Ohio State football head coach, Ryan Day, speaks with media at B10 Media Day July 23, 2021. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Lantern File photo
This story was updated July 31, 2022 to appear in the Buckeyebound Edition distributed Aug. 1.
Head coach Ryan Day said June 2 he believes Ohio State needs about $13 million in compensation from name, image and likeness agreements to keep its roster intact, according to a report from Cleveland.com.
Day spoke to a group of about 100 attendees among the Columbus business community during an event hosted by Ohio State at the Covelli Center. The university announced the Corporate Ambassador program, a marketing and advertising opportunity that will allow Ohio State student-athletes to serve as corporate brand ambassadors for a company within the Columbus community, according to a release.
During a radio appearance on Morning Juice on 97.1 The Fan May 25, Day said NIL is the “biggest challenge” for him and Ohio State.
“I think, right now, there’s a lot of risk,” Day said. “The risk of doing nothing is that you fall behind, and as we know, that’s not an option here at Ohio State. If you’re too far out in front of it, then you could put yourself at risk in another way, so finding that balance and having conversations with so many in the community and around Buckeye Nation is really where the challenge has been.”
Day’s $13 million figure divides into about $111,111 for each of the 117 players listed on Ohio State’s final roster last season. According to Doug Lesmerises of Cleveland.com, those figures average to about $150,000 per player on an 85-man scholarship roster or around $500,000 for each of the 26 starters.
Day also alluded to past history regarding endorsement opportunities and the Buckeyes, such as the 2010 “Tattoo-Gate” scandal in which six Ohio State players received suspensions for selling memorabilia and receiving improper benefits, ultimately resulting in the resignation of former head coach Jim Tressel in 2011.
Day said educating as many people as possible on the NIL landscape is important, particularly those around Ohio State.
“I think for so long in this space, certainly in Columbus and in Ohio, it’s been frowned upon because that was the rules — and now it’s changing,” Day said. “So having conversation and trying to educate people on where we are right now has really been the challenge.”
Athletic director Gene Smith said Feb. 10 225 Ohio State student-athletes made almost $3 million in NIL deals through Jan. 23, and the university ranks No. 1 nationally in NIL compensation and number of student-athletes with at least one NIL activity.
The NCAA released a guidance to universities May 9 to remind them of the NIL environment and existing policy. Day said there are “hard feelings and unrest” in conversations surrounding NIL, and he believes more regulation must come.
While the one-year mark of NIL recently passed July 1, programs are still figuring out how to approach the new privileges and their impact on attendance decisions. With Ohio State near the epicenter of conversations surrounding college athletics, Day said he wants to continue evaluating what’s best for the Buckeyes.
“I think that we do need to take a hard look at everything that’s going on right now and make sure that we’re doing what’s best for our players and for the schools and for the Big Ten Conference,” Day said.
