It’s fair to say that the NCAA’s current system around an athlete’s name, image, and likeness (NIL) has made for quite a chaotic scene in college athletics, and UTSA Roadrunners head coach Jeff Traylor has some interesting thoughts on the matter.
Jeff Traylor explained that his is “for NIL,” calling the rule change “a great rule” and explaining that players “deserve to make money.” But he is not a fan of the way the rule is currently enforced and regulated.
“What’s happening, man, is the third parties getting involved,” Traylor said according to On3. “It’s just common sense. You’ve got agents talking to your kids, communicate with another school — can’t prove any of this — and they’re charging those kids a percentage and they’re getting paid. It’s not good for those kids when you’re in the middle of the season and, you know, that can get cloudy for a young man. I feel for them. And all of those kids that are walking into my office, they’re good kids. They’re being put in a bad position and I want them to get paid.”
As for how to enforce the rules and protect the student-athletes, Traylor has a wild plan that plays on the belief that NIL has turned college athletics into “the wild west.”
“I’ve made some silly comments but like it’s almost like we need to hire, like, you know, like back in the old days when you watch those westerns, sometimes those towns get out of hand a little bit. You know, you bring in, you know, six or eight bad hombres and you just tell them to come in there and clean the city up,” Traylor said. “Well, we need to hire you know, a force. If nothing else, just put on some marshal deputy badges because the NCAA’s in trouble because I don’t think they have enough people to really enforce it.”
One way or another, it’s clear the NCAA needs to do something different.
[On3]
