A Colorado man has created a website that "employs crowdfunding techniques to connect athletes with sponsorship opportunities available at schools," and in doing so he "created the first known company to take a theoretical concept for name, image and likeness compensation and bring it to life," according to J. Brady McCollough of the L.A. TIMES. Zachary Segal founded StudentPlayer.com, pitching the concept to Toco Warranty Corp. COO Brad Basmajian, whose company then "committed $100,000" to the site. Segal also is an investor in Toco, a West Hills, Calif.-based vehicle repair coverage firm. Basmajian "decided to sponsor the starting quarterback position for each of the teams ranked in the top 10" on StudentPlayer.com, at $10,000 per player, believing the "loosening of NIL rules will lead to an emerging market in the world of digital advertising." Segal said that Toco's money, along with other contributions his site has received, will "sit in an escrow account until name, image and likeness payments are approved by NCAA rules." McCollough notes StudentPlayer.com currently "shows total contributions to date at $103,342." Segal said that as NIL discussions continue to intensify, his site is "prepared to work within the rules once they're established" (L.A. TIMES, 1/23).
DOUBLE STANDARD: An ORLANDO SENTINEL editorial states money has "turned college sports into a professional operation, but the people it depends on the most," the student-athletes themselves, are "treated like amateurs." If schools "have the right to market athletes, athletes have every right to market themselves" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 1/23).
