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Story: Fitz discusses NIL

Well, it might be because those leagues, together, can only absorb around 300 of the 15000 FBS/NCAA D1 MBB players per year. Doesn't change the dynamic of highly paid coaches/administrators/sports networks/heck even referees making money whilst the real entertainment is the indentured servants on the field.
But surely they can absorb the athletes who would command 7-figure salaries?
 
Well, it might be because those leagues, together, can only absorb around 300 of the 15000 FBS/NCAA D1 MBB players per year. Doesn't change the dynamic of highly paid coaches/administrators/sports networks/heck even referees making money whilst the real entertainment is the indentured servants on the field.
That and that the NBA and NFL literally have rules against players coming to play for them before going through some college because it is in the league’s interest to do so. So…
 
But surely they can absorb the athletes who would command 7-figure salaries?
I get the sarcasm. And I also see the snare you've laid in the grass. "If they are so good, why not go pro?" The thing is, the revenue athletes (fka "student athletes") are the ones creating the revenue. Even if only a few hundred of them ARE good enough to play in the pros, they are still generating the revenue and not reaping the benefit, except for a bogus-value scholarship. The 100-odd FB/BB players at FBS schools are not only dragging along non-revenue athletes, they are also funding highly paid coaches and administrators.

You could ask the same rhetorical question about the coaches. If Mel Tucker is so good, why doesn't he go to the NFL? (what? and take a pay cut?) How about Nick Saban? (what? and fail miserably?) What about Fitz? (hahahahah!). You see, they are good enough to get gigantic contracts, but not good enough to coach in the NFL. Don't get me wrong, I value a good coach as much as the next guy. But it doesn't seem to matter if you have a good coach or a crap coach, they still make a ton of money, and the fans pay (tickets, streaming) to watch the players.

The only other high-revenue sport like this is horse racing.
 
I get the sarcasm. And I also see the snare you've laid in the grass. "If they are so good, why not go pro?" The thing is, the revenue athletes (fka "student athletes") are the ones creating the revenue. Even if only a few hundred of them ARE good enough to play in the pros, they are still generating the revenue and not reaping the benefit, except for a bogus-value scholarship. The 100-odd FB/BB players at FBS schools are not only dragging along non-revenue athletes, they are also funding highly paid coaches and administrators.

You could ask the same rhetorical question about the coaches. If Mel Tucker is so good, why doesn't he go to the NFL? (what? and take a pay cut?) How about Nick Saban? (what? and fail miserably?) What about Fitz? (hahahahah!). You see, they are good enough to get gigantic contracts, but not good enough to coach in the NFL. Don't get me wrong, I value a good coach as much as the next guy. But it doesn't seem to matter if you have a good coach or a crap coach, they still make a ton of money, and the fans pay (tickets, streaming) to watch the players.

The only other high-revenue sport like this is horse racing.
Every sport works like this, really. As long as you're a good enough, say, baseball manager to get an MLB deal, you get paid big bucks. The big difference with the NCAA is the players were barred from getting in on the action, and that revenue had to go somewhere and inflate something, and coaching salaries was one of only two real places for it to go.

On the player side, you could choose to think of it like European Soccer. If you're good enough to make a million, why aren't you playing for Barcelona? Well because the guy playing for Barcelona makes $200 million, but the passionate local fans of, like, Burnley, are happy to keep supporting you enough to get paid a few million... even if they're just waiting for you to go to Barca.
 
I get the sarcasm. And I also see the snare you've laid in the grass. "If they are so good, why not go pro?" The thing is, the revenue athletes (fka "student athletes") are the ones creating the revenue. Even if only a few hundred of them ARE good enough to play in the pros, they are still generating the revenue and not reaping the benefit, except for a bogus-value scholarship. The 100-odd FB/BB players at FBS schools are not only dragging along non-revenue athletes, they are also funding highly paid coaches and administrators.

You could ask the same rhetorical question about the coaches. If Mel Tucker is so good, why doesn't he go to the NFL? (what? and take a pay cut?) How about Nick Saban? (what? and fail miserably?) What about Fitz? (hahahahah!). You see, they are good enough to get gigantic contracts, but not good enough to coach in the NFL. Don't get me wrong, I value a good coach as much as the next guy. But it doesn't seem to matter if you have a good coach or a crap coach, they still make a ton of money, and the fans pay (tickets, streaming) to watch the players.

The only other high-revenue sport like this is horse racing.
The interesting thing is, and for what it’s worth, Urban Meyer and Nick Saban and Matt Rhule and most every college coach is a terrrrrrrrrrible pro coach, despite coaching many players who, the data will show (check out NFL roster by college), were fully capable professional players.

But these college coaches are paid as *elite* - more than the NFL coaches. (Using Rhule because he’s the current failure.)

(As an aside, coaches and front office types get fully guaranteed contracts in the NFL, while every mid- or lower-tier player is one injury away from an injury settlement and falling back on that SEC scholarship.)

I love college football, which is also sooooo stupid, but good entertainment on a Saturday.

(Horse racing comparison is perfect.)
 
The interesting thing is, and for what it’s worth, Urban Meyer and Nick Saban and Matt Rhule and most every college coach is a terrrrrrrrrrible pro coach, despite coaching many players who, the data will show (check out NFL roster by college), were fully capable professional players.

But these college coaches are paid as *elite* - more than the NFL coaches. (Using Rhule because he’s the current failure.)

(As an aside, coaches and front office types get fully guaranteed contracts in the NFL, while every mid- or lower-tier player is one injury away from an injury settlement and falling back on that SEC scholarship.)

I love college football, which is also sooooo stupid, but good entertainment on a Saturday.

(Horse racing comparison is perfect.)
The zaniness of college football is one of the best things about it
 
I assume you are a capitalist. The entire sports industry (from salary caps, the draft, amateurism) is exploitive of athletes. Yes, I many cases they are paid millions, but a true marketplace would value their worth in the tens of millions.

I always wondered what the true market value of lebron James would have been in an open market at his apex. Would a Steve Ballmer paid him $50mm a year? $100mm? We will never know.
As for compensating players with education and lodging, maybe they would prefer actual cash. How much money did Trevor Lawrence generate for Clemson? Way more than room and board.
And other players at Clemson? Without his offensive line, Trevor would have spent the season on his ass. How much would they be worth? The world will always be unfair, but those who try to force complete fairness always screw things up.
 
And other players at Clemson? Without his offensive line, Trevor would have spent the season on his ass. How much would they be worth? The world will always be unfair, but those who try to force complete fairness always screw things up.

Just keep the playing field level.
 
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Just keep the playing field level.
Well, it is not level now but this has the potential for making it so much worse. The big teams such as dOSU, Mich AL Clm ND etc need to have the other teams to have a chance at the lofty records that they depend on. There needs to be more competitive balance not less.
 
The interesting thing is, and for what it’s worth, Urban Meyer and Nick Saban and Matt Rhule and most every college coach is a terrrrrrrrrrible pro coach, despite coaching many players who, the data will show (check out NFL roster by college), were fully capable professional players.

But these college coaches are paid as *elite* - more than the NFL coaches. (Using Rhule because he’s the current failure.)

(As an aside, coaches and front office types get fully guaranteed contracts in the NFL, while every mid- or lower-tier player is one injury away from an injury settlement and falling back on that SEC scholarship.)

I love college football, which is also sooooo stupid, but good entertainment on a Saturday.

(Horse racing comparison is perfect.)
The things that make for a great college coach are often very different from what makes a top pro coach. The same can be said the other way as well. Take a look at Lovie Smith. Descent pro coach but terrible as a college coach. Occasionally a coach can handle both scenarios but they are generally the exception rather than the rule. Guys like Pete Carrol. Or in BB guys like Donovan
 
We’re literally the only country in the world that pimps out young athletes under the guise of “education” and “amateurism” - meanwhile the “academic” institutions make millions off their efforts, and the coaches get rich. (Even “noble” NU “does it the right way” and exploits them to make bank). Every other country sends kids to pro leagues, where they work their way up to the top flight divisions. Our system is one big sham - and this latest NIL ridiculousness is the best thing that could ever happen.

The NFL and NBA were all too happy to farm out player development to the NCAA, and the NCAA loved generating billions. Now the tables have turned and they don’t know what to do, becuase every new NIL deal shows how badly they held athletes back - and what a joke “amateur sports” has always been. Hopefully this leads both pro leagues to create proper minor leagues, leaving NCAA football and basketball to resemble what college baseball and soccer look like now.
Sorry but I don't see that people will have any allegiance or desire to go to semi pro or developmental league games so I don't see it generating the revenue
 
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