Opinion: Gamecock Football & NIL

One can argue that the most disappointing 2023 season in the entire SEC was South Carolina.  Vegas had us at 6.5 wins and we managed 1.5 less.  I bore witness to several games in person this year, and with only 5 wins on the season, there was a lot of disappointment.  Outsiders may say we were on par, but those who know our program know we had weapons on both sides of the ball.  With a veteran offensive line that could perform consistently, we could have had our most prolific offense of all time with Rattler, Juice, Legette, and the emergence of Mario with 5 yards a carry.  Hard to believe none of them will be in the Garnet and Black next year, but I wish every single one of them success at their next stop.  Isn’t that what we are “supposed” to say these days?  Super easy for guys like Rattler and Legette, but what about people like Mario and Wells?  After all, College Football has changed forever, like it or not, and it is 100% a business now.  It always was, but now the players are getting paid.  We may pay them a lot of money to sit on the bench with a healed injury, but if the contract signed doesn’t give him incentive to play, it’s ultimately his choice.  Now more than ever, it is extremely important to stay ahead of the curve and hire the right lawyers to stay on top of these contracts with players.  I feel entirely different about Mario hitting the portal than Juice Wells, and I’ll tell you why.

I have had the privilege to get to know Cocksby90 (Jeff) over the last two years, and he is one of the most giving Carolina fans I’ve ever met.  It’s not a competition for him and others like him.  They want to help with unique events, cool artwork, fun merchandise, and small NIL deals throughout the year that give 100% of the donations to our players.  People like him pay thousands each year just to give away their seats to have more fans in the stands.  He’s one of many Gamecocks I know that are like that, but specifically I remember Jeff telling me about his NIL deal with Mario Anderson mid-season and how humble and kind he was as a person.  Coming from DII at Newberry College to RB1 in the SEC getting NIL deals was emotional for him.  Mario hitting the portal was surprising and stung a bit, but after the dust settles, I know he’s at worst a humble guy who loved it here.  We don’t know what’s going on in his life, and I seriously doubt we didn’t offer him a solid deal.  Not all solid deals are accepted on both sides, and as a businessman myself, I know that you must accept and respect that.  You also must accept the consequences with as much humility as you accepted your praises.

Let’s say Mario Anderson was offered a $90,000 NIL deal (I have no clue, and these numbers are made up) but wanted $100,000+ and told coach he loves it here and wants to stay and raise a family here, but he feels he’s worth more money.  Isn’t that something you would do in your everyday career and even advise your own friends and children to do: always listen to a better deal?  So he puts his name in the portal, and someone like Rocket Sanders from Arkansas comes and takes the $90,000 deal that Mario turns down (again, this is all hypothetical).  If Mario doesn’t get as sweet of a deal from any other school over bad advice from an agent, he now doesn’t have a home, and most definitely isn’t going to get another offer like that from USC.  Maybe a smaller offer, but now has to compete against a former 5 star RB who is getting paid well.  It probably isn’t a good look, and the fans know he tested the waters and came back with his hands out; not exactly a future fan favorite in that situation. For Mario, he wasn’t on our team the year before and he won’t be on our team next season.  He came in, played like a Gamecock should, didn’t get much NIL money to do it, and I wish him well and thank him for his services.  I know we didn’t pay him the thousands that he is about to get, so strictly from a business perspective, we got what we needed out of him for little to no money and he got what he needed out of us.  That’s the new lens you need to look through with College Football.  Long gone are the Senior days of old that were chock full of 4-year letterman who couldn’t contain their emotions as it finally hits that they will never again suit up with their brothers and run out to 2001 again.

The Juice Wells scenario is an entirely different animal that I don’t think anyone has seen yet.  We were the guinea pig of a top NIL talent with a unique injury and a bad contract.  I saw a graphic depicting Juice as the highest paid NIL player in the SEC; If that was the case and the contract a good one, he should have been playing or not been paid.  In the contract, it should say that if you are approved by a team doctor, then you need to play.  I’m not sure if we are the first school to experience this, but I know that our next NIL deal offered needs to be different.  Moving forward, my guess is that we are going to see the contracts include a “Juice” clause, as it should be appropriately named.  I was told Juice’s injury was his 2^nd such foot injury and a 3^rd on the same foot is a death sentence for getting a tryout from most teams in the NFL.  To be fair to Juice, if that is true and he were to reinjure the same foot, he may not ever see the next level.  It only makes sense for him to protect that.  It doesn’t mean that we as Carolina fans have to like it.

Where does that leave us with changing the structure of future NIL deals?  I mentioned approval by team doctors being a catalyst for forcing a player to honor his contract.  Is that legal?  Does there have to be a 3^rd party doctor chosen as well?  I’m genuinely not sure and just guessing at how USC can avoid getting into this mess ever again.  I’ve seen plenty of social media posts by people claiming they won’t support NIL collectives because they don’t want their money to go to a player sitting on the bench.  Count me in as one of those people who don’t want to see my money going to a bench warmer, but I can’t get behind the notion of not supporting The Garnet Trust or Carolina Rise if you want a perennial contender.  Just like you would a local Senator, write the NIL collective an email and tell them how you feel.  Tell them you want to support with dollars, but not until “X” has been done.  For me, “X” is a clause stating that if they are healthy and available to play, and opt out, then each game they opt out will be docked from their pay.  Each game they play, they get a check and possible incentives.  If they are injured, they still get their pay for each game, but when healthy, they need to be suited up.  As a fan, I can’t think of a more fair way to protect both sides when it comes to players like Juice Wells.  I’m happy he came here, and he was a ton of fun to watch.  I wish him well in the future, but call a spade a spade, he was healthy and did us dirty.  After seeing Lane Kiffin’s tweets from the last couple of days, I can assure you that I will be in the crowd at the Ole Miss game wanting nothing more than to see us beat those guys.

I’m not blaming any lawyers, BOT, Coaches, Juice, Park Avenue, or any NIL collective about the Juice breakdown.  It is what it is, and sometimes the best school to learn from is one of hard knocks.  You learn easier that way, but it does sting a bit.  We found Juice Wells at James Madison and Mario Anderson at Newberry, and they turned out to be two outstanding players in the Garnet and Black.  You know we can and will do that again.  The recent initiative with the Garnet Trust where a private donor is matching up to $1,000,000 is a prime example of that.  Our fans recognize that donating $125 is actually a $250 donation, and to be able to have $2,000,000 extra NIL dollars for next year makes me proud of every Gamecock who has given.  That is genuinely putting your money where your mouth is.  Hats off to yall!

I have to ask myself a question: Can South Carolina be a major player moving forward in this new landscape of NIL football?  Yes, and for multiple reasons:

1.       Shane Beamer and his staff have recognized talent from the portal and have plugged players where they were absolutely necessary. Bell leaving seemed devastating, and we found Trey Knox and Joshua Simon out of his absence.  Was the money it would have taken to keep Marshawn Lloyd worth 113 more yards from the line of scrimmage over Mario?  No. We saved a ton of money. Period.

2.       With matching donations like the one mentioned above, we have the backing that it will take to get the players at the positions we need.  Imagine us finishing 10-2 this year: how much quicker would you have donated $125 during this NIL push?  Would that translate to a 10-2 team getting better?  That’s the plan.

3.       Rattler staying for two seasons with his high profile proves that we can be a major player, and that South Carolina offers a lot more than money.

4.       Fan support is second to no one.  Media team is second to no one.  Our gameday atmosphere is what dreams are made of, and it lures people.  Those boxed are checked for the next level.

I’m not trying to pump sunshine into this next season, but I am trying to get people to avoid the doom and gloom of a surprise departure from one of your favorite players.  It’s going to happen a lot and often at schools across the country, but it leaves a path for you to possibly get to watch someone like Rocket Sanders in the Garnet & Black.  With Josiah Thompson coming in to help our offensive line and having two sophomore OL who played a lot as freshman this year, I’m hoping our offensive line will give Sellers enough time to acclimate to a leadership role.  If Sanders comes, and it’s a great possibility that he does, that would be a monumental win.  This is a guy with nearly a 1500 yard rushing season in the SEC West.

My expectations for the 2024 football season are about as low as I can remember, but also way more hopeful than I can remember.  Our schedule is absolutely brutal (@Alabama, @Clemson, @ Oklahoma, @Kentucky, LSU, Ole Miss, Missouri, and Texas A&M), but I’m excited about seeing LaNorris Sellers run the offense, seeing our defense with nearly our entire DL coming back, and having two Linebackers that have played a lot of football together.  Vegas will have us at 5.5 wins, maybe 6.5, so if we win 8 of these games, that will be significant improvement.  If we win more than 8, extend some contacts and pour another round because we found something that works.