Auburn is stepping into territory college football has been inching toward for years, and this time the money is tied directly to the game itself.
In a deal put together by Peach Bowl Inc. and reported by CBS Sports, 24 Auburn players will earn roughly $6 million for the Tigers’ neutral-site game against Baylor in Atlanta. The payout is not coming only through NIL compensation. CBS reporter Brandon Marcello reported that Auburn players will also receive a share of ticket sales.
The CBS report did not mention any compensation for Baylor players. It did note the ticket distribution for the game: 20,645 tickets for Auburn and 3,000 for Baylor.
That setup pushes Auburn into “play for pay” territory in a way that feels hard to ignore. The players are being rewarded for their promotional value and brand appeal, but they are also being paid to take the field for a football game. That starts to look a lot like employment, even if nobody is saying it out loud.
Auburn athletic director John Cohen does not appear worried about those blurred lines. Still, the arrangement raises obvious questions beyond the legal language. Auburn cannot beat Baylor with only 24 players, and it is fair to wonder how the financial split affects the rest of the roster when not everyone is included in the windfall.
What seems even more likely is that this will not be the last deal of its kind. Neutral-site game promoters now have a template for paying players who help drive ticket sales and boost broadcast value, and other events will almost certainly follow.
The argument can also be made that college sports crossed this line before. The Player Era Tournament in college basketball pays teams NIL money that schools then pass along to players.
That event was created with investment from RedBird Capital, and ESPN has an event partnership rather than a standard rights-fee deal. RedBird has also recently supplied capital to the Big 12 Conference.
In Other News...
Alabama QB Battle Just Took An Intriguing Turn Before Camp
With fall camp closing in, Alabamas quarterback competition is still waiting for a public answer from the coaching staff, but the conversation around it has only gotten louder. The buzz has leaned toward Keelon Russell, the highly rated sophomore whose upside has made him a popular pick among fans, even as Austin Mack remains in the mix and the staff continues to keep the race open.
Former Alabama standout Mark Ingram added another layer to the discussion by saying Russell appears to have the upper hand right now. Even so, the first snaps of camp could still tell a different story, and the way Alabama sorts out the early pecking order will be one of the more closely watched developments when the Tide get back on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Alabamas Quarterback Battle Is Starting To Feel Like A Bigger Problem
Kalen DeBoers quarterback decision has become one of the most closely watched questions around Alabama this summer, with Keelon Russell and Austin Mack still locked in a competition that has yet to produce a clear answer. DeBoer has said publicly that there is no timetable for naming a starter, which keeps the focus on how the staff is weighing the two passers and what each would mean for an offense trying to settle in before the season.
The longer that choice drags on, the more it shapes the conversation around the Crimson Tides outlook, because the position is tied directly to how high this team can climb. Alabama also has other quarterbacks in the program and more talent on the way with recruits Elijah Haven and Trent Seaborn arriving, which only adds to the sense that DeBoer will eventually have to make a call and live with the ripple effects. [Read more 🡒]