We asked Central Indiana high school football coaches a few questions for our “Coaches Confidential” series, granting them anonymity for candid responses. Today’s question:
“What are your thoughts on IHSAA passing the PBA (Personal Branding Activity) for high school sports, which allows athletes to profit of their Name, Image and Likeness? Will the rule change lead to more recruiting/undue influence?” Their answers:
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“I understand why the IHSAA passed the NIL (Personal Branding Activity) rule, and I think it was the right time to do it. Student athletes should have the opportunity to benefit from their Name, Image, and Likeness while still representing their schools. My hope is that it doesn’t lead to more recruiting or undue influence between schools, but realistically, I think it probably will. That’s something everyone involved in high school athletics will have to work hard to monitor. At the end of the day, I hope the focus remains on developing young people, building strong programs, and keeping high school sports centered on education and community.”
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“I don’t think it will impact that many total players in this state. However, some of the ‘haves’ of this state in regards to school backing and support will without a doubt leverage that to ‘attract’ players to their program.”
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“Will only benefit the schools with better economic advantages and alums. It’s going to open up a can of worms that the IHSAA can’t control. Can we just be educated based football?”
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“It’s a trickle-down effect. Thinking ahead as a coach I knew it was coming. Great for the kids. Recruiting and undue influence has been going on for a while, and everyone knows it. It’s not some big secret. Players are continuing to move all over the place, so I really don’t see it making a big difference in advantage.”
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“I’m not sure yet how that will impact things. Given the guardrails that were put in place, I think it would be hard for a player/coach to use it as a recruiting tool. I’m sure it could be used for that purpose, but someone would have to be very creative to use it that way and not violate the outlined rules. I’m sure if it’s possible, someone will find a way but on a large scale I’m not sure if it will have a big impact.”
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“I think the real benefit will be to those top tier guys, but you nailed it. It will lead to undue influence for a couple of programs who want to stack a team.”
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“I don’t have a problem with it, until the boundaries are pushed. We will inevitably see a wealthy booster club who is operating as ‘collectives’ do at the college level. When that happens, I’m sure we will see more recruiting as a result.”
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“If you think recruiting and undue influence weren’t already at play, we are in disagreement. The way the IHSAA has defined PBA/NIL should not create any issues beyond what already exist.”
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“NIL was inevitable at the HS level; I do think that coupled with the one-time transfer rule, you will have more opportunities for undue influence especially at schools with open enrollment.”
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“I fear that this will become the Wild West. There really haven’t been clear guidelines communicated yet regarding what can be done and what cannot be done. I’m not sure many people actually understand what’s permitted and what’s not permitted, which could lead to violations. There also haven’t been clear guidelines communicated as to what the penalties for infractions will be regarding the PBA. Recruiting has become an issue prior to this but will continue to become a growing issue as it’s sometimes difficult to prove undue influence. With the transfer rules currently like they are, it will continue to be a growing issue and topic of discussion.”
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“It is yet to be determined the impact of the new rule; much like the transfer portal and NIL in college it took a few years for the NCAA to truly understand the impact of the rule changes. There is a possibility for greater increase of undue influence and recruiting, especially from communities that have the means to provide those opportunities.”
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“I do have concerns that some schools will be aggressive with what they promise.”
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“I believe this was something that was inevitably going to happen. It does give the ability to make name in their community but genuinely believe this will have little impact on the overall ‘recruiting/undue influence’ issues that are ongoing.”
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“I’m not sure. I think time will tell. I don’t think there was much choice as I believe we would have eventually seen the lawsuits start occurring that we saw at the collegiate level. At this time, I think the PBA opportunities will benefit very few high school players. Again, this is something that I think only time will tell … I’m not really sure how I feel about it or what I think the ultimate effect will be.”
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“I don’t really see it affecting many teams right away, especially the schools smaller than 6A but in the future there could be players leave some smaller schools to search out money and different opportunities if it presents itself.”
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“Was not surprised it passed. I think it will be another thing coaches and ADs will have to navigate as it becomes part of our year to year duties.”
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“It won’t have much effect on the small schools in the state, but it has the potential to cause some issues in the bigger classes. I’m all for kids building a name for themselves and making a little money while they do it. The schools are profiting off their name, so they should get a cut. They are the ones putting in the work. BUT, if it goes unregulated at the high school level like it has in college, then we will run into some major issues down the road. Let the kids get paid for their hard work but keep it under control. We have to protect the kids from the greedy adults in the world who will inevitably take advantage of them and their names.”
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“It will have little effect. The train wreck of the transfer rule is more of the problem. If you want to work around the IHSAA transfer rule, just go talk to your current school counselor and mention getting bullied (puts it on record) and go see a psychologist about the bullying. IHSAA and DOE will rubber stamp any transfer who comes with this documentation even though its bull(crap).”
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“They had to do something before it became a problem. I like what they came up with but not sure how they are going to police it is someone does not follow the rules as it pertains to using school name or logo.”
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“It’s not surprising but doesn’t impact us. The rule shouldn’t change anything.”
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“We are already experiencing recruiting and undue influence … PBA will certainly not help our situation.”
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“I understand why it was passed. Indiana is one of the last states to do so. If it can help a student or their family without compromising education, I’m not against it. My biggest concern with it is that high school athletics should still be about developing young men and women, not building individual brands.”
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“Not a huge fan, but I understand hands are being forced with other states. As long as it can stay with kids being the person doing it, it will be fine. Agents, handlers, and coaches using it for advantage are scary thoughts. I think you will see an increase in the undue influence with this, but I hope I’m wrong.”
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“I believe so, but I think that’s true of any rule. There were coaches who held practices before limited-contact periods existed, and there was recruiting of players before the one-time transfer rule. I’m sure some adults will find ways to work around personal branding opportunities as well. I know these policies are intended to help the young athletes who play the game, but ultimately it may be time to increase the penalties for adults who intentionally bend or break the rules, rather than placing the burden on the athletes themselves.”
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I’m a big fan of it. Almost every other state has it, and we’d be foolish to not be in the same boat. With the way the IHSAA put its guardrails, there shouldn’t be an uptick in recruiting/undue influence.”
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“The real problem isn’t NIL for the kids, it’s what ‘boosters’ will do to recruit players. The IHSAA cannot police the ‘prior contact rule’ now … throw NIL money in and now it becomes legal.”
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“I don’t anticipate NIL having much of an impact, as long as the IHSAA stays on top of things from a recruiting and undue influence stance. NIL will impact a very small percent of athletes. The recruiting and undue influence will continue no matter what rules are in place. There needs to be actual consequences for schools, coaches, and programs that break these rules. Right now, I don’t have much confidence that anything will actually happen to these responsible individuals.”
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“I’m definitely worried about undue influence. I would imagine most people are.”
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“If this is forced at all as it pertains to not paying for enrollment/transfer, it’s great for the student/athletes. If it spirals quickly like the NCAA version did, it will spell bad news for the schools without resources to play that game. It’s already happening in other states where the power programs are turning into all-star teams with outside funding.”
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“I am not a fan of the rule at all. I think it definitely can open the door wider to the recruiting that is already taking place across the Indianapolis area.”
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“I try to stay out of the political questions.”
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“There are strict enough regulations on it now to keep it under control, I just hope the IHSAA is ready to enforce consequences to those that break the rules.”
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“The NIL deal at the high school level will only be an issue if a certain high school cuts a deal with major college. If a company wants to tie itself to a high school-aged student-athlete as a sponsor, I would personally advise against that. Their brains are still developing. They can make their NIL money while in college for SIX years.”
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“Evolve and adapt. Yes, I do think it opens the door for recruiting/undue influence. Until there is more enforcement, there will be rule breakers.”
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“You have to view it just as any other rule change. Whether you like it or not, you adhere to it. We’re all competing under the same set of rules. I’d assume the change will have a level of influence on transfers, but I don’t envision it much at the small school level.”
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“It will create so much gray space and create an environment where greedy people will try and influence or scam young players and their families into a belief that only that person can secure the child’s future and promise riches.”
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“Not a big fan of it. The rich get richer and the struggling programs will be relegated to a subpar standing.”
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“I don’t think the general public understands NIL. PBA and NIL are different. Being able to brand yourself as a student-athlete is great, but less than 1% of high school athletes are going to make money off of this.”
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“Private schools have been doing it forever. Now it will get into public schools a bit more, which is sad.”
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“I’m not a fan, for a lot of reasons. Mainly I feel like it will take away from our team concept of the game.”
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“I think it could lead to more transferring. Being next to Brownsburg they have more of an opportunity, and four of our players have transferred to Brownsburg.”
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“Unfortunately, I do not think it is in the best interest of the high school game. However, it is the climate of our current world, and we will have to try to navigate it the best we can.”
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“Kids can make money for themselves. As long as we stay clear of collectives and asking schools to pay kids, it should be. We already don’t pay coaches … how can we pay players?”
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“I don’t have a problem with PBA. However, I do think we will see an uptick in undue influence.”
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“I don’t like it. Kids are not commodities no matter what grownups do or say.”
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“I think it’s OK. We can’t stop kids from making money on themselves.”
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“Puts small schools at a disadvantage for sure.”
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“I think it’s ridiculous.”
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“Reward them responsibly.”
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“Absolutely.”
Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649. Get IndyStar’s high school coverage sent directly to your inbox with the High School Sports newsletter. And be sure to subscribe to our new IndyStarTV: Preps YouTube channel.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Coaches Confidential asks: ‘Will IHSAA passing PBA rule lead to more recruiting?’
Reporting by Kyle Neddenriep, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Kyle Neddenriep, Indianapolis Star | USA TODAY Network
