Steveo’s Salvos: A broadside on Donors’ Return on Investments
Lebanon, TN – Once the NCAA announced in June 2021 that college athletic programs could raise funds through contracted collectives regarding their newly implemented Name, Image and Likeness aka NIL policy, many donors, alumni and business organizations jumped on the bandwagon. Many sent forth vast sums of money to invest millions of dollars to allow their respective schools through newly formed Collectives to make offers to talented players to come to their schools once they signed a letter of intent to attend alma mater dear. Well, that was the understanding originally. However, much has changed since this started only a few years ago.
Since Collectives don’t have to abide by the NCAA Do’s and Don’ts that schools and athletes need to adhere to, the NIL policy now entices athletes to leave their current program to transfer to another. Already, plenty of head coaches among many Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) competitors accuse others of doing this. However, they rarely name names in order to keep the peace. For they eventually fall into the same trap to enable their team to compete on the gridiron as well. The demands needed to compete on the field cause the NIL policy to grow as a collateral competition in college football. Survival of the fittest, or basically, the richest, depends on it.
Great NIL Policy Expectations?
Enthusiastic donors, alumni and business organizations aren’t holding back in the early going of the new NIL policy. They sink millions of dollars into these newfound war-chests. The media celebrates the hype of what players are moving on to new programs. One has to wonder though, what is the expected Rate on Investment (ROI) anticipated for these significant donations? For what donors invest into alma mater dear’s NIL policy, they must expect something in return. It’s supposedly disposable income for most, but with the amounts being invested now, there’s got to be some grand expectations.
Of course, the initial feeling is the return of satisfaction or happiness in giving this money to one’s school to help them compete. The short-term goal helps recruit the best team possible to play to win on the football field. In the end, however, is that going to be enough? For now, figure among 134 different FBS football programs, every season, only one is going to be crowned “National Champion.”
Donors or Owners?
These donors, in reality, are becoming investors in their favorite school’s football program. Of course, few can’t afford to buy a professional franchise. Maybe they see this investment compensating between their desire to own a real NFL team and owning a “Fantasy football team.” The stakes are generally much higher than the latter, of course. These are big money donations providing money for real teams with real people. These real people, all on one real team and under one hired coaching staff, drop passes, miss tackles, jump offsides on critical downs, make questionable decisions on the sideline, sit out when injured, or just play poorly on a given game day. Things don’t always go the right way. Some players stay along the sideline.
Satisfaction variables
No satisfaction guaranteed. Are these investors all going to be satisfied over time if their school program has at least a winning season of 7-5 every year? Or is 6-6 to get into a “consolation game” (I refuse to call these “bowl games”) good enough to keep big spenders happy to re-invest the following season? Will they be totally satisfied as long their school knocks off their cross-state rival more often than not? Will they only be satisfied if their team wins their conference every year? Can satisfaction be derived by becoming one of 12 teams to gain a bid to the new college football playoff (CFP) format? Every season? Once in a while? A few teams may dominate and achieve some, but not all, of these goals.
Live and learn.
At what point does an NIL policy investor say, “That’s it! It’s not worth my money.” The definition of happiness among all investors will vary. Some will be more demanding than others. How great will the pressure be on coaches that don’t meet the investors’ expectations? How many investors insist on firing their head coach? Fans already witness this among top, winning programs today. How many good coaches will figure, “I’ve had enough. I’m going to the pros where I have one major investor to deal with-the owner.” In addition to coaching a team, they are also primary fundraisers to keep donations rolling in. That’s a full-time job in itself. They already manage 85 players, assistant coaches and recruiting responsibilities to find new players to replace ones moving on. And with the current NIL policy and the transfer portal options, that could be half of a roster.
And what will happen when the players these investors provided money for decide to leave because they don’t start? Or perhaps, because the coach is moving on? What kind of pressure are investors going to use then? “If this player leaves, don’t expect any more money from me!” Like everything else changing so fast in college football, this is when scholarships will morph into contracts. Donors invest their money for collectives to “hire” players. “The coach may leave, but that player better not be following him. I made my investment to bring that player into our program, not the coach’s.” Sorry NCAA.
The NIL Policy in a State of Flux
Oh yes! Players, donors, coaches to some extent, schools, alumni associations and booster clubs are enjoying the NIL policy now. However, when those investments kick in to satisfy a multitude of investors looking for their team to finish at the top at the end of the season, there will only be one team there. One hundred thirty-three others will have toppled along the way. Some investors may remain satisfied with their investment. “At least we beat our cross-state rival!” But how much did they donate? A few will still see a glimmer of hope for the following season, but there are going to be many more programs who are going to see the loss of benefactors fall out of line without a satisfactory return on their investment.
$urvival
Only the “rich will survive.” That will be because they will be the only ones to sustain more funds through the current NIL policy. Winners get more donations. When we witness a dynasty, it will be built on a mountain of money. When that happens, there are going to be more disheartened than enthusiastic football fans in the collegiate ranks.
Money from the NIL policy won’t be expanding among the majority of collectives to build more competition in college football. Investors will find more satisfying options to use their disposable income. NIL donations will be contracting among most to leave a small group of elite teams left to play football among themselves. As I suggest in my book Fifty Years of Tailgate Tales: The Good the Fun and the Ugly, it makes sense now to break up the FBS. It’s got to happen now. Even Nick Saban concurs that what we have now is not college football.
