Would a collective bargaining agreement in college football minimize bowl game opt-outs?
The NIL world has opened doors for college athletes to earn their share of money for their performance.
Per ESPN Senior Writer Heather Dinich, among the conversations around NIL rules and regulations being put into place, there are bowl leaders interested in a collective bargaining agreement being established among the players that would aid in minimizing the number of postseason opt-outs. Executive director of Bowl Season, Nick Carparelli, shed some light on that at the Fiesta Bowl Spring Summit.
His feel for the situation — after speaking with conference commissioners and president of the NCAA Charlie Baker — was that NIL collectives are likely set to be brought in-house, and that discussions have been had regarding contracts being exchanged for NIL payments. While Carparelli did say that Bowl Season does not make an official count for how many players opt-out of bowl games, his estimate is that approximately eight players on each team opt-out of bowls. He expects these contracts to cut into that number.
"If you sign a contract and receive compensation, you're obligated to perform certain duties — in this case, play 12 regular-season games and a bowl game or a bowl game and the playoff," said Carparelli. "That's logical to expect. It's the way the rest of us working folks operate."
Opt-outs continue to dominate the discussion whenever bowl season comes around, and that was the case this past bowl season in particular. This was especially the case when 33 Florida State players opted out of the Orange Bowl against Georgia.
FSU was 13-0, and ranked fifth in the final College Football Playoff ranking as they came into the game. The players that remained and played in the game, however, lost 63-3.
Executive Director and CEO of the Fiesta Bowl, Erik Moses, also sees the opt-out issue being resolved if these contracts come into fruition.
"Think about the industry that we're in," Moses said to ESPN. "We put on live events. You come to see the talent. If the main talent isn't there — you go see the Stones and Mick Jagger's not playing, are you really seeing the Stones? We want the best talent to be involved in those matchups and those games and those events. That's what people are paying to see.
"Yes, they care about the name on the front of the jersey probably more than the name on the back; that's the special thing about college sports and college football," said Moses. "But you want to see the best guys play, and I think the only way we get to that is through a collective bargaining agreement and employment contracts that require you to play in the postseason if you're healthy."
There has indeed been much debate when it comes to the validity of bowl games in the era where opt-outs have become commonplace. This period is typically described as having started during the 2018-19 bowl season. It is a sensitive topic around college football fans.
With the College Football Playoff expanding, it is speculated that the number of players opting out could drop. The Playoff is expanding to 12 teams, and as a result, bowls like the Orange will almost certainly not be marred with opt-outs if they matter towards the College Football Playoff.
"You're not just coming to the Fiesta Bowl to win the Fiesta Bowl and that's it," said Moses. "Now, you're going to abandon your brothers, your teammates when you have a chance to win the national championship? That's something those guys remember for the rest of their lives. You're a part of history at that point."
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Bowl leaders optimistic that CBA in NCAA could cut into opt-out number
