Now that an antitrust settlement has paved the way for colleges to pay their athletes directly, a lawmaker from Prince George’s County, Maryland, is trying to get high schoolers and their families prepared.
Maryland Del. Denise Roberts is hosting the first Hustle HQ event at Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School on Thursday night. The goal is to help student-athletes understand what’s changed and how it will impact them as they get ready for college.
A federal judge on Friday approved a multibillion-dollar settlement involving the NCAA, which essentially professionalized college sports and opened the door for colleges to begin paying athletes. The seismic change comes just four years after the NCAA allowed its athletes to begin capitalizing off their name, image and likeness.
“Most parents and families, they don’t even know what NIL means. Collectives, revenue sharing — and if they don’t have the proper guidance, they’re going to lose out,” Roberts said.
“We want to make sure that our student-athletes are armed with the information, and that our parents are able to properly advocate on behalf of their kids.”
Thursday night’s Hustle HQ event will include talks with financial planners, lawyers and athletic directors who can help students understand the financial concerns they need to consider, the legal side of things such as contracts, and how their eligibility could be impacted.
Roberts said the target audience is high school students and their families, but she knows the parents of a Division 1 athlete who’s already enrolled who will be there too.
“She was like, ‘I wish I had this information a long time ago,’ and she’s coming to get that information,” Roberts said. “Because while he didn’t get it at the beginning, there’s still opportunity for him to be armed with the information now.”
The event is free to sign up for. She expects this to be a recurring event in the months and years to come.
“I want parents and students to get ahead of this information, because it is constantly changing,” Roberts said. “This is just the beginning.”
And while Roberts said she understands many athletes aren’t likely to make much money, some 18-year-olds might be enrolling as freshmen getting paid six figures to play a sport.
“College or sports is oftentimes the avenue that some people take to get out of poverty,” Roberts said. “So with their talent and skills, if you use it properly, you can end up in a great space. But don’t let all of that go to waste.”
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