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Questions: NIL … WTF?ICYMI yesterday: It’s Pulse Mailbag Week, where we’re bringing in experts to answer your questions. Today’s topic is forever interesting and not going away any time soon: name, image and likeness in college sports, or NIL. These are only a few of the many questions we received, with a general labor question at the end.Enjoy:I don’t understand how NIL and “revenue sharing” under the so-called “House agreement” work. Is there any enforcement? Can you help me? — David F., Highland Park, Ill.💬 Branch: From what I gather, this is pretty above board. Our explainer on this is a great resource, but the simple version is that this is simply a salary, or a direct payment to players via the university. Players are eligible for outside NIL deals, of course, which then need to be vetted. But the revenue sharing is a simple disbursement of the revenue the university earns. There is a cap to what any university can dole out, though, via a set number that increases each year, much like a salary cap in pro sports.What is the immediate future for NIL and college sports? How sustainable is this, and who within the NCAA/college sports world has reasonable and nuanced proposals to fix? What is the bigger picture, not just for football and NCAA men’s basketball, but other sports, too? — Joe L., New Orleans, La.💬 Matt Baker: My optimistic view (again, optimistic) is that we’re near a breaking point. Big brands are upset a salary cap exists in theory. Smaller programs are upset the salary cap isn’t real. That tension is more pronounced now, and it’s growing. There is no easy fix because the system isn’t really — what’s the word? — legal, thus the desire for Congress to do something. The latest attempt to bring a House bill to a vote stalled last week, so that’s going great. I think all this (plus future TV contracts/conference realignment) leads to a Big Bang in the next few years that resets the system and, perhaps, spins football and basketball into their own thing.
