What's next? Matt Leinart on future of NIL, Hall of GOATs

Matt Leinart was always aware he could not turn a profit as a college football player.

The former USC quarterback was on the cover of NCAA Football 2004. He went on to win the Heisman Trophy, Walter Camp Award, Manning Award and was named AP Player of the Year all in the same season.

He led the Trojans to a national championship, too. And the next season, he played Texas for the national title in the Rose Bowl, arguably the best college football game in the last 15 years. Years later, he watched the BCS strip USC of his national championship because of NCAA violations that had already cost Reggie Bush his Heisman Trophy.

Now he’s one of the leading voices of FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff, sitting in between Bush and Urban Meyer every Saturday. He took his 10-year NFL career and parlayed it into a successful broadcasting career. He’ll be in Iowa City this weekend for Michigan’s visit to Hawkeye Country.

He has not forgotten about how different players’ rights were when he was at USC. Since the NCAA lifted its ban of NIL in the last year and change, Leinart is now finding ways to make sure players do turn a profit. The College Football Hall of Famer partnered with former USC wide receiver Greig Carlson to form Hall of GOATs.

Initially a non-fungible token (NFT) platform for amateur athletes to build their personal brands through digital collectibles, the group brought on current USC quarterback Caleb Williams on to the project. The group announced this past summer plans to develop and power the release of NFTs for this year’s roster of Elite 11 finalists.

Plans have changed since then, though. Leinart and the team at Hall of GOATs are now in development of a blockchain, arcade-style college football video game. And they’re making sure current and former athletes will receive their overdue compensation.

“We’re just really, really excited to give these kids an opportunity,” he told On3 in an interview this week.

Matt Leinart, Hall of GOATS in development of college football video game

Hall of GOATs did not plan to be working on a video game right now. That was not part of the long-term plan. But the value of NFTs have started to plummet since their 2022 peak.

Trading volumes in NFTs have tumbled 97% from a record high this past January. They slid to just $466 million in September from $17 billion at the start of 2022, according to data from Dune Analytics. Per Bloomberg, the fading NFT mania is part of a $2 trillion wipeout in the crypto sector.

“The NFT market is extremely volatile,” Leinart said. “I think it’ll pick back up as the stock market today is just volatile. We wanted to pivot the focus to a blockchain video game where we don’t have to worry about being NFTs.”

Moving away from NFTs made sense. Developing a video game where players could earn royalties off their NIL is something that’s never been done. And Leinart and Hall of GOATs are in the process of making that a reality.

Similar to popular games like Fortnite and Madden, gamers pay to upgrade their skills or accessories. That’s part of the early stages of the plan for this NIL-driven game.

“We are going to use our current players, we’re going to have former players, Leinart said. “Their digital avatars will be imported into this video game. If you own your favorite player’s digital avatar, you can import it into the video game, too. And You can level them up.

“… Players can make money off of all the micro-transactions that happen within the game. Fortnite, you buy skins. But in those games, that money lives in that ecosystem. In our game, all of those transactions through the blockchain and through the ledger, we’re able to keep track and our players will get royalties off of each transaction as well.”

Leinart steered clear from giving a date of when this might hit the market or what players have already been signed, but talks have already begun. And while the former USC quarterback is now able to profit off his own autograph and memorabilia, Hall of GOATs wants to make sure athletes can profit off their video game even after their careers.

“Even if they don’t make the NFL or things happen, they still live in this video game,” he said. “Their fans and fanbases can still play with those avatars and those players. We’re in the early-stage development of the video game. We’re currently signing a bunch of players to our roster and former legendary college football players. It’s exciting to be a part of the build of this.”

Where is NIL headed?

For as excited as Leinart is about where his project with Hall of GOATs is headed, he has another job on the weekends. Preparing college football fans for the slate of games ahead of them every Saturday. Discussing the current state of the game.

It looks much different than when he was playing. The College Football Playoff is expanding to 12 teams in 2026, and it might even come sooner. Oh, his alma mater is moving to the Big Ten as well.

The role of NIL in recruiting has created grey areas, too. Living in Manhattan Beach and still closely associated with the USC football program, he lives in a talent-rich area for football recruits. He’s heard all the stories that have emerged.

Trying to figure out where NIL is going is something that’s constantly evolving.

“I think NIL is great. I think these players deserve every dollar they’re worth,” he said. “Some are worth more than others. But the opportunity to make money is something I’m all for. I’ve always been all for it. Especially for the amount of money that some of these players and sports make for their individual schools, I think it’s about time.

“Obviously, you’re gonna weed out some of the bad people who are in this business. There’s a lot of gray area, clearly. I think that all sort of just kind of changes as we all figure out more of how this is gonna work in the future. The hard part about it is there’s just a lot of questions that are unanswered, and that will be unanswered for a long time until they’re not. It’s kind of that simple.”

Matt Leinart still fighting one NIL battle

As for his biggest battle with NIL, Matt Leinart still does not have an answer. But he’s waiting this one out.

The former USC quarterback has been vocal about the need for the Reggie Bush to be handed back his Heisman. With the NCAA’s 180-degree stance on NIL, many of the reasons why the award was stripped would just not exist in this day and age.

Bush racked up 1,740 yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground, averaging 8.7 yards per carry that season. It’s hard to deny what he did that season.

“He’ll be getting it back soon, man, don’t worry,” Leinart said with a laugh.