NIL

[obijuana]

Don't forget we are recruiting against Tennessee and Texas and other states that don't have a state income tax.  Perhaps just a little leveling of the playing field.

That can be the only reason. *sigh* Now our politicians are selling out to these fucking kids. Just do that when big industry is looking for a new place to build their widgets. No state tax if you move your business to the Natural State. No state tax if you'll take our NIL deal.

[Sus-Scrofa]

Don't forget we are recruiting against Tennessee and Texas and other states that don't have a state income tax.  Perhaps just a little leveling of the playing field.

Arkansas state income tax on a million bucks is about 40k.  We're probably not keeping a player away from Texas over 40k.

[DrMongoose]

So they don't want you to know how much more than what you make a year they are paying these kids but the AD is gonna come asking for your money on behalf of both the athletic department and to help pay the kids?

I would not trust our AD to run a lemonade stand.

[jdcatty]

Arkansas state income tax on a million bucks is about 40k.  We're probably not keeping a player away from Texas over 40k.

Maybe, maybe not.  You know mama could use that extra $40k. 

Not a huge deal, but it is a deal.

[Show-Me Hog]

Well yeah, if he didn't receive any payment, I wouldn't pursue it.  Returning payments when you never even reached a season, would seem more reasonable.

 

The NIL era has already opened up diverse opportunities and complications throughout college athletics. What was once a far-reaching step toward empowering student-athletes has now become a legal battleground, with schools and players conflicting over enforcing contract agreements.

The latest situation in the NIL world arose when sports attorney Darren Heitner publicly questioned the University of Arkansas' NIL collective, pointing out that the school is pursuing an invalid buyout clause against Dazmin James, a former Razorbacks receiver.

The Arkansas NIL collective functions under Blueprint Sports (BPSE) and, with the support of Hunter Yurachek, the athletics director, recently reached out with a demand letter to two ex-players: Dazmin James and Madden Iamaleava.

The group requests $200,000 from Iamaleava, a QB who moved to UCLA to join his brother, Nico, and an unspecified amount from James, a receiver who also left the program.

These requests find root in buyout clauses in the parties' NIL agreements, which require players to pay back portions of their contract, typically 50% of the remaining earnings, if they transfer to other programs before their contract term ends.

In Arkansas's case, the deals are structured to last one year, which means a mid-term transfer under the agreement could result in significant financial penalties for the players.

However, in a statement shared with CBS Sports, Heitner, a recognized sports attorney known for representing college athletes, stepping in for James, argued that the buyout clause in James' contract cannot be forced under Arkansas law.

"My position is that the buyout clause in the agreement is unenforceable, as written and applied, under Arkansas law," Heitner declared.

He further stated that for the liquidated damages to be valid, they must, to a reasonable extent, estimate potential damages and be implemented when the real damages are challenging to determine.

In James' case, Heitner detailed that the player received no payment from the association, and the agreement was terminated just days after it was implemented.

"BPSE suffered no harm," he emphasized, referring to the clause as the type that imposes a penalty rather than a fair estimate of damages, which renders it legally untenable.

This will surely just be the beginning—for this specific situation and for NIL disputes as a whole—as the world of college sports continues to adapt to this new reality of "amateur" athletics.


https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/more-nil-battles-incoming-sports-attorney-takes-on-arkansas-over-dazmin-james-nil-dispute/ar-AA1DRwBj?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=30817068d5ca4dccadc771c4d7cf2a1b&ei=35

[BleedinRed]

"BPSE suffered no harm,"

What about a potential receiver you might have signed had you not counted on James being there?

I would argue that is harm.  

[jdcatty]

If there truly has not been any money paid, it will be interesting to see Tom Mars' theory on damages.

[Borenutz]

If there was money paid, with an agreement that money was a condition of him playing for the school this year, I firmly support a lawsuit to have the money returned, if that was necessary. Not sure how I would feel about suing for non monetary "damages" that seems like it could hurt your rep. There needs to be a governing body stepping in to put some order to the number and frequency of transfer being allowed that all kids and all schools have to abide by. Obviously it should be the NCAA, but I'm not really sure what they do at this point.

[vegashog]

tripping over this guy for damages but not luke haaz or pooh paul who had to have much, much better nil deals.

i don't get it and think it will not end well.

[The Whyte Boar]

This reeks of setting the trend with performance based contracts.  That worked well.

[BleedinRed]

If there truly has not been any money paid, it will be interesting to see Tom Mars' theory on damages.

If James had been hurt, cut, or otherwise couldn't play ever again 30 seconds after signing that deal, he would have gone after the program for the monies he would have been owed.  And rightfully so.  I've no problem with the program doing the same thing. 

If the contrat says he will pay the program half the value of his contract shoudl he choose to leave, then he needs to pay it.  This is business, not a charity.  The players asked for this.  Fuck em.

[vegashog]

any money that is owed is owed to the collective, not the program. just wanted to point that out.

james had been on campus since june 2023 and hadn't done shit. the only reason he saw the field as a wr for the bowl game was because teslaa and armstrong declared for the draft. and if he had gotten hurt, then why wouldn't he still get any nil money? injuries happen all the time and there is no performance clause (as of now) in the deals.

like i said, we had much more valuable guys just up and go to a conference rival but this dude is the hill the collective seems to want to die on? makes no sense.

[BleedinRed]

Enforcing the terms of a contract always makes sense.

[Pig Benis]

any money that is owed is owed to the collective, not the program. just wanted to point that out.

james had been on campus since june 2023 and hadn't done shit. the only reason he saw the field as a wr for the bowl game was because teslaa and armstrong declared for the draft. and if he had gotten hurt, then why wouldn't he still get any nil money? injuries happen all the time and there is no performance clause (as of now) in the deals.

like i said, we had much more valuable guys just up and go to a conference rival but this dude is the hill the collective seems to want to die on? makes no sense.

Unless they had different terms in their contracts or they paid the buyout like they were supposed to.

[vegashog]

i'm talking about the 'damages' part of the thing.

it was less damaging for luke haaz to bail than it was james?

[Lurk]

any money that is owed is owed to the collective, not the program. just wanted to point that out.

james had been on campus since june 2023 and hadn't done shit. the only reason he saw the field as a wr for the bowl game was because teslaa and armstrong declared for the draft. and if he had gotten hurt, then why wouldn't he still get any nil money? injuries happen all the time and there is no performance clause (as of now) in the deals.

like i said, we had much more valuable guys just up and go to a conference rival but this dude is the hill the collective seems to want to die on? makes no sense.

What's the statute of limitations on something like this? Make it plain that if you screw us and ever do make any money playing football, plan to spend a good portion of it on lawyers fees. That takes away the optics of going after a "college student".

[Sus-Scrofa]

What's the statute of limitations on something like this? Make it plain that if you screw us and ever do make any money playing football, plan to spend a good portion of it on lawyers fees. That takes away the optics of going after a "college student".

Written contract, five years on a breach claim.

[DirkPiggler]

Enforcing the terms of a contract always makes sense.

Unless enforcement causes more destruction of brand value than it would bring back in damages.

[BleedinRed]

Unless enforcement causes more destruction of brand value than it would bring back in damages.

There's no way to even know that Napoleon.

[DirkPiggler]

There's no way to even know that Napoleon.

Maybe, maybe not. 

If our collective being seen as petty and vindictive for going after a guy like James who apparently never received any money causes us to lose one recruit who would've performed better, it's a net loss.  Given that we are always on the tail end of the recruiting rankings among teams on our schedule, adding an additional barrier like that over a relative pittance in college athletics terms seems unwise.