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15. Name, Image, Likeness | NCAA NIL Agreements
Patreon: https://patreon.com/coretexathleticreview
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@coretexathleticreview
When people talk about NIL deals and athletes getting paid in college sports, it often sounds like something entirely new. A sudden break from the traditional model of amateur competition.
In this episode I explore the long history of athlete compensation in American college sports using the research article:
“Compensation for College Athletes: The American Saga of Commercialization in Intercollegiate Sports” by John Robert Thelin and Eric A. Moyen.
Rather than presenting a brand-new system, NIL may simply represent the latest chapter in a century-long tension between amateur ideals and commercial reality.
Topics explored in this episode include:
• Early amateur ideals in college athletics (1900–1930)
• Informal compensation through scholarships, campus jobs, and boosters
• The rise of television and the first major media contracts
• The 1984 Supreme Court case NCAA v. Board of Regents
• The commercialization boom of the 1990s and 2000s
• Corporate sponsorships and sports marketing companies like Host Communications and Learfield
• University trademark licensing and the growth of collegiate merchandising
• The contradiction between nonprofit universities and billion-dollar college sports
• Legal challenges leading to NCAA v. Alston
• The emergence of NIL collectives and modern athlete compensation
• The uncertain future of revenue sharing and athlete employment status
College athletics have always balanced two competing identities.
On one side: education, amateurism, and student development.
On the other: media, entertainment, and big business.
The NIL era may feel like a revolution.
But when viewed through the full history of college sports, it might simply be the next phase of a story that has been unfolding for more than a hundred years.
Article referenced in this episode:
Thelin, J. R., & Moyen, E. A. (2026).
Compensation for College Athletes: The American Saga of Commercialization in Intercollegiate Sports.
Journal of Policy History, 38(2), 107–129.
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By Evan KuryloPatreon: https://patreon.com/coretexathleticreview
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@coretexathleticreview
When people talk about NIL deals and athletes getting paid in college sports, it often sounds like something entirely new. A sudden break from the traditional model of amateur competition.
In this episode I explore the long history of athlete compensation in American college sports using the research article:
“Compensation for College Athletes: The American Saga of Commercialization in Intercollegiate Sports” by John Robert Thelin and Eric A. Moyen.
Rather than presenting a brand-new system, NIL may simply represent the latest chapter in a century-long tension between amateur ideals and commercial reality.
Topics explored in this episode include:
• Early amateur ideals in college athletics (1900–1930)
• Informal compensation through scholarships, campus jobs, and boosters
• The rise of television and the first major media contracts
• The 1984 Supreme Court case NCAA v. Board of Regents
• The commercialization boom of the 1990s and 2000s
• Corporate sponsorships and sports marketing companies like Host Communications and Learfield
• University trademark licensing and the growth of collegiate merchandising
• The contradiction between nonprofit universities and billion-dollar college sports
• Legal challenges leading to NCAA v. Alston
• The emergence of NIL collectives and modern athlete compensation
• The uncertain future of revenue sharing and athlete employment status
College athletics have always balanced two competing identities.
On one side: education, amateurism, and student development.
On the other: media, entertainment, and big business.
The NIL era may feel like a revolution.
But when viewed through the full history of college sports, it might simply be the next phase of a story that has been unfolding for more than a hundred years.
Article referenced in this episode:
Thelin, J. R., & Moyen, E. A. (2026).
Compensation for College Athletes: The American Saga of Commercialization in Intercollegiate Sports.
Journal of Policy History, 38(2), 107–129.