We Need A Cajun Collective

[LifeTimeCajun]

We still have a baseball field with no clubhouse for players. By the time we get that done it will be time for renovations on the current stadium. We have a football field that needs to be redone and we can't average 25k a game in support. Now to sign and keep football players, we need to put them on scholarship and give them a smokin NIL deal. If we don't, they can quit and go to another school without penalty. Man…what a world we are living in

[LifeTimeCajun]

I think if you get an NIL deal you should have no scholarship. If you on scholarship and quit prior to finishing the season you should have to pay a portion of your scholarship back. Or, if you quit and enter the portal, the new team should have to pay a buyout to the former school.

[AstroCajun]

There is no cap for player, coach or institution. It’s the Wild West.

Which is why we need to get ahead of it. It’s happening in the P5, but I’ve not heard or read about a collective in the G5. We need it yesterday.

Until some G5 gets to creative and actually wins some wars. The regulations will come only if it serves the P5.

[TCbacker54]

[Removed my own wet blanket post]

You shouldn't have removed it or feel the need to explain the post.

It raised some legitimate concerns that will have to be addressed should a fund raising venture occur.

[RaginScotsman]

I have 20 American dollars to add to this right now.

Seriously, this is a question to ask Maggard or anyone else from athletics when they are interviewed. Do we have an NIL assistance or management team to help with navigate these deals and everything that goes along with them? I know there's been talk of them.

Put it this way. These kids need to know what they are getting into. There's contracts and taxes involved. The NCAA certainly doesn't set you up with guidance. I believe their guidance was the universities have to manage it themselves. Just abide by the rules. Yeah, that has historically worked really well. "You guys take care of it. We trust you."

[HOUCajun]

If you listen real carefully, you can hear Doc A screaming from Heaven.

So that’s what I heard…

[RedTails]

Here was my wet blanket post:

This is going to be the most unpopular post in this thread, but my discretionary income is not going to go towards a pool of money solely for attracting and retaining football mercenaries that are about getting paid over buying into any semblance of the "cULture."

I have to imagine many others with wayyyy bigger pockets than me may feel the same. In our already limited pool of big money potential donors.

Maybe if the NIL policy gets amended into something more structured, and less of a no strings attached slush fund.

[TCbacker54]

Here was my wet blanket post:

This is going to be the most unpopular post in this thread, but my discretionary income is not going to go towards a pool of money solely for attracting and retaining football mercenaries that are about getting paid over buying into any semblance of the "cULture."

My biggest concern is that it sounds like we have gone from investing in the program to investing in individual players who, as we have learned this past week, can up and leave for greener (no pun intended) pastures when a bigger NIL is presented.

[fanof71]

this will help some of you with questions you may have...Since there are only a handful (compared to the population of the area) of fans or engaged businesses, this could be an uphill climb. Throw in UL's poor digital messaging and overall marketing, hate to say it, its a bleak situation. Casual Fan Syndrome is ruining UL's opportunities...https://www.businessinsider.com/how-...-deals-2021-12

[CajunRebel]

I’m just going to copy/paste the post I made a couple days ago:

Seems like boosters are going to need to seriously rethink where their money is going.

5 years ago it was a great idea for boosters to contribute to the RCAF because that allowed us to spend on better facilities, better coaches, etc. which is what helped us attract better athletes.

But in 2022, I have to assume a steady
paycheck will do a hell of a lot more to attract recruits than facilities or coaches.

It seems like we’re going to have to do what all the P5s are doing and establish a booster-led NIL fund. We obviously won’t be able to compete with P5 schools, but this is the new reality. The game has changed. The sooner we learn how to play it the better.

The question I have is if the University can be involved in any way with the creation of a booster-led NIL group (or any individual NIL deal.)

Honestly, if I was a big time UL booster, I’d be calling up our “friends” to the East to figure out what they are doing and copy that. I’d bet a lot of money that our state’s NIL legislation & rules were written by the same people spearheading LSU’s NIL efforts.

[CajunRebel]

this will help some of you with questions you may have...Since there are only a handful (compared to the population of the area) of fans or engaged businesses, this could be an uphill climb. Throw in UL's poor digital messaging and overall marketing, hate to say it, its a bleak situation. Casual Fan Syndrome is ruining UL's opportunities...https://www.businessinsider.com/how-...-deals-2021-12

This is all child’s play. Yes these NIL deals will exist and might make a difference to some recruits, but the real play is in booster-led NIL deals.

For example, a group of Texas boosters announced a plan to pay every single athlete in 5 sports 100k/yr no questions asked. So in the future when a recruit comes for a visit, they’ll be asking us how much their NIL deal will be. And if La Tech or UTSA or other G5 boosters are giving their athletes NIL payments and we aren’t, where do you think they will choose to play football?

All things being equal, people will always make the choice that puts more money in their pockets.

[zephyr]

Here was my wet blanket post:

This is going to be the most unpopular post in this thread, but my discretionary income is not going to go towards a pool of money solely for attracting and retaining football mercenaries that are about getting paid over buying into any semblance of the "cULture."

I have to imagine many others with wayyyy bigger pockets than me may feel the same. In our already limited pool of big money potential donors.

Maybe if the NIL policy gets amended into something more structured, and less of a no strings attached slush fund.

I, myself will not be taking part