The Drake Group has fielded a number of questions from Congressional offices on NIL issues. There are three issues that appear to cause considerable confusion: (1) the meaning of “institutional revenue sharing with college athletes,” (2) group or joint licensing with the athlete’s institution, and (3) the extent to which Congress should grant a “limited … Read more
The Drake Group believes that several specific issues raised during the July 1, 2020, U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Hearing on “Exploring a Compensation Framework for Intercollegiate Athletics” are misleading to both members of Congress and the general public. Three serious concerns regarding testimony pertaining to NIL compensation were detailed: Claims that NIL laws would perpetuate … Read more
College Athletes Should Give U.S. Senate NIL Bill a Failing Grade: Criticism of the Fairness in Collegiate Athletics Act The Drake Group shares observations critical of the Fairness in Collegiate Athletics Act, a federal bill intended to protect the employment rights of college athletes proposed by U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida. The Act gives … Read more
A Comparative Analysis of U.S. Senator Rubio’s Proposed Federal Name/Image/Likeness (NIL) Bill and the new Florida NIL Statute The Drake Group was asked to provide a comparative analysis of the first state name/image/likeness legislation that would go into effect during the summer of 2010, the Florida Intercollegiate Athlete Compensation and Rights (SB646) which was signed … Read more
Criticism of April 29, 2020, NCAA Board of Governors’ Guidelines for Future NCAA and Federal NIL Legislation On April 29, 2020, the NCAA issued a press release announcing its Board of Governors’ action responding to the comprehensive April 17, 2020, NCAA Federal and State Legislation Working Group Final Report regarding college athletes commercializing the use … Read more
Critical Analysis of Proposed Models of College Athlete Compensation The Drake Group believes that the current pressure on higher education institutions to pay college athletes well beyond the full cost of education has been created by root failures of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to: articulate and implement an educational sport system that allows … Read more
Compensation of College Athletes Including Revenues Earned from Commercial Use of Their Names, Images, and Likenesses and Outside Employment The media reports strongly expressed opinions of various NCAA, conference, and institutional athletics administrators who maintain that allowing athletes to exploit their own NILs could not be accommodated without causing profound negative changes in the nature … Read more
PRESS RELEASE – JULY 18, 2019 For immediate release For more information: Dr. Fritz Polite, Ph.D. President The Drake Group (407) 758-0811 fpolite@su.edu www.TheDrakeGroup.org The Drake Group Endorses Effort in California to Allow College Athletes to Profit off Name, Image and Likeness WEST HAVEN, CONN — Today the Drake Group issued a strong statement in … Read more
Our goal in this report is to provide information on whether NCAA restrictions on athletes’ free participation in the lucrative market for their images, likenesses and names is necessary either to uphold the principles of amateurism or to preserve the activity of intercollegiate athletics. The Drake Group is a national organization of faculty and others, … Read more
In 2004, several members of the Drake Group carried picket signs on the sidewalk in front of the Hyatt Hotel in San Antonio where the basketball coaches were staying during the Final Four. Liz Clarke from the Washington Post described the Drake members as “graying university professors trying to sell something radical. The product they’re … Read more