Since its inception in 2021, Name, Image and Likeness deals have changed the outlook of college sports all over America, including here at the University of Wisconsin.
Not only have major income-earning sports, such as football and men’s basketball, been heavily impacted by this court decision, lower revenue sports have seen changes as well.
One thing Wisconsin Athletics has seen is an increase in recent years in transfers, both in and out.
Notably, the Wisconsin football team has had three consecutive graduate transfers named opening game starting quarterback in the past three seasons— Tanner Mordecai, Tyler Van Dyke and Billy Edwards Jr..
As a result of injury, none of these quarterbacks have been able to start every game of the season, and have had backups start in their absence. The backup for the 2023 and 2024 seasons, Braedyn Locke, ended up transferring out of Wisconsin in 2024 to the University of Arizona. This season, Danny O’Neil, who has played in Edwards’ absence, transferred to the Badgers from San Diego State.
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Some other notable transfers to and from Wisconsin Football in recent years include four-star quarterback recruit (the highest in Wisconsin history) Graham Mertz to Florida, 2023 and 2024 receiving leader Will Pauling from Cincinnati, 2022 receiving leader to Florida and 2024 leading rusher Tawee Walker from Oklahoma, who then transferred away to Cincinnati.
The football team isn’t the only team to have some significant transfers recently. The men’s basketball team has consistently been in the news for their multitude of transfers in and out of the program.
In 2024, graduate transfer John Tonje, from the University of Missouri, took the team, and the city, by storm, leading the team in scoring that season. He came in the absence from transfer of standout scorer A.J. Storr, who left for the University of Kansas in 2024. Also lost in 2024 was starting point guard and fan favorite Chucky Hepburn, to Louisville.
Similarly, the women’s basketball team recently lost their star, with forward Serah Williams transferring to the University of Connecticut earlier this year.
While less common in hockey, the men’s hockey team received a notable transfer in starting goalie Tommy Scarafone from Rochester Institute of Technology.
As expected, some of these transfers benefitted Wisconsin, and some didn’t. However, it’s somewhat unexpected that the injection of NIL into college athletics has resulted in the expenses increasing significantly.
To combat the newly-popular transfer portal, many college teams have put more of an emphasis on recruiting. As a result, the amount spent on recruitment tactics has dramatically increased since 2021.
In 2021, the Badgers total amount spent on recruitment was around $1.7 million according to EADA records. This number has increased by almost a million dollars as of 2023, with records indicating expenses to be around $2.7 million.
Something else to note is that only around $200,000 of this was from women’s sports, while around $700,000 was attributed to the men’s teams.
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Another unseen impact of the onset of NIL is the changing of historical power in college athletics. Athletes are making commitments based on the amount of money being thrown at them, instead of the coaching, tradition or legacy. This impact is especially seen in Wisconsin, a once powerful Big 10 school that has struggled with recruiting compared to schools like Ohio State, who have a higher athletics budget.
Along with recruitment expenses, team expenses tell a similar story. From 2021 to 2023, football’s expenses increased by $12 million and men’s basketball’s expenses increased by $3 million. The other main sports (hockey, soccer, women’s basketball) are all around a $1 million increase, while most smaller sports (rowing, tennis, etc) are significantly below that.
While teams have seen an increase in revenue since 2021, in most cases, their increase in expenses still exceeds their increase in revenue. And, despite all of these increases, athletics related student aid has stayed steady.
While this may make sense at first, with the money from NIL allowing students to afford typical college expenses, it is not what it seems. While larger sports, like football and basketball, are likely able to disregard their need for scholarships and other financial assistance in lieu of NIL money, smaller sports do not have that luxury. In fact, athletes from smaller sports are mostly unable to make the kind of money they need to get by without financial aid, as a result of lesser opportunities for high-paying deals.
Wisconsin has found its own way to help alleviate the burden that smaller sport athletes have experienced as a result of NIL. In 2024, the Varsity Collective was established, a NIL agency sponsored by Badger alumni, which makes a point to give ample amounts of money to all sports. In their first year, they paid Wisconsin athletes $1.7 million, and are expecting more this coming year.