How money is changing college athletics, for better and for worse

Halfway through the season, college football has been a whirlwind for local sports fans this season. 

Some may still be basking in the glory of the Washington Huskies beating the Michigan Wolverines earlier this month. And the Cougars deserve a tip of the hat for successfully keeping the Pac-2 alive…. or maybe it’s the PAC-6 now? The 6-PAC? 

While fans of Washington schools are still wrapping their heads around conference moves and changes to who and where their teams play, the entire college sports world is adjusting to the new reality of how players get paid.

In 2021 it became legal for athletes to make money off of their image. This is called "Name, Image, Likeness" – or NIL. And it’s changed the ability of schools to recruit top talent, in part because of how much boosters are able to offer prospective players. 

It’s something Thilo Kunkel has thought a lot about. Kunkel is a professor in the school of sport, tourism, and hospitality management at Temple University. He joined Soundside to discuss the upsides and drawbacks of the new NIL system, and how teams, schools, and the NCAA can keep up with the rapidly growing influence of money on athletics.  

Guests:

• Thilo Kunkel, professor in the school of sport, tourism, and hospitality management at Temple University. 

Related Links: 

• How NIL money is paid to college athletes - Washington Post
• Is NIL a good thing or a bad thing? Sports industry expert weighs in | Temple Now
• KUOW - What's behind a banner season for the UW Huskies? It could be a fan 'collective'

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.