Former Michigan stars Denard Robinson, Braylon Edwards file $50 million suit against NCAA, Big Ten Network

Former Michigan stars Denard Robinson and Braylon Edwards have filed a class action suit against the NCAA and Big Ten Network, claiming defendants used their name, image and likeness without permission.

The suit states the class action is on behalf of former Michigan football players who played before 2016. The players are seeking more than $50 million in damages.

The complaint comes after Mario Chalmers and 15 other former NCAA Tournament stars filed a suit against the NCAA, the nation’s top six basketball conferences and Turner Sports Interactive in July. And 10 players from the 1983 N.C. State national championship team got the ball rolling by suing the NCAA and the Collegiate Licensing Company for using their NIL without their permission in June.

Filed in the Eastern District of Michigan, Denard Robinson’s filing comes as college sports looks to land the plane on the landmark House settlement, which will award $2.8 billion in retroactive NIL pay to athletes who entered college sports after June 15, 2016. U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken sent the NCAA and plaintiffs back to the drawing board last week to rework language around NIL collectives and boosters.

“While today, it is accepted and understood that current college football players are allowed to be compensated monetarily, especially for using their name, image and likeness (sometimes referred to as ‘NIL’), players were wrongfully and unlawfully prevented from doing so for decades,” Tuesday’s filing states. “The NCAA knew it was wrong but still continued to profit.”

Denard Robinson seeking damages for NIL rights

In the 73-page lawsuit filed by Robinson and former athletes, the class argues the NCAA and Big Ten Network have made significant dollars off their “game-winning plays and electrifying performances.”

A former quarterback at Michigan, Robinson was the 2010 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, and he set the single-season FBS record for rushing yards by a quarterback and became the only player in NCAA history to both pass and rush for 1,500 yards.

“This practice of exploiting not just individual players, but the historic and emotionally charged rivalries, which form the bedrock of college football’s appeal, underscores the systematic inequity inherent in the NCAA’s policies,” the complaint states.

Robinson and former Michigan football players are seeking damages for loss of market value for NIL rights, suppressed earnings from endorsements, missed opportunities for media appearances, uncompensated use of likeness in merchandise, revenue from archived footage and highlight reels, lost licensing opportunities, economic loss from NIL suppression, unfair competitive disadvantage, loss of future earning potential, unjust enrichment, retroactive compensation for historical use, group licensing agreements, long-tail endorsements, revenue sharing from media rights and intellectual property claims.

“Defendants NCAA, BTN, and their known and unknown co-conspirators have engaged in a continuing contract, combination, and conspiracy to restrain trade in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act,” the complaint states. “Through their officers, directors, employees, agents, or other representatives, the Defendants have entered a concerted action to artificially depress to near zero the price for the use of and to limit the supply for, licensing, and sale of plaintiffs’ and class members’publicity rights, including names, images, and likenesses.”