The Collective Association pushes back on NIL Congressional drafts: 'They don't want reform'

When the NCAA and SEC put their full press on Capitol Hill in June, a group of NIL collectives trekked to Washington, D.C., to make sure they were included.

Five organizations made the trip. They earned some face time with NCAA president Charlie Baker and met a few representatives. Most elected officials and college sports administrators, however, did not give the caravan the time of day.

Collectives at Tennessee, Ole Miss and Georgia took the experience and founded The Collective Association (TCA), which launched in July and now stands a 21 Power 5 NIL collectives. The group has been able to increase its grassroots efforts to expand; calls have been pouring in.

It won’t be long until half of the Power 5 is represented by the trade association. Despite being open about their want to assist Congress in crafting NIL legislation, elected officials and administrators have yet to reach out.

Monday was a climax when word surfaced of Rep. Gus Bilirakis’ latest bill draft, which would require NIL collectives to disclose contact details for boosters or risk “perjury.” The legislation would also prohibit athletes from entering into NIL agreements with collectives until they’ve been enrolled at a school for 90 days.

“It was the clearest shot at collectives and what really pushed it over the edge,” Matt Hibbs, the CEO of the Georgia-focused Classic City Collective, told On3. “We needed to get our voice out there.”

TCA released a statement Thursday morning calling for a seat at the table as Congress returns to session this week. Working closely with athletes on campuses around the country, TCA believes it has the best interest of players in mind.

Data released by multiple NIL marketplaces at the Year 2 mark of the NIL Era showed roughly 80% of all payments have come from NIL collectives.

“The amount of time and resources being directed at destroying the source of approximately 80% of all NIL dollars to athletes is concerning,” Hibbs said. “They don’t want reform. They don’t want to understand the landscape. There is a ton of good being done out there, you read through that – what is their intent? Eliminating this sector of the market?

“It’s a massive waste of everybody’s time to keep arguing about I don’t know what. Even the stuff they’re proposing isn’t good for college athletics, not good for college athletes. It’s being proposed by the same folks that put us here.”

TCA willing to back agent registry in NIL law

The only lawmaker to make contact with the collectives has been Senator Ted Cruz, who reached out when he was going through the process of drafting his own bill. All that to say, TCA is not against a federal NIL mandate.

The association agrees with Baker’s plan for an agent registry. The certification process for agents has piqued the interest of TCA mainly because so many athletes now have their own representation. Collective leaders have worked with a wide breadth of agents. Some are registered in states and work for well-qualified firms, while others have launched businesses just to make a few dollars off athletes.

“Collectives, we find ourselves at the center of it all,” Spyre Sports co-founder Hunter Baddour said. “We speak with the agent, coach, athlete and administrator. We have a unique perspective of the NIL market working with athletes every day. If that’s the case, why not bring another group to the table with new voices and fresh ideas? We believe TCA can contribute to these complex issues.”

Administrators shy away from revenue discussion

There have been some discussions with the NCAA and SEC about a revenue-sharing model, which Hibbs previously explained to On3. At its crux, a portion of media rights would be distributed by conferences to an “official” institution collective in equal shares. This could theoretically relieve pressure for boosters to constantly produce more funds, as has been the case in the last 24 months.

From there the collective distributes the money to athletes. Going through a third-party option would ensure athletes are not viewed as employees of schools, something TCA has made clear athletes do not want to participate in.

Even having an open conversation about paying athletes TV money would be welcomed. Baddour and Hibbs both shared they’ve had coaches from multiple conferences reach out about the model, knowing athletes deserve a portion of the cash cow.

“To shut it down without having a meaningful conversation about it – that’s all we ever asked for,” Hibbs said. “We’re not saying this is the answer. We know there are holes in this.”

TCA helping members fight off donor fatigue, rouge agents

While the 21-member association continues to provide a voice for athletes, the group is assisting one another in multiple areas.

Since NIL collectives first began popping up in the summer of 2021, many have been bracing for donor fatigue. While boosters had no problem contributing in the first rounds of fundraisers, not all fans have free-flowing bank accounts. It’s forced organizations to be creative in searching for outside revenue streams.

Not all institutions have grasped the idea of backing collectives either. The Grove Collective, focused on NIL at Ole Miss, held a week of giving kicked off by a nearly three-hour live stream on the athletic department’s YouTube channel that featured Lane Kiffin and Chris Beard publicly supporting the collective. The campaign ultimately raised more than $3 million.

Most collectives do not have that relationship with their administration. Securing a tight partnership like that can make all the difference in earning a fan’s trust.

Collectives are still dealing with agents repping athletes who have no experience in the space, still a top concern for many.

“We continue to battle the agents, not the good ones like real agents,” Hibbs said. “I’m talking about the uncle – the one doing real harm to the system. The uncle shopping the kid around, increasing his ‘value.’ That’s what is destroying the model, not collectives.”