David Michael Miller
When California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the “Fair Pay to Play Act,” I read countless media reports and was tempted to write letters to the editors of several California publications. The law, which kicks in in 2023, will allow players at all California schools to receive income for the use of their image and likeness.
As co-owner of Red Card Athletics, I have a financial interest in college athletics. Red Card technology is used to feed student athletes at 26 universities around the country, and through my work there I’ve gained a deeper insight into college sports. Last week Isthmus ran Dave Cieslewicz’s opinion piece, “Pay the Players,” praising the California law as a good first step. I disagree. The law is misguided.
No one would disagree that college sports is a big industry and many would point to missteps that the NCAA has made relative to monetizing an athlete’s image. In July 2009, Ed O’Bannon, a former UCLA basketball star, sued the NCAA for using his likeness in a 1995 EA Sports video game. The co-defendants in the case, EA Sports and the Collegiate License Company, paid $40 million to settle their way out of the case and the NCAA subsequently lost. Part of the judge’s ruling was that the NCAA pay the full cost-of-attendance scholarships to athletes, covering cost-of-living expenses. This rule went into effect at NCAA institutions, including UW, in 2015.
Since this time there has been much scrutiny of the NCAA for not paying players, but I have read almost nothing pointing to the organizations that are the true culprits in this scandal, the NBA and the NFL.
These organizations forbid athletes from playing professionally straight out of high school — basketball players must wait at least one year and football players three. The only reason that many top athletes in these sports attend an NCAA institution is because of these restrictive rules. Additionally, neither the NFL nor the NBA attempt to have true developmental leagues like there are in baseball, soccer and hockey. The NBA and NFL rely solely on the NCAA to teach their talent pool and the professional leagues provide no money for the training.
The California law will only lead to unfair recruiting. In 2023, a California booster will be able to pay a Wisconsin high school athlete as much as he or she wants to come play for their alma mater in California. No wonder many athletic directors, including UW’s Barry Alvarez, won’t schedule California schools. Imagine if Minnesota passed this law and all of our state’s best athletes went and played for the Gophers because a car dealership paid them to sign some autographs?
Proponents of paying players often point to the substantial revenue athletic departments make from television contracts. It is no secret that these deals have become massive. This year Bucky got a check for approximately $51 million from the Big Ten Network.
But this revenue also gives students a financial break. It helps guarantee that no UW students pay a segregated fee to the athletic department to help fund athletics like I did in the early 1990s. The athletic department also contributed nearly $7 million to the campus in fiscal year 2018-2019, according to the department’s annual report. Many athletic departments across the country have become financially self-sufficient and the “Olympic, non-revenue” sports are seeing the benefits of bigger scholarships, better facilities, trainers, tutors, dietitians and more funding for athlete meals. And none of that cost is on the average student like it was during my time at UW.
I am all for athletes making money off of their skill set. It is unfair that the NBA and NFL have rules that keep athletes from turning pro when they are capable. If Congress wants to make a difference, this is where they should start. Being a student athlete should be a choice. If a student wants to come to UW to play sports and can earn a scholarship — worth $49,995 a year — and lifelong admission to finish their degree, that’s a pretty good deal. Especially when you look at the student debt crisis.
Jonathan Taylor agrees. Before deciding to become a Badger, Taylor was recruited by Harvard. In a 2017 Bleacher Report piece, he recalls feeling awed by the opportunities Harvard was offering him. “Here I am, a young black man and these guys are talking to me about going to Harvard. They don’t have scholarships, but they said they have endowments, and they would pay me to go to school. All I’d have to do is play football. Who wouldn’t do that?”
Jeff Haupt is the publisher of Isthmus and co-owner of Red Card Athletics
