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As NIL opportunities continue to grow, even for younger athletes, lawmakers here at the Ohio State House are deciding if they should weigh in on this issue. In part three of our series, we hear from families, legal experts, and lawmakers on both sides of this issue. For student athletes across Ohio, this is where it starts. Early mornings, late nights, and years of dedication long before anyone is watching. But now, more people are watching. And for some young athletes, opportunities are starting to follow. Be strong. In parts one and two, we introduced you to the Jackson family navigating one of the first NIL opportunities at the high school level.
It's going to be fun. I think it'll be For them, NIL wasn't about money. It was about recognition and possibility. Yeah, there were a few conversations we've been having with some companies that we've been having to kind of educate them on what NIL is and how it could benefit them from a business perspective. Next, I would like to call House Bill 661. But now, those opportunities could be in jeopardy. Athletics are an extension of the classroom. At the center of the debate, House Bill 661. House Bill 661 would ban compensation for middle and high school athletes, require investigations into NIL violations, create an appeals
process. If passed, the bill would make any middle or high school athlete ineligible to compete in their sport if they receive compensation of any kind. This sends me to the court. Supporters say it's about protecting young athletes before the business of sports reaches too far, too fast. Well, I'm definitely concerned about the potential of adding in NIL payments to high school players because I think that high school athletics are an extension of the classroom. We call them a co-curricular activity and we think that
it should be a learning experience for our students teaching communication and work ethic and discipline. There's already enough pressure on teenagers. Representative Adam Bird is among those pushing for the legislation. I think it will have a very harmful effect on team sports and when you have certain members of a team that are earning money while others are not. He says without guardrails, NIL could quickly reshape high school sports in ways many aren't ready for. Well, I think we've seen the very damaging effect that NIL has had on college and transferring. We've seen very large amounts of money.
We've seen examples in college of athletes that are making more than professional athletes are. You know, again, that's not why we provide an athletic experience for students at the high school level. But for families already living it, that perspective feels disconnected from reality. Over the years there's been kind of a battle with NIL and high school athletics. So I knew even if it was passed back in November, I know there'd be some pushback from certain people. So we're just continuing on to move forward with the opportunities that we have ahead of us and then if for whatever reason if things were to change, we'll just have to kind of pivot and figure out what's what will be next for us.
They say NIL has given them something more than a paycheck. She's been able to learn more things that she could carry on for life, you know, business wise, marketing, things of that nature. Um so there's a lot of positives that come with NIL. So far it hasn't interrupted her academics or athletic um you know, capacity at all. There's been no change in her schedule or her workload or anything like that since she's got her first deal. They believe NIL is preparing young athletes for the future. They think if those opportunities are not available, some students could look to find them elsewhere.
I'm aware of some athletes that moved to other states that had NIL in place um so they could pursue those opportunities. So if it were not to be available in Ohio, I think more athletes would probably seek, you know, opportunities in other states to kind of go to high school and pursue deals. And they're not alone. Thank you for the opportunity to testify. Good afternoon. NIL attorney Luke Fedlam has worked closely with athletes navigating this new space. It's disappointing because this is a backward step for the state of Ohio. Um student athletes have an opportunity, an opportunity to earn compensation through name, image, and likeness. And to prohibit that now after the member
schools of OHSAA voted in favor of a bylaw allowing name, image, and likeness that OHSAA drafted itself, it's just disappointing. He says the conversation shouldn't be about shutting NIL down, but about managing it the right way. I want everyone to understand a couple things. First, name, image, and likeness at the high school level is completely different than what we see and what we read about at the college level. We have 40 plus other states as examples to show it doesn't turn into college NIL at the high school level. And number two, I think I want people to understand that we may lose elite student athletes if
they don't have the opportunity to participate in name, image, and likeness in a way that is meaningful because they'll go to other states where it's allowed and we have examples of that happening before we pass this legislation around name, image, and likeness at the OHSAA level. Ohio can protect student athletes without stripping them of the opportunity. Fedlam argues banning NIL at the high school level could actually create more problems than it solves. Name, image, and likeness is new for a lot of people and you have to understand what you're getting into. A high school
student athlete is not signing their own contract. Their parents and guardians are involved in that process and there has to be education and OHSAA is doing a good job of trying to educate families. But at the same time, because of the potential for a lack of understanding shouldn't prohibit the opportunity to learn. And when we look at name, image, and likeness, it creates an opportunity to learn about contracts, to understand things like taxes and professional responsibilities. Those are the skills that we want to develop in young people. Instead of regulation, he warns it could push opportunities into the shadows where there's less oversight and fewer protections for athletes.
If we simply go backwards and take away a right that has now been granted to the student athletes, that's going to be a challenge. He also points to a bigger issue, competition. As other states expand NIL rights for younger athletes, restricting them in Ohio could put local talent at a disadvantage. What we don't want to do is take a backward step and then have legislators now create the bylaws of how we manage high school athletics in the state of Ohio. We have seen success when OHSAA and its member institutions get to actually determine
what those bylaws look like. Back at the Statehouse, lawmakers acknowledge the complexity. We need to step in and protect our students. And that's what this is about. It's spread out about protecting students from people who are sports agents, uh lawyers, um tax advisers. Right. Yeah. But maintain without action now, the landscape could spiral, leaving families, schools, and athletes to navigate a system with few clear rules. Push. Uh push. Still, for families like the Jacksons, the concern is immediate. It's really up to the student athlete and their families to decide if number one, if it's something that they want to pursue, if they have the capacity to do
so, but um those opportunities are available for everybody to pursue. They worry the progress they've made could disappear overnight. All right, last one. And with it, opportunities they believe were earned. I think it causes a lot of confusion, um especially with NIL being supported in college. Um with it being new here in Ohio for high school athletes, the bill was passed, you said it was okay to do, you know, student athletes are, you know, gaining some deals. Now you're trying to take it back.
All these different ways that kids make money using their skills, how is this different than that? I think it's it's tremendously different. As the debate continues, one thing is clear. NIL is no longer just a college conversation. It's here. It's growing. And now it's forcing difficult questions about fairness, about opportunity, and about how young is too young. Lawmakers say House Bill 661 is still being discussed and could see changes before any vote. In the meantime, families, athletes, and schools across Ohio will be watching closely.
