Dan Lanning, Ryan Day react to players suing Leonard Hamilton over NIL promises

The latest NIL controversy broke Monday when it was reported that six former Florida State basketball players are suing coach Leonard Hamilton. The players alleged that Hamilton promised them each $250,000 in NIL payments that they never received.

It’s a story that has many talking, and it’s not the first time that something similar to this has happened. Oregon football coach Dan Lanning and Ohio State football coach Ryan Day were each asked to give their opinion on the matter ahead of a College Football Playoff match in the Rose Bowl.

“Growing up in the Midwest, you have to be a man of your word,” Lanning said. “What you say is what you do. I think that’s something we believe in here at Oregon. I don’t think there’s a lot of clarity in college football right now. Now I think everybody realizes that and I think we’d all be in favor of having some clarity. But you also want to compete to be the best.

“Each school is different in how they operate. I know at Oregon, we’re about integrity and what we say is what we do. But I can’t speak to that specific situation because I don’t know enough about it.”

Day followed up by echoing the sentiments of Lanning, saying he had been focused on preparing for the game and didn’t know a lot about the situation. However, he agreed that NIL needs “more structure” given all the recent issues.

“When you start getting into these conversations, obviously the legal folks start getting involved,” Day said. “I think for all of us, we would like a little more structure in those areas to alleviate some of those issues.”

The complaint from the former FSU players states that they received text messages from Leonard Hamilton and Will Cowen, an executive with one of Florida State’s NIL collectives. None of the six players suing the Seminoles coach are currently on the team.

This is not the only such instance of players allegedly being promised NIL deals that they never received. Earlier this season, UNLV quarterback Matthew Sluka left the team midway through the season after playing the first four games as the team’s starter.

Sluka, who was a transfer from Holy Cross, said that the Rebels promised him $100,000 to join their team that he never received. He was able to take a redshirt and save a season of eligibility because he played in only four games.

It’s clear that this has become an issue for several schools, with there seemingly being no way to hold coaches accountable for verbal promises. Both Lanning and Day believe that the most simple solution is to honor your word, but it’s clear so far that other measures might be needed.