By Jack Haslett and Davis Ramage
Name, image and likeness is the ever-growing hot topic in college athletics. It affects college sports’ current and future landscape daily, but some schools struggle more than others, like Long Beach State.
With incoming freshmen such as BYU basketball player, A.J. Dybantsa, having a reported NIL evaluation of $3.8 million, this creates an appealing situation for recruits when choosing which college to attend.
It used to be that players would commit to schools based on the coach, the program, the location or other factors, but now substantial money has become the biggest motivator.
“I do know that there have been a couple of athletes who have committed to particular schools, and then they change their commitment later because another school will come along and offer them a lot of money, like $200,000,” LBSU Sports Communications Professor and NIL Researcher Kevin Johnson said.
Many incoming players also hire agents to help with the NIL negotiation process, adding another factor to recruiting for college programs. Athletes and their families often still speak with coaches about the typical factors that would affect an athlete’s decision, such as fit and team culture, while agents communicate with programs about the money.
“As an assistant coach, or anyone on staff… a large percentage of your offseason is now just about NIL, that was never a part of the recruiting aspect before,” Ali Tavakol, director of basketball operations for LBSU men’s basketball, said.
According to Tavakol, managing and maintaining NIL money at a mid-major university like LBSU requires help from all staff.
“It’s everyone’s jurisdiction, from our head coach [Chris Acker] all the way down to our graduate assistant,” Tavakol said. “The second the season ended, every meeting is about number one, how to get players, and at the end of the day, that’s NIL.”
The student section was packed during Long Beach State’s last home game against UC San Diego. The Beach took down UCSD 3-0 as Long Beach State became the Big West regular season champions. Photo credit: Samuel Chacko
Fundraising is the name of the NIL game at LBSU. Coaches and staff attend events with Long Beach community members to try and garner new donors and boosters to increase the funds the program has available to offer players.
“The focus isn’t, ‘oh, how do we get money? The focus is how do we outreach to the community and get to the people that want to help us while we help them at the same time,” Tavakol said.
Athletics programs do receive funds from a budget distributed by university administration, but that money goes towards scholarships and basic needs funding, not NIL collectives, according to Tavakol.
NIL money is managed by what are called collectives, funds separate from the university that are managed by either an outside third party or by a staff member of an athletics program, according to Tavakol.
There are a myriad of NIL collectives, like the LBSU Men’s Basketball Alliance and the LBSU Men’s Volleyball Collective, which manage NIL funds for those specific programs. Money donated by boosters for NIL purposes is then added to these collectives to be used for compensating players.
“I’m excited for the creative possibilities, which includes NIL, which includes collectives,” Nick MacRae, LBSU men’s volleyball assistant coach and recruiting coordinator, said. “We’re super excited and hopeful that we will now have 12 scholarships, and then you can add on NIL and collectives, that’s very exciting in my lens.”
Another way to generate revenue is through merchandise sales. If the LBSU logo or name is a prominent part of the merchandise of collegiate athletes, then the school can take a larger cut. But if the t-shirt or jersey being sold just has the player’s name and number without including school or team logos, then more of the money goes to the athlete.
“When you bring in money, it turns the landscape into a professional sport,” Tavakol said “We’re beyond happy for these students… but it’s been absolutely flipped upside down.”
