Louisville Punter Opts-Out of Bowl Game for Unpaid NIL Money

While Kentucky was beating up on Brown, there was some confusion on the CBS broadcast of the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl that featured the Washington Huskies and Louisville Cardinals.

Punter Brady Hodges was credited with a 35-yard punt in the first quarter. The spotter in the CBS booth realized that Hodges actually wasn’t out there, notifying the UofL SID that there’s a punter problem.

Gary Danielson thought the punter might’ve caught a case of Montezuma’s Revenge in El Paso.

"Your punter's not out there."
"He's not?"

Louisville punter Brady Hodges was a late opt-out today. pic.twitter.com/7bAZ9rWJpT

— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) December 31, 2024

It wasn’t diarrhea that kept the Louisville punter off the field. It was unpaid NIL money.

With Trinity product Carter Schwartz hitting chip shots across the field on the Sun Bowl turf, Hodges cleared the air on social media. The Louisville punter said he hasn’t been with the team because he’s owed money from 502 Circle, the Louisville NIL collective.

“I have not been with the team since December 10th,” Hodges tweeted in the middle of the game.

“502 Circle told me September 6th, they would be paying and are still yet to hold up their end of the deal. I graduated on December 13th and had every intention on being with the team had they held up their end of the deal.”

Former Florida State basketball players are filing lawsuits for unpaid NIL money. Now Louisville punters are opting out of bowl games for unpaid NIL money. Totally normal.

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