FOX 2 - Call it a game changer for college sports
The NCAA's top governing board will allow student athletes to make money from the use of their name, likeness and image. It has 14 months to iron out the details.
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NCAA decision to allow college athletes to profit off name is a game changer
The NCAA governing board will allow student athletes to make money from the use of their name, likeness and image.
"I think it could look pretty simple - very similar to what a pro athlete does, if they do endorsements for a product or if they sign autographs at a car dealership or somewhere, I think it could look very similar to that.
"I think companies will enjoy this."
Michael Dietz, president of Dietz Sports and Entertainment, says top college athletes could potentially earn tens of thousands of dollars a year. But the change is not without potential hurdles.
"It's just going to be very hard when a college coach comes to talk to a high school kid, and says 'If you come to my school, there are going to be endorsement deals and this and that, that add up to x amount of dollars," Dietz said. "And so there's going to have to be a lot of rules and probably no guarantees during recruiting."
The NCAA's decision comes after California Gov. Gavin Newsome signed the fair pay to play act on LeBron James Uninterrupted show back in September. The new law allows college athletes to get paid for endorsement deals and hire sports agents.
Former Detroit Lions guard and Ohio State standout Rob Sims weighed in.
"I think it's really good, we put a lot of stress on our student-athletes these days," Sims said. "If you were in college and you worked for the Financial Aid building, if that's a way for you to get paid, playing football is just as strenuous if not more."
"If they're making money for it - the NCAA - and those athletes are working their butts off to make this profit for the NCAA, then they should get part of it too," said Cameron Guiterrez, MSU fan.
FOX 2 talked with Michigan State University and University of Michigan students when the men's soccer teams squared off in Ann Arbor.
"I work closely with a lot of student-athletes, I know a lot of them are excited, a lot of them are kind of anxious about what's going to happen," said William Overland, U-M.
"The colleges are going to want to keep this on the amateur level," Dietz said. "They provide a lot for these kids, they give them their education, give them food and lodging, they actually give them a stipend nowadays. So they are getting a lot out of it. They are going to want to keep it at the amateur level."
California's Fair Play to Pay Act goes into effect in 2023. The NCAA looks to have its rules set by January of 2021.