Miami might have advantage in new NCAA era
Athlete name, image and likeness pay set to change the game
As July 1 arrives, NCAA athletes will be able to start capitalizing on use of their name, image and likeness (NIL), meaning amateur college athletes can begin to profit off endorsements.
Florida is one of the states that has had a law in place with Thursday as the start date for this revolutionary legislation in college athletics. Governor Ron DeSantis signed the bill in June 2020 while at the University of Miami.
Outside of the handful of states that have NIL laws going into place on Thursday, the NCAA has drafted interim policy as a stopgap measure for schools in other states until federal legislation is adopted, according to The Athletic. The NCAA’s rules barring pay for play remain intact.
“I’m excited for our guys,” said Miami coach Manny Diaz on Saturday at the Hurricanes’ marquee recruiting event, Paradise Camp, hopeful his program can benefit from the new rules. “I hope that we’ve got a competitive advantage with that. I think that’s one of the great advantages that we can use here with our community and our city here in Miami. Obviously, being where there’s a great economy, like what we have here.
“Like we tell our guys, they don’t put professional franchises in small towns — and there’s a reason for that. If you want to maximize your brand, you generally want to go where the people are. I think that can be a great advantage for our guys.”
Of course, the flipside of that argument is that athletes in college towns don’t have professional athletes to compete with for such endorsements locally. In a city like Miami, there are also
celebrities in the music and entertainment industries to go up against — but who’s to say UM quarterback D’Eriq King can’t strike some serious deals if he’s putting together a Heisman-worthy season in Miami?
Another notion Miami athletic director Blake James has brought up is how ahead of the curve schools in Florida have been, knowing this would go into effect for 13 months.
“Kids at schools in the state of Florida have known for over a year now that this is going to happen on July 1, so they’ve had time to, I think, be planning and preparing and getting ready to take advantage of [it],” James told ACC Network on Tuesday. “In Miami, obviously, international city, I think there will be a number of opportunities. With that said, I don’t think we’re going to see 400 kids signing major endorsement deals and sponsorships or anything like that, but I do think the law that was put in place in Florida will do a good job in letting kids capitalize on their name, image and likeness.”
The Hurricanes have already been recruiting prospects with a pitch on how they project the bill will benefit their athletes.
Miami director of player personnel Andy Vaughn mentioned to 560-AM last week that UM’s recruiting department has been making presentations on the subject for a slew of recruits that have visited campus in June.
“It’s going to be a game changer,” Vaughn said. “I think we’re in a really good position here in the tri-county area to capitalize on that. … It’s just a bigger pie for guys to have pieces of with the visibility that comes with being associated with the U brand. I think that sets up our guys in a great position.”