobay]

We are using payment over the amount of tuition as an academic reward/inducement. The funds are given by donors, and can be as much as 10k over tuition, but no more. It isn't nil, it's scholarship money. Any student is eligible for this if they receive a scholarship that wants to pay them in excess of the tuition.

What is Hurricane Impact then?

 

[Gmoney4WW]

What is Hurricane Impact then?

That is where they are getting the money for academic scholarships that go over the amount of tuition for athletes.

 

[Gmoney4WW]

What is Hurricane Impact then?

For instance, grad students that really aren't interested in grad school, but want to continue for another year in sports, could not work in their grad courses and bring our GPA down. Extra inducements are given in this situation. This is all in the presser for KW. You really should watch it. Lots of info there, more than any press conference I've seen before. Everybody gets these inducements, but some more than others depending on their situations.

 

[TUMU]

For instance, grad students that really aren't interested in grad school, but want to continue for another year in sports, could not work in their grad courses and bring our GPA down. Extra inducements are given in this situation. This is all in the presser for KW. You really should watch it. Lots of info there, more than any press conference I've seen before. Everybody gets these inducements, but some more than others depending on their situations.

Just finished watching the entire press conference.
I should have spent the 50 minutes doing something else, but I'm glad a watched. Was worth my time.
He certainly seems to have more enthusiasm for the job than Monty.
He also comes across as having a high level of intelligence.

 

[drboobay]

That is where they are getting the money for academic scholarships that go over the amount of tuition for athletes.

I just listened. That's not what I heard. He referenced the Case Fund for extra money to cover full cost of attendance.

What I took from it is that Hurricane Impact must not be making a big impact so far, at least in football. Wilson referenced that we might be able to use NIL to keep a guy eventually, but not to bring a guy in. But it seems we are not there yet. And he was talking plainly about how NIL has become a buzz phrase and not what it was intended to mean.

Interesting presser though.

 

[Weatherdemon]

I am kind of confused on the two.
I thought Hurricane Impact was to help NIL.

Here is my take.
He did say during the presser that just paying athletes is not NIL.

So, they put players in touch with business to provide what NIL is really supposed to be.

Then, they can earn up to $10K/semester in incentive/bonus money for academic/athletic performance.

 

[URedskin54]

Yeah I’d like someone to lay out for me exactly what Hurricane Impact is doing

 

[Gmoney4WW]

I just listened. That's not what I heard. He referenced the Case Fund for extra money to cover full cost of attendance.

What I took from it is that Hurricane Impact must not be making a big impact so far, at least in football. Wilson referenced that we might be able to use NIL to keep a guy eventually, but not to bring a guy in. But it seems we are not there yet. And he was talking plainly about how NIL has become a buzz phrase and not what it was intended to mean.

Interesting presser though.

I thought those funds were the same monies. I took it that the impact fund was allocated to each department of athletics in the case fund, separated individually for each sport by Rick Dickson. Guess we'll have to wait and see if @HuffyCane can straighten out misconceptions about this.

 

[HuffyCane]

Can? Yes. Will? No.

I speak my mind on here much more freely than I should about many topics. I won’t talk about donors, how money is allocated or how that is decided. Once it’s decided, I can and will explain that as best I can, but I can’t and won’t get into a discussion about where your donations go, what they buy and don’t, and who’s giving what for whom because your small donations are generally backed by major gifts that make the programs possible. Comments about the adequacy or strategy behind a program is necessarily a cheap shot at those making the major gift and those soliciting those gifts. Which I’m not gonna do intentionally - ever.

Generally, if you give to the Case Fund you are helping support high academic achieving athletes from all sports to receive a reasonable stipend that recognizes their dedication and the benefit they bring to the school. If you give to Hurricane Impact, you are helping link student athletes with charities and other entities that wish to hire them for promotional and community outreach purposes, amongst other things. For instance, if St Francis Hospital wanted Saint Francis our QB to visit kids in the hospital on Christmas they might give him $1000 to push his picture on social media and local TV. For compliance, tax and other reasons, Hurricane Impact would be essentially a middle man in that scenario.

Schools have no control over NIL entities. HI is its own charity no different than the March of Dimes. Most schools in the big leagues of NIL have two or more entities working off campus. One a private for profit corporation with its private records protections and at least one other doing charity work like Hurricane Impact which is a 501 (c) (3)subject to public disclosure laws. To my knowledge, unlike OU and OSU, there isn’t a private for profit corporation out there providing NIL to TU athletes as cash incentives to sign and play. So I believe Wilson when he says there was no NIL involved here because we simply don’t have the infrastructure in place to do it. By choice. I also believe him when he infers we might have to start doing that in the future.

So Hurricane Impact is NIL, but not NIL like you think or the media portrays. The Case Fund is technically not NIL. It’s what is called “Alston” funds after a court case of the same name which permits annual payments of up to $8,000 per athlete per year for academic performance directly from the school. And of course athletes can receive NIL without the involvement of the school or Hurricane Impact, but are still subject to compliance requirements.

I hope everyone gives to GHCF, HI, the Case Fund or a restricted gift to a particular sport. If you are over 70 and have been on ITS for more than 20 years, you should have a legacy gift structured into your will by now. Contact the school and they can help you.

 

[Gmoney4WW]

Can? Yes. Will? No.

I speak my mind on here much more freely than I should about many topics. I won’t talk about donors, how money is allocated or how that is decided. Once it’s decided, I can and will explain that as best I can, but I can’t and won’t get into a discussion about where your donations go, what they buy and don’t, and who’s giving what for whom because your small donations are generally backed by major gifts that make the programs possible. Comments about the adequacy or strategy behind a program is necessarily a cheap shot at those making the major gift and those soliciting those gifts. Which I’m not gonna do intentionally - ever.

Generally, if you give to the Case Fund you are helping support high academic achieving athletes from all sports to receive a reasonable stipend that recognizes their dedication and the benefit they bring to the school. If you give to Hurricane Impact, you are helping link student athletes with charities and other entities that wish to hire them for promotional and community outreach purposes, amongst other things. For instance, if St Francis Hospital wanted Saint Francis our QB to visit kids in the hospital on Christmas they might give him $1000 to push his picture on social media and local TV. For compliance, tax and other reasons, Hurricane Impact would be essentially a middle man in that scenario.

Schools have no control over NIL entities. HI is its own charity no different than the March of Dimes. Most schools in the big leagues of NIL have two or more entities working off campus. One a private for profit corporation with its private records protections and at least one other doing charity work like Hurricane Impact which is a 501 (c) (3)subject to public disclosure laws. To my knowledge, unlike OU and OSU, there isn’t a private for profit corporation out there providing NIL to TU athletes as cash incentives to sign and play. So I believe Wilson when he says there was no NIL involved here because we simply don’t have the infrastructure in place to do it. By choice. I also believe him when he infers we might have to start doing that in the future.

So Hurricane Impact is NIL, but not NIL like you think or the media portrays. The Case Fund is technically not NIL. It’s what is called “Alston” funds after a court case of the same name which permits annual payments of up to $8,000 per athlete per year for academic performance directly from the school. And of course athletes can receive NIL without the involvement of the school or Hurricane Impact, but are still subject to compliance requirements.

I hope everyone gives to GHCF, HI, the Case Fund or a restricted gift to a particular sport. If you are over 70 and have been on ITS for more than 20 years, you should have a legacy gift structured into your will by now. Contact the school and they can help you.

So the Alston funds are only for student athletes, not for any students? Is there a category of scholarship that can pay over and above the level of tuition for a non athlete? Or is that open to all academic scholarships if they so desire?

I was pretty sure KW said the limit was 10k, not 8K on the Alston/Case Fund. That limit is court determined?

So not much money has been donated to nil/Impact up to this point, or are you not even vaguely aware of the level of donation to that fund? I would think if any monies had been donated, it would have to go out to student/athletes. So I don't understand why no Nil has gone out, even if it was paltry. Because there is no for profit corporation out there, are the nil donations sitting there untouched? Don't quite understand this situation.

Note: I wish the Alston fund with a little bit higher limit, was all that was allowed for any athlete. None of this Nil stuff is good for the school/athlete/fan/sport.

 

[HuffyCane]

Note: I wish the Alston fund with a little bit higher limit, was all that was allowed for any athlete. None of this Nil stuff is good for the school/athlete/fan/sport.

This pretty much sums up the attitude on campus from what I can glean.

 

[HuffyCane]

So the Alston funds are only for student athletes, not for any students?

Correct

Is there a category of scholarship that can pay over and above the level of tuition for a non athlete? Or is that open to all academic scholarships if they so desire?

Yes. For instance the new National Merit Semi-Finalist scholarship includes a cost of living stipend for those students. Recipients of that scholarship may out number student-athletes as soon as next year. Student-athletes are also eligible for cost of attendance supplements, not to mention some pretty great perks like enhanced meal choices and generous snack opportunities throughout the day. The NCAA has granted, or in the case of the Alston litigation, was forced to acknowledge that other students on full academic scholarship get help with day to day expenses, entertainment, etc. So its only fair, if the athlete is to be treated no better than a regular student, that they be treated no different than a regular student and be given the opportunity to earn/given a little extra over the full ride. Setting limits on that in cash helps to keep things even across programs and forces programs to match industry norms. That way you dont have situations where Rutgers is paying $1000 a week for some athletes to get Uber Eats and others are getting nothing while kids at Kent State or wherever are literally going without meals on the weekends and apply for food stamps. In my time, I can remember student-athletes saving small amounts they were given for expenses to have change to do their laundry. Many had girlfriends simply to tap into their parent's funds for expenses like that. That shouldn't be happening.

I was pretty sure KW said the limit was 10k, not 8K on the Alston/Case Fund. That limit is court determined?

The $8,000 in Alston funds is permitted by the NCAA as a result of the litigation and focuses on monies earned as part of academic achievement. Not everybody on the football gets Alston funds. You have to met minimum academic standards far above eligibility requirements. To me, that tells me the Wilson recruiting strategy is working and vertically integrated. We are recruiting Ivy League transfers and Ivy League offered high schoolers because we know they will hit the academic performance goals to get the Alston supplement and will be less likely to play two years then want to transfer to get money. We are recruiting athletes that will stay in school and stay at Tulsa. Student athletes are eligible for the cost of attendance supplement mentioned above which puts the total over $10,000. He's giving a press conference, not a compliance seminar lol.

So not much money has been donated to nil/Impact up to this point, or are you not even vaguely aware of the level of donation to that fund?

I have no idea and dont want to know. I just want to know whether we are competitive. The results this week indicate that we are. How we stay competitive is up to other people. Let them earn their millions.

I would think if any monies had been donated, it would have to go out to student/athletes. So I don't understand why no Nil has gone out, even if it was paltry.

I am sorry if I was unclear. As far as I know, Hurricane Impact continues to collect NIL and distribute as they deem appropriate. If you want a student athlete to come out to your car dealership and help promote your next cancer fundraiser, Im sure they would love to talk to you.

Because there is no for profit corporation out there, are the nil donations sitting there untouched? Don't quite understand this situation.

Sorry I was unclear. Teams are basically deciding to pay players to compete or they are not. If they are, nearly all are working with friends of the program off campus to create for profit NIL entities for tax reasons, but also so that they maintain a competitive advantage by not having to disclose their financing and the sources of those funds. If you do not have a for profit NIL entity working with your compliance department, its fair to infer that you are not paying players just to play. TU, to my limited knowledge, is not working with a for profit NIL entity, so its fair to infer that we aren't paying players. Maybe we are. If we are, those folks should DM me.

There is a difference between NIL where you are paying kids just to play but dressing that up by having them sign autographs for $1000.00 a piece at the next mattress sale. Which is totally different than paying a kid $250.00 to promote a 5K run or help out at a charity basketball clinic in the summer time in North Tulsa.

TU has the latter. They have publicly stated they are not going to do the former.

None of this is classified information. Its actually posted on their websites. You just have to spend the time to read it and have the experience to discern what is being disclosed.

Note: I wish the Alston fund with a little bit higher limit, was all that was allowed for any athlete. None of this Nil stuff is good for the school/athlete/fan/sport.

You and me both brother. What TU is doing is fair. We are making sure everyone playing sports, that does what we expect them to do, is getting plenty of the right food, education, and distraction, while making sure they do not feel they are sacrificing opportunities to earn limited income supplements in amounts that are roughly equal to what kids on academic scholarship earn (many of whom spend dramatically less time in the study hall or lab than the athletes and generate lower academic performance earning the same degree).

 

[Gmoney4WW]

I have no idea and dont want to know. I just want to know whether we are competitive. The results this week indicate that we are. How we stay competitive is up to other people. Let them earn their millions.

I am sorry if I was unclear. As far as I know, Hurricane Impact continues to collect NIL and distribute as they deem appropriate. If you want a student athlete to come out to your car dealership and help promote your next cancer fundraiser, Im sure they would love to talk to you.

They said this was all done without Nil, but you say Nil was given out and seems to be competitive. That sounds like they just aren't acknowledging Nil according to you, but it is still there and given out. They implied it wasn't even used. No nil is not the same as nil that we aren't referring to.

 

[HuffyCane]

They said this was all done without Nil, but you say Nil was given out and seems to be competitive. That sounds like they just aren't acknowledging Nil according to you, but it is still there and given out. They implied it wasn't even used. No nil is not the same as nil that we aren't referring to.

I dont know how to unpack this with you. I haven't listened to what he said to parse the words, but its a fair statement if he stated or implied that NIL funds were not used as an inducement to sign this class. Because the architecture you typically see in place to do that at other schools is not present at Tulsa. Nearly every school has an NIL compliance clearinghouse and mechanisms to track and facilitate NIL opportunities that may come up during an athlete's time on campus. TU has that. Guys like Brin have taken advantage of it. Having that program is an important part of recruiting for us. If the NIL opportunity is charitable in nature, Hurricane Impact will likely help with that. They even have a tool on their website that will help arrange that. That is totally different than telling parents sign with us and there's guys off campus that will give you $50,000 to pose for their NFT scheme. Hurricane Impact is very clear on their website about what their funds are used for. They have to be. And its mostly for charity, not to sign high school kids to letter of intent. There's no conspiracy or inconsistency here. I know you are trying to better understand it but the questions you are asking are being asked in a way that other people might infer something that absolutely isnt true.

 

[I.I.]

From the FAQ in Hurricane Impact: ( Look at #2, you can allocate your donation to support Certain Athletes) to perform “ charitable services”. You can designate the certain athletes or ask the Coach of your favorite sport do it which is what I do.

“donors may suggest that a donation be (1) allocated to a specific charitable organization directly, (2) allocated to support certain athletes performing charitable services who are affiliated with a particular sport, group of sports, or (3) allocated to Hurricane Impact’s general fund.”

 

[HuffyCane]

From the FAQ in Hurricane Impact: ( Look at #2, you can allocate your donation to support Certain Athletes) to perform “ charitable services”. You can designate the certain athletes or ask the Coach of your favorite sport do it which is what I do.

“donors may suggest that a donation be (1) allocated to a specific charitable organization directly, (2) allocated to support certain athletes performing charitable services who are affiliated with a particular sport, group of sports, or (3) allocated to Hurricane Impact’s general fund.”

Absolutely correct. Its all in black and white, you just have to take the time to go read it.

 

[HuffyCane]

To recap:

TU offers about $10,000 to high academic performing student-athletes over and above cost of attendance financial aid.

$8,000 of that is in the form of Alston assistance. TU uses what is called The Case Fund to pay out these monies and you can donate to that. It is NOT NIL. The name, image, and likeness of the athlete has nothing to do with it.

Roughly $2,000 is available for cost of living expenses, again you must hit academic and team goals to be eligible for those funds. It is NOT NIL. The name, image and likeness of the athlete has nothing to do with it.

Once on campus, students have the opportunity to earn NIL dollars. They can cultivate those opportunities themselves and must work with the compliance department to make sure eligibility and tax considerations are properly account for. If they can convince an energy drink company to give them money, they can take it. TU is not going to help them sign those contracts, help them look for those opportunities, or have a booster create an energy drink company so an athlete can endorse it and get paid. We are not Auburn winking at a booster who buys a casino to launder cash payments to high school recruits.

We are not promising kids in high school we recruit that they will be guaranteed a certain amount of NIL dollars if they sign a letter of intent. We are not setting aside funds or raising that money for that purpose. I dont know, but I assume that is what Wilson meant and it is the truth. I dont know for sure obviously, but I am almost certain no NIL was used to recruit these kids because the entities that other schools use to offer NIL to high school recruits isnt operating in the TU universe to my knowledge. That doesn't mean they can't earn NIL on their own once they are on campus, whether that is helping local charities through Hurricane Impact or hawking cherry juice on Instagram during a Tuesday morning tempo training run.

Wednesday was the biggest day for Tulsa football since the Notre Dame win as far as Im concerned. Maybe, maybe surpassed only by the AAC Championship Game appearance during CoVid. Let's not ruin that suggesting that NIL was used here or that Wilson isnt telling the truth. Because there are plenty of people out there who see Tulsa gain 50 points in the rankings and assume something doesn't smell right. From my chair, nothing could be farther from the truth. Please dont suggest otherwise due to confusion.

 

[drboobay]

Absolutely correct. Its all in black and white, you just have to take the time to go read it.

There is also a for profit marketplace where TU athletes can offer nil services. It was even promoted at the last basketball game. Wilson seemed to be ignoring this or maybe largely unaware.

I saw that Tamira Poindexter had a pretty elaborate set of offerings around social media such as giving a shout out on social media or reposting promotions. All pretty much under 100 bucks each. This seems like a legit reflection of what nil should be though I could see how it might be abused by boosters.

 

[HuffyCane]

There is also a for profit marketplace where TU athletes can offer nil services. It was even promoted at the last basketball game. Wilson seemed to be ignoring this or maybe largely unaware.

Fair point. I assume you are referring to Golden Hurricane Sports Properties Allied NIL. This is a tool for commercial entities, mainly sponsors of TU broadcasts, to incorporate existing student athletes into promotional opportunities, typically as part of those broadcasts. Its affiliated with Learfield, who handles our broadcast contracts. TU and our broadcast partners need that scheme in today's world for tax and compliance reasons. If you have money to spend to endorse a product during those broadcasts to help them facilitate promotional opportunities for the kids, again, Im sure they would love to hear from you, they have a tool called Opendorse that nearly every FBS school is using to track such promos. Again, this is for existing student-athletes already on campus.

Again, it is not a pay-to-play NIL for profit operating off campus to induce kids to come to TU. Such an entity does not exist to my knowledge. I could be totally wrong, but I doubt I am.

This is a really complex and evolving area. People doing it full time for a lot of money get confused by it. Dont read into things what isnt there.

 

[Gmoney4WW]

We are not promising kids in high school we recruit that they will be guaranteed a certain amount of NIL dollars if they sign a letter of intent. We are not setting aside funds or raising that money for that purpose. I dont know, but I assume that is what Wilson meant and it is the truth.

its a fair statement if he stated or implied that NIL funds were not used as an inducement to sign this class.

He and the general media around it implied that no nil was used, not 'used as an inducement'.

Used as an inducement would have been a better, more honest and clearer statement to make.

 

[astonmartin708]

“The problem we're trying to solve is that there are rich teams and there are poor teams. Then there's fifty feet of crap, and then there's us. It's an unfair game. And now we've been gutted. We're like organ donors for the rich. Boston's taken our kidneys, Yankees have taken our heart. And you guys just sit around talking the same old "good body" nonsense like we're selling jeans. Like we're looking for Fabio. We've got to think differently. We are the last dog at the bowl. You see what happens to the runt of the litter? He dies.”

We‘re not going to beat the people we want to beat by using the traditional strategy that a team with more $$$ would. We have to do things differently. Our offensive and defensive schemes have to be significantly better than those of rivals with larger wallets and our eye for talent and our ability to use players who are overlooked or cast aside has to be better too.

 

[HuffyCane]

Its a press conference with a football coach, not an act of Congress.

Every school has to make NIL opportunities available to athletes after they sign. Court rulings have made that clear. Its not an inducement for student-athletes to be aware of that and I personally dont think he has an obligation to parse his words down to that level.

 

[Gmoney4WW]

“The problem we're trying to solve is that there are rich teams and there are poor teams. Then there's fifty feet of crap, and then there's us. It's an unfair game. And now we've been gutted. We're like organ donors for the rich. Boston's taken our kidneys, Yankees have taken our heart. And you guys just sit around talking the same old "good body" nonsense like we're selling jeans. Like we're looking for Fabio. We've got to think differently. We are the last dog at the bowl. You see what happens to the runt of the litter? He dies.”

We‘re not going to beat the people we want to beat by using the traditional strategy that a team with more $$$ would. We have to do things differently,

There you go with that crap quote of yours, using bogus simile and metaphor to paint us worse than we actually are, and you are proud of it.

Wouldn't even be saying anything if you had accurately made your new statement that I bolde, and left it at that. The statements you make are not right but in this case the language you use is not right. That's why people get annoyed by you. You hit every button you can.

 

[Gmoney4WW]

Its a press conference with a football coach, not an act of Congress.

Every school has to make NIL opportunities available to athletes when they sign. Court rulings have made that clear. Its not an inducement for student-athletes to be aware of that and I personally dont think he has an obligation to parse his words down to that level.

Wasn't saying he necessarily should have, but that's why I mentioned the media around it specifically. The media wasn't parsing words like it should have, but it's probably better for clicks the way it was said. Maybe it has now, that multiple articles have been written about it. I just haven't seen it.

 

[TU 1978]

Look at the Los Angeles Dodgers spending over a billion dollars on a handful of players and yet they won’t even make the playoffs. Money doesn’t always buy success.

 

[HuffyCane]

Look at the Los Angeles Dodgers spending over a billion dollars on a handful of players and yet they won’t even make the playoffs. Money doesn’t always buy success.

Its the very definition of loser.

 

[Chris Harmon]

Its the very definition of loser.

 

[HuffyCane]

There is also a for profit marketplace where TU athletes can offer nil services. It was even promoted at the last basketball game. Wilson seemed to be ignoring this or maybe largely unaware.

I saw that Tamira Poindexter had a pretty elaborate set of offerings around social media such as giving a shout out on social media or reposting promotions. All pretty much under 100 bucks each. This seems like a legit reflection of what nil should be though I could see how it might be abused by boosters.

This is a tremendous problem for some student-athletes and one of the dangers the anti-NIL crowd point to, especially offering locked in NIL money over a period of years to high school kids.

Tamira is exceptional and she can handle it. But more than one student athlete making money off Tik Tok and Instagram has gotten into grade trouble and therefore eligibility trouble because they had difficulty adding social media appearances to the already packed student-athlete schedule. Frankly I dont know how some of them do it. Coaches against NIL are generally not against players being paid. They are against athletes jumping through hoops for anyone other than them to get paid. Often with justification. It will take a few years, but you will see the teary eyed Congressional hearing with some athlete saying they lost their cross country scholarship and therefore $200,000 college degree because they were obligated to fulfill the terms of a $25,000 social media contract they excitedly signed with parents permission at 17.

 

[HuffyCane]

“The problem we're trying to solve is that there are rich teams and there are poor teams. Then there's fifty feet of crap, and then there's us. It's an unfair game. And now we've been gutted. We're like organ donors for the rich. Boston's taken our kidneys, Yankees have taken our heart. And you guys just sit around talking the same old "good body" nonsense like we're selling jeans. Like we're looking for Fabio. We've got to think differently. We are the last dog at the bowl. You see what happens to the runt of the litter? He dies.”

We‘re not going to beat the people we want to beat by using the traditional strategy that a team with more $$$ would. We have to do things differently. Our offensive and defensive schemes have to be significantly better than those of rivals with larger wallets and our eye for talent and our ability to use players who are overlooked or cast aside has to be better too.

This is exactly right. And you've seen me use quotes from the same movie about replacing Giambi.

The playing field is constantly changing day to day, I'm typing this watching the absolutely wild FSU Board of Regents meeting about the ACC.

But assuming the field stays relatively stable after the 12 team expansion, the path TU has plotted appears to be extremely shrewd.

They've seen the gap in competition for G5 level talent in north Texas with SMU moving up and schools like Memphis and other looking elsewhere and we've gone after it heavy. That doesn't figure to last, UTSA and others are bound to notice, but its a shot in the arm we needed.

We know our stakeholders wont want us to pay players even if select donors do and we know we dont have the unlimited funds other schools have. So we are going after and getting players who can play and study and we are paying them for their performance at both a modest and sustainable amount.

We aren't playing Moneyball, but we are finally reading the rules and doing what we can do to play college football as opposed to worshipping at the altar of a high school offense and hoping for a different result.

The wins may even out to the same level of performance, that's a function of the program itself, not Wilson, or PM, or NIL, or expansion/contraction. But at least we are competing and the people doing it appear to know how to do it.

 

[quincy101]

Look at the Los Angeles Dodgers spending over a billion dollars on a handful of players and yet they won’t even make the playoffs. Money doesn’t always buy success.

So true. Here's another example. Chelsea FC is a (formerly) very big club in the English Premier League and world soccer. They spent around three-quarters of a billion over the past 3 years on players, including hiring, then firing 3 new coaches. They came in 12th last year and are currently 10th in the Premier League (out of 20 teams) & show no signs of moving up.