A week ago, Matt Sluka, the starting quarterback of the UNLV football team, suddenly quit the team.
It came during a time of ascendance for a program that has never seen the type of success it’s had this year.
Sluka, a transfer from Holy Cross, had led the team to three straight wins — against teams that, in years past, UNLV could barely hope to win.
He left because he said an assistant coach had promised him $100,000 if he transferred to UNLV. The university said it had no contract with Sluka and, in not so many words, said Sluka demanded money to play.
That’s not illegal. Payment for the use of an athlete’s name, image and likeness (NIL) was made legal by the Supreme Court in 2021.
Whatever the truth is, shortly after Sluka quit, the NCAA implored Congress to create laws allowing universities to make it easier to contract with athletes or let athletes be hired as employees.
But beyond that issue, there’s worry that after seeing what happened at UNLV, more college athletes will make similar moves — demanding more pay during a season.
That leads to the following questions: Are the athletes even students anymore? Are they hired staff? Is school pride … a thing of the past? And if they play for money, is cheating very far behind?
Guests: Adam Hill, sports columnist and reporter, Las Vegas Review-Journal; Mike Grimala, sports reporter, Las Vegas Sun
