I am sorry this piece is bad; it is not my fault… Some people think I should do this for the love of the game, but I have this crazy idea that I might get paid if people read it.But not because they love sports.
Seriously, take the blue pill. You’ll be happier.
This is awful. Everything smells bad.
In a very bad way, college sports and business in the real world are coming together.
And the fact that there is no organized way to do this stinks. It stinks that there is complete chaos, that people who just want to watch a game have to wake up and face the truth, and…
Poor Matthew Sluka, who used to play quarterback for UNLV. He had to do this.
Being very clear that I will change my tone and voice if this turns out to be dirtier than it seems…
Pete Thamel and Adam Rittenberg’s first report says that Sluka was told by an assistant that he would get $100,000 to go to UNLV, but that the team was only going to pay him $3,000.
Because of this misunderstanding, Sluka left the undefeated Rebels just as the season was getting started.
Take a step back. We need to start with some simple facts.
College sports are a BUSINESS
From now on, you need to understand two things about college games that most people don’t.
College sports are a huge business worth a lot of money. Colleges are huge businesses that make a lot of money. They are in business to get paid to do something.
Major college sports exist to make money from fans and donors—that is it. Do not even get me started on how silly it is for college sports not to make money; that is for another day.
College athletes are entertainers, at least in the games that make money. That is all.
They are not soldiers in a war for their country. That level of play is not just for fun at a club level. The purpose of these events is to make you laugh and raise a lot of money for the schools.
This is the tough part that no one wants to get to…
You are a customer.
The word fan is always used because it sounds better. Fans are used to make people feel like they are a part of something, not just a way for big companies to make more money.
I like Method Men sea & surf body wash, Starbucks, and McDonald’s fries, but am I a fan? Kind of, but I am buying something. The same way that people who buy Chicago Bears tickets are just customers who give money to a team in the hopes of having fun.
“Devoted”… “True”… “World’s Best Fans”…
Tennessee pays a 10% star fee.
Mountain West toll road.
You have to pay to watch ads on video networks.
College football’s job is to make you spend as much money as possible.
You will understand why this whole Matthew Sluka thing is just business if you get there faster.
College football and major college athletics are giving you the “adapt or die” speech in real time
But that is not enough for many people who think college football is Johnny Collegeguy taking a break from studying to play in a fun activity on Saturday before taking Mary Sue Poodleskirt to the Homecoming dance.
“He quit his team!”
You go to work. They say you will no longer get paid. You go to another job… so you quit on your friends.
“What a great lesson! “Just wait until these spoiled kids grow up.”
non, they are living in the real world.
“NIL is making college sports bad!”
Nope. What was going on behind the scenes is only being brought to light because
“That is it for college football!”
Nope. It is how college sports have changed over time and will continue to change until they are controlled and streamlined. It will get there.
But let us do this thing with Sluka.
Matthew Sluka leaves UNLV over an NIL dispute … and that’s okay
You are a good college football player who can be bought.
You will not make it to the NFL, and this is your only chance to make a lot of money for a year or so. This deal is only good for one time.
Before he can graduate from college, he needs to find another way to make money, and he could be very successful in that new field.
If you can play a sport in one place and make $100,000, but not in another, you would be crazy to risk your body, which is your asset, for one more second than you have to…