NCAA Rule change and the impact on Black Athletes
This week it became official that NCAA athletes can benefit from their names, images, and likeness. This is a big step forward. Athletes throughout history have been penalized for even the assumption of benefiting from their likenesses. When you zoom even further out and think about how many athletes aren't heard of after college, it puts into perspective how much of an opportunity those collegiate years can be to make money.
The impact this will have on black athletes is immense. We know too well how black athletes have suffered because of these archaic rules. Reggie Bush had his Heisman and all his records revoked and Michigan's Fab 5 has no banners of their Final Four appearances. Since the NCAA has shown no signs of acting retroactively to give back what they've taken away from certain players, let's look forward.
My statement… pic.twitter.com/kbyqXgHncf
— Reggie Bush (@ReggieBush) July 1, 2021
We are in the social media mixtape era. Athletes across all sports are garnering large followings on social media before they step foot on a college campus. The growing disappointment in the NCAA's mishandling of how to compensate athletes has led some athletes to go play overseas or some to pursue semi-pro opportunities. These are ways for them to make money immediately after graduating high school.
Focusing on basketball, it's the sport that has over the years produced so many viral moments from the 7th-grade level up to the NCAA tournament. Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony, Brandon Jennings, John Wall, Ben Simmons, Devin Booker, and countless others had mixtapes all over Youtube from the minute they played their first high school game. These highlights continued well into their college careers and for Devin Booker will most likely continue into the NBA finals next week.
The fact that they couldn't monetize while they were in college (Besides Brandon Jennings who played a year overseas before entering the NBA Draft and Lebron who sent from High School straight to the NBA) is unacceptable. They go to college and receive full scholarships and meal plans, but the universities and the NCAA benefit off of the sales of jerseys, stadium tickets, commercials, and monstrous television deals.
A few years ago, we watched Jelly Fam take over Instagram and Youtube. They were a group of players from the New York and New Jersey area who were everywhere online with mixtape after mixtape. They were all good enough to go on and compete at the college level. Because of the rules at the time, they couldn't benefit from what was a huge branding opportunity. Sneaker companies, streetwear, and electronic companies could have paid these young men handsomely for marketing and branding opportunities. Based on the prior rules, the only way they could benefit from the massive followings would have been to not go to college and be part of the NCAA system. But if you don't go to college, what happens to your chances of getting a free education and playing at the highest level? They diminish significantly.
Of course, this changed once the G-League started a team of players who came straight from high school and once players realized they could go overseas and just come back after a year to be eligible for the NBA draft.
The NCAA is comprised of so many sports and makes so much money that monopolizing all the money and not allowing athletes to be paid was simply greed. When looking at the WNBA and the disparities in pay, this new change in NCAA rules will allow some of the popular NCAA athletes in women's sports to make some money from their high social media followings. This won't completely solve the problem of the disparity in pay at the professional level, but giving them no option during the college years hurts more than helps.
I would’ve got the BAG if we had this https://t.co/P9v0tl9F4I
— Skylar Diggins-Smith (@SkyDigg4) July 1, 2021
With the Olympics around the corner, we've seen countless college athletes making names for themselves during the Olympic trials alone. If they are NCAA athletes they can't benefit from their likenesses but will be on one of the biggest stages in sports. It's a once every four-year opportunity. So some college athletes will never have this opportunity again. The rule change makes life better for athletes.
The truth is, the NCAA is an archaic group that has to evolve or become obsolete. Athletes year by year is gaining more power and acquiring more control of their careers. The NCAA, although this was the product of a Supreme Court decision, needs to get with the times. It shouldn't take the highest court in the land for the NCAA to know that there is enough money to go around. Black athletes may be on the precipice of a shifting tide in ownership, opportunity, and managing their futures. It should be an exciting few years.