Mississippi High School Activities Association partners with NIL firm

While high school athletes in Mississippi aren’t allowed to earn NIL compensation, they’ll soon have access to educational resources and services. The Mississippi High School Activities Association and Mississippi Association of Coaches announced in July a partnership with Eccker Sports to educate high school athletes and their parents, coaches and administrators.

“It is our mission to guide, protect and inform coaches, administrators, student-athletes and their families to help them thrive on their NIL journey,” Eccker Sports’ website says.

MHSAA Executive Director Rickey Neaves said in a release the topic of NIL comes up weekly with parents and schools that are contacted about possible deals.

“The fact is, everything is so new, nobody really knows about it, which is exactly why we need education,” Neaves said. “We want to make sure our schools, the coaches and the parents have the resources they need to make the proper decisions and not jeopardize anyone’s eligibility. Eccker Sports is going to provide that for us. Mississippi doesn’t have NIL for high school students, that’s where we felt the education part of this would be the best place to start.”

Eccker Sports co-founder and CCO Tim Prukop said in the release, “We all know Mississippi does not allow NIL to happen for high schools, and may never, but that doesn’t make the issue any less important.”

“There are a lot of athletes being recruited out of the state and, together, the leaders of the MHSAA and MAC took the proactive step to ensure that their schools and coaches have the necessary education and tools to address the issue,” he said. “We are proud of this new partnership and look forward to helping all coaches throughout the state of Mississippi develop the most successful NIL strategies for their student-athletes.”

According to the release, Eccker Sports allowed high school coaches and administrators to try the company’s platform during a multi-sport clinic in Flowood, Miss., earlier this month.

Eccker Sports expands NIL footprint in the South

The Louisiana High School Athletic Association announced a partnership with Eccker Sports in April, when an LHSAA vote allowed high school athletes in the state to earn NIL compensation. School principals and athletic directors are required to take a NIL certification course, according to the LHSAA’s press release. There are courses for coaches, administrators, athletes and their parents. Each course includes six modules.

Louisiana is one of the states that allows high school athletes to earn NIL compensation. It’s the only state in the SEC footprint that does.

In May, the Texas High School Coaches Association announced a partnership with Eccker Sports. Similar to Mississippi, high school athletes in Texas aren’t allowed to enter into NIL agreements.

Texas Senate Bill 1385, which was signed into law and took effect July 1, 2021, states, in part, “No individual, corporate entity, or other organization may: … enter into any arrangement with a prospective student-athlete relating to the prospective student athlete’s name, image, or likeness prior to their enrollment in an institution of higher education.”

The On3 NIL high school rules database provides a state-by-state breakdown of the rules for each state’s primary athletic association.