Will New NIL Regulations Impact Transfers and Recruitment? Experts Weigh In

New regulations that allow student-athletes to receive compensation for their name, image, and likeness (NIL) may have a major impact on how college athletics are run. 

How exactly might these new rules impact transfers and recruitment? Only time will tell, but here are a few plausible scenarios. 

Transfer Outs

One of the biggest changes to come may be in how transfers are handled. Previously, when a student-athlete wanted to transfer schools, they had to sit out a year before they were eligible to compete. However, under the new rules, student-athletes can transfer and compete immediately. 

Describing the changes, NCAA president Mark Emmert said: “This legislation creates a new path to opportunity for student-athletes while preserving what makes college sports special. We must continue to enhance protections for student-athletes and create even more opportunities for them to succeed.”

Bobby Reid, former quarterback for Texas Southern and Oklahoma State, and founder of the new NIL platform, TipMyTeam, offered an additional perspective, “[Thanks to NIL platforms like TipMyTeam], athletes may realize the grass is not always greener, and decide to stick to it by making amends with the current situation. Either way, we believe our platform will encourage athletes to stay in college longer, specifically  those ‘on the fence guys’, which will lead to even more athletes graduating!”

Recruitments

Recent NIL legislation may also impact how recruitment is handled. 

Reid further explains, “[Platforms like TipMyTeam] are not trying to influence recruiting, but our platform will give a potential recruit the knowledge of what fan bases are behind their team and charity work.  If a football team, for example, has 50,000 fans donating $10 per month it could make a difference in the quality of athletes a team can recruit.”

The changes to the NCAA transfer and recruitment rules are the first steps in a long process of adapting to the new world of NIL compensation. It will be interesting to see how these changes impact the landscape of college athletics.