ARLINGTON – The Big 12 will feature 14 teams from eight states this coming year. In theory, that means multiple different Name, Image and Likeness playing fields.
Currently, there’s no federal legislation on NIL, allowing for states to play by their own rules. Some states, including four that house Big 12 schools, have no legislation, meaning schools are under the guidelines of the NCAA. Over 30 states do have NIL legislation.
In the two years since NIL was first allowed, states have not only created their own NIL legislation but have adapted and amended their laws. Texas and Oklahoma are two of the most recent states to pass amended NIL legislation.
The new NIL legislation in Texas and Oklahoma went into effect July 1. Included in both is the ability for college athletes to have representation. Both also prohibit conference and NCAA leadership from penalizing a college for participating in any NIL-related activity that is permissible under state law.
Texas A&M, for example, plans to follow state law instead of NCAA guidelines, according to On3. That decision came after the NCAA issued a memo saying that NCAA rules take precedence over state rules.
“It’s basically become like a game of chicken,” Mit Winter, a well-known NIL voice and attorney from Kennyhertz Perry in Kansas City, told The Dallas Morning News in June. “The NCAA keeps putting out these reactive statements to things they hear people are going to do, and then people kind of continue on with their plans, and the NCAA puts out another memo.
“I think the big question is: Is the NCAA really ever going to try and penalize a school that is doing something contrary to NCAA rules but is allowed under state law?”
In theory, the seven Big 12 schools in Texas and Oklahoma could follow A&M’s lead.
When asked if the different NIL landscapes could potentially compromise the level of fair competition, Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said, “As far as I’m concerned, schools have to adhere to NCAA rules. Hopefully with some type of federal legislation there will be a federal preemption of state laws, so there is that uniformity, and that’s what we’re hoping for.”
Yormark spent much of his second Big 12 media day press conference Wednesday giving a state of the Big 12. He gave a presentation of the highlights, including 12 bullet points on what the conference accomplished off the field. The last bullet point: “Connected with leaders on Capitol Hill.”
Yormark made it known that he, as well as NCAA President Charlie Baker and other conference commissioners, want federal NIL legislation. All federal bills that have been introduced haven’t gone anywhere, however.
In June, Sports Illustrated obtained a working draft of federal NIL legislation from senators Tommy Tuberville (R., Ala.) and Joe Manchin (D., W. Va.) that would grant the NCAA NIL authority, contrary to state laws in Texas and Oklahoma, among others.
West Virginia basketball coach Neal Brown said he hoped that bill would eventually be in front of Congress where it would have the chance to move forward. He, too, hopes for uniformity among college teams.
As for the current situation, Brown said school-friendly state laws will certainly help those college teams, though it isn’t the biggest NIL factor.
“Here’s the deal: more is a competitive advantage, right?” Brown said. “That’s not too different from any facet of life. The schools [that] have more money available are at a competitive advantage. The state laws help, but the biggest determinant is the amount of money.”
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