Name, image and likeness (NIL), the transfer portal and social media were among the topics at the Sports Business Journal’s Intercollegiate Athletics Forum. The participants on the panel Student-Athletes Speak Out on the Issues of the Day didn’t hold back in sharing their experiences and concerns.
Walter Rouse, a senior offensive tackle on Stanford University’s football team, said he’s seen increased attention to the health and well-being of student-athletes since he began college. Graduate student softball player Morgyn Wynne from Oklahoma State University said it’s been rewarding to see transformations, but we’ve only scratched the surface on gender equity issues.
“We started seeing the inequity in the women’s basketball tournament or the women’s softball tournament that resources weren’t as readily available for female athletes as they were for male athletes,” said Wynne. “Their set-up was a lot different than what ours looked like. … Getting that ball rolling has been very important.”
Brynn Carlson, a volleyball player and recent graduate of the University of Missouri, has served on the NCAA’s Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee as the Big 12 Conference’s representative. “One of our main focuses and goals as of late has been working on student-athlete voice in the governance structure,” she said. “We’re working towards increasing the amount of power that we have within the decision-making process.”
NIL has increased financial literacy among student-athletes as well as image consciousness and desire to build a personal brand. That makes them more thoughtful about what they put on social media. While the ability to earn money is very meaningful to many student-athletes, the panel noted that access to NIL deals can impact a recruit’s choice of institution, causing them to opt for greater financial potential as opposed to best fit.
“I don’t want it to play a big part, but it’s going to,” said Rouse. “I would hope an athlete in picking a college would take into consideration all the factors—NIL along with how it’s going to affect them academically, the rest of their life, relationship with the coaches, what’s going on in the locker room and issues of their community overall.”
The transfer environment has evolved over the past few years. In terms of women’s sports, Carlson noted it’s great for basketball because transfers no longer have to sit out a year. “I would love to continue to see the environment open up from a student-athlete perspective,” she said. “Protecting student-athlete freedom of movement.”
