Gators, SEC Make NIL Case on Capitol Hill

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Southeastern Conference invited parties from its institutions to Washington, D.C., this week to take part in what the league was calling "SEC Advocacy Day on the Hill." All 14 member schools were represented Wednesday by administrators and coaches, with each institutions' groups meeting with congressional leaders from their respective states.

All but the University of Florida, that is.

Oh, the Gators were on Capitol Hill, with their contingent led by Athletic Director Scott Stricklin and Deputy Athletic Director Lynda Tealer, who is the current Chair of both the NCAA Division I Council and the NCAA NIL working group. UF, though, was the only conference school to bring along multiple student-athletes (rather than coaches) to help make a case for national uniformity on the Name, Image & Likeness front. Trinity Thomas, the 34-time All American and three-time national champion gymnast, was joined by Zippy Broughton (women's basketball) and Jack Pyburn (football) in meeting with nine different state representatives, including U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (UF Class of '93).

"They heard true stories of how NIL impacts three different student-athletes that play three different sports," Pyburn said Wednesday night. "It was amazing that we were able to come here and give a perspective they may never have gotten."

Their lobbying mission, if you will, came in the wake of the California State Assembly passing a bill last week that would require its 26 Division I schools to share revenue with athletes. California Bill 252 is expected to make its way to the state senate for debate in the coming weeks, with the issue carrying some momentum it did not have when a similar bill was defeated last year.

The goal of UF's athletes — and the rest of the SEC — was to advocate for NIL rules and guidelines that will be uniform across the country.

"We wanted to express how much we want congress to implement a national [NIL] framework," Broughton said. "Everything should be pretty much the same from state to state. If some states get a competitive advantage, then from an economic standpoint the playing field will not be level and some universities could end up acting as an oligopoly."

Gators in DC (from left): Legislative Director **Lauren Reamy**, UF deputy athletic director **Lynda Tealer**, senior associate athletic director **Steve McClain**, women's basketball player **Zippy Broughton**, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla), gymnast **Trinity Thomas**, football player **Jack Pyburn**, UF athletic director **Scott Stricklin**.

Clearly, these Gators were passionate and knowledgeable regarding the subject matter. Their audience included Florida Reps. Neal Dunn, Darren Soto, Aaron Bean, Greg Steube, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Darron Bennett, Kat Cammack and Gus Bilirakis, who chairs a House Committee on Energy and Commerce that could have considerable sway on college athletics in the U.S. House of Representatives.

"They did great," Stricklin said. "I'm sure they'd be the first to say we could have sent any of the 550 University of Florida student-athletes up here and they would've done well, but these three really did a wonderful job articulating what their NIL experiences have been like. They also pointed out that college athletics is not like pro sports. They don't desire student-athletes to become employees and that in a perfect world every state would have the same laws."

The UF trio reiterated that NIL has been a huge positive for student-athletes, but its current (and so-called) "wild west" environment — without true regulation and oversight — was unsustainable, with NIL too often being used as an inducement for recruiting and with no regard to fair market value or actual NIL work.

Their message: Only congress can fix it.

"You could tell they really cared and were interested in what we had to say," Pyburn said.

SEC Day on the Hill 230607 - Lynda Tealer, Jack Plyburn, Zippy Broughton, Trinity Thomas, Scott Stricklin, Steve McClain — Chomping at the Capitol! From left: Deputy Athletic Director Lynda Tealer, Jack Plyburn, Zippy Broughton, Trinity Thomas, Athletic Director Scott Stricklin and Senior Associate Athletic Director Steve McClain.

Critics of the California bill worry that revenue-sharing with student-athletes could jeopardize non-revenue sports, including women's and Olympic sports. Additional national movements to designate student-athletes as employees of their institutions, conference or NCAA could lead to the IRS seeking back taxes and possibly open the door for Title IX disparities.

"Basically, I told my story. I've had a great experience with NIL and took advantage of it and used what UF provided to move forward in the NIL world," Thomas said. "It's been incredible for me, but in other instances I know it's also been misused. When it comes to recruitment and pay-for-play, things need to be put in place to make sure everyone, from state to state, is on the same playing field."

Just what comes of these Gators' Capitol efforts remain to be seen.

"I don't have enough experience with congress to know what will happen, but I do know the people we met with — our senators and congressmen and women from Florida — that college athletics matters to them and they understand the role these athletes play," Stricklin said. "They understand the concerns, also. The solutions are sometimes challenging, and I'm a neophyte when it comes to the legislative processes, but there are well-meaning people up here who want to make sure athletes continue having good experiences without turning those experiences into a pro model."

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