As if the uncertainty and the far-reaching impacts of the NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) situation haven’t been enough, we’ve learned that it is now the focus of the NCAA President, Charlie Baker, who issued a statement recently asking that the Federal Government step in and help regulate the process.

Oh boy.

It really blew up over the last week when UNLV quarterback Matthew Sluka announced that he was going to take a redshirt year because an alleged NIL verbal offer of $100,000 by an assistant coach was “not upheld.”

He reportedly only saw $3,000 of the money and has his agent involved in trying to get the rest of the money:

pic.twitter.com/oK5BDRpoxK

— Matthew Sluka (@MatthewSluka) September 25, 2024

On Friday, Baker posted via X (Twitter) the need to clean up the NIL process.

Here’s is the entirety of what he posted:

We continue to see evidence of dysfunction in today’s NIL environment, including examples of promises made but not kept to student-athletes…

Just as anyone that owns stock or buys a house is afforded basic consumer protections, it’s clear that student-athletes entering NIL contracts should be too.

That’s exactly why we provide student-athletes with a template contract and recommended, fair terms through our new NIL Assist platform (Click HERE: https://nilassist.ncaa.org).

While we’d love to see these resources used to protect student-athletes in every NIL deal, it’s not something the @NCAA has the authority to mandate.

In the meantime, we’re continuing to advocate for Congress to create national NIL guidelines that will protect student-athletes from exploitation, including the use of standard contracts.

In essence, the NCAA President is asking for Congress to play judge and referee in making sense of the economic policies that has quickly become an area of uncertainty and, according to one report, could put the NCAA on trial with the possibility of facing more than $20 billion in back damages.

As the final paragraph of Baker’s release on Friday noted:

“We we’re continuing to advocate for Congress to create national NIL guidelines that will protect student-athletes from exploitation, including the use of standard contracts.”

You know when the NCAA is asking for the U.S. Government to step in, this issue has boiled out of control.

— Brentt Eads/Line Drive Softball

We continue to see evidence of dysfunction in today’s NIL environment, including examples of promises made but not kept to student-athletes…

Just as anyone that owns stock or buys a house is afforded basic consumer protections, it's clear that student-athletes entering NIL…

— Charlie Baker (@CharlieBakerMA) September 27, 2024