College athletes deserve to be compensated, but NIL has become a 180 from what it was supposed to be. When NIL was first introduced, it was meant to be used for what it stands for: the athlete’s name, image, and likeness. 

Take Arch Manning, the quarterback for the University of Texas, for example. The name “Manning” immediately adds viewership because of his relation to Peyton Manning and Eli Manning, making Arch’s NIL valuation extremely valuable.

Now take Jordan Seaton, an offensive tackle for LSU Tigers, who previously played at Colorado Buffaloes under Deion Sanders. He left Colorado for numerous reasons, one of them being money.

How much money does an offensive tackle deserve through NIL? According to The Advertiser, LSU paid Seaton more than $4 million just for this upcoming season. At what point does the transfer portal become free agency with players leaving for more money?

College football is a bit out of control because of NIL, but college basketball is completely out of control. Players who entered the NBA draft and went undrafted came back to the NCAA. 

In other cases, players are making so much money they are foregoing the NBA draft in order to stay in school and rake in more money than they would make if they were selected in the draft.

I do not agree with professional athletes making generational wealth for playing a sport, but when it comes to college, I adamantly disagree with it. As a student, if I went into class and saw the starting point guard for my school’s basketball team making $5 million for the season, I would be irritated, even more so if he was underperforming. 

When athletics is doing great and flourishing in the capital, the “regular” students’ everyday lives become better, whether it’s with scholarships, renovations and more. However, when they are not winning and bringing in money, you operate at a deficit. Similar to Rutgers University who are over $100 million in debt because of athletics.

I am all for athletes getting paid, but it is time we get back to the basics. A big-name five-star athlete deserves to make a couple hundred thousand, maybe even a million. But an athlete who does not bring in more money for the school does not, in my opinion.

With the way the NCAA is moving, we will no longer have college athletics. It will become a professional league. Young adults will be treated like the Joel Embiid’s of the world.