Jim Harbaugh: 'Players should have a share in the revenues'

INDIANAPOLIS — At the first day of the Big Ten Football Media Days, Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren declined to share the conference’s targeted value for the multimedia rights contracts its currently negotiating.

“We’re still working through that,” Warren said. “I don’t want to guess what that would be.”

Other parties haven’t been shy about making informed guesses, however, especially after the announcement that USC and UCLA will join the conference in 2024.

On June 8, almost a month before news broke about USC and UCLA’s defections from the Pac-12, Sports Business Journal’s John Ourand said the Big Ten could receive more than $1 billion annually.

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh said Tuesday that college football players should receive a share of that revenue.

“I believe players should have a share in the revenues and I think that’s something that’s really possible at Michigan,” Harbaugh told On3. “I think that’s where we’re headed.”

Could schools soon directly pay athletes beyond cost-of-attendance stipends and Alston awards?

Harbaugh explained his rationale. He pointed to the conference itself as the entity that could pay athletes. However, the idea he floated was in regards to potential NIL deals, rather than direct employee-employer relationships.

“Yeah, I mean the Big Ten, even,” he said. “I mean, they use their name, image and likeness on the TV broadcast. They’re the one signing the mega TV deals and a new one’s coming in 2024. Why can’t that be an NIL deal right from the Big Ten? That’s who’s negotiating the TV deals and that’s where the big money is.”

Revenue sharing comments follow Big Ten uninviting players association

Ironically, Harbaugh’s comments came just days after the Big Ten uninvited the College Football Players Association‘s (CFBPA) founder and Executive Director Jason Stahl from the conference’s media days. Stahl planned to travel to Indianapolis for media days, where he was scheduled to meet with Warren.

Stahl and Warren previously had an hour-long phone conversation last Thursday, following meetings between Stahl and members of the Penn State football team, including quarterback Sean Clifford.

Clifford also had a conversation with Warren. The quarterback later released a statement in which he appeared to distance himself from the CFBPA, at least in the context of his discussion with Warren.

On3 obtained a copy of an email Big Ten Senior Vice President of Communications Jon Schwartz sent Stahl regarding Big Ten Football Media Days.

“A primary goal of media days is to highlight student-athletes’ accomplishments as well as to kick-off the 2022 football season,” Schwartz wrote in the email. “In light of the media coverage yesterday, we believe attendance by CFBPA representatives at this event would distract from our student-athletes and this goal.”

‘We kind of missed the boat years ago’

Could negotiations with a players association be an improvement upon the current landscape?

“I think we have to have an open mind to everything we consider moving forward,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz told On3. “I think it’s really important as the revenues grow, part of it has to get back to the players, I would think. But now, you’ve got Title IX. It’s so complex. There’s so many levels. I’m not smart enough to know the answer.

“I just think we kind of missed the boat years ago when the revenues started to grow not to find a way to get it back to player welfare.”

“I think depending on where everything goes in the conference,” Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck told On3, “does it look more like professional football or does it stay collegiate football? I think representation at any level is healthy if it’s done the right way.

“I don’t think there’s enough questions answered yet to be able to go down that road just yet.”

On3 asked Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald for his thoughts on Clifford’s reported meeting with Warren, given the Northwestern-specific context of a group of its football players’ attempt to unionize in 2014 and 2015. The CFBPA’s current goal isn’t to form a union, although it could be a potential option in the future.

“Yeah, I have no idea,” Fitzgerald said. “Yeah, I have no idea. Anything else? I gotta go. Yeah.”

That was the final question before Fitzgerald ended his scheduled breakout session with the media.

With the Big Ten on the precipice of solidifying media rights that will be worth 10 figures annually, most of which is driven by college football, how does one try to balance the value derived from football with athletes in other sports who also will soon travel from coast to coast?

If athletes get a share of conference media rights revenue in the future, will a track and field athlete receive similar compensation as a football player?

“I don’t know if you can balance that,” said Maryland wide receiver Rakim Jarrett. “That’s like saying if you go to Alabama and you’re saying, ‘Yeah, the track team should get as much as the football team.’ It’s not possible because of what goes on with football and other sports. I don’t really think you can balance that, honestly.”