Backups

[MSU01]

Has Dylan Rollins played at all? Is he healthy? Planning to redshirt this year?

Curious how he is progressing. Dude has an extremely high ceiling.

Pretty sure he played in the last game. Also pretty sure he red-shirted at BYU. But yes, he is being counted on big time for next season.

I thought he was on his mission during BYU time? So different than a redshirt? Not sure though

He was with the BYU program for a year in 2021 and redshirted, then went on his mission in 2022 and 2023. I'd assume that the pre-mission redshirt year still counts.

[BobcatBuiltTexan]

Don't know anything about this guy, but the UNLV QB (Matthew Sluka) quit after leading the Rebels to a 3-0 start including wins over Kansas and Houston. Previously played 4 years at Holy Cross. Went 12-1 in 2022-23 and lost to the Jackrabbits 42-21 in the first round. Will have one year of eligibility remaining.

He left an FBS program over money (whether his head got big and wanted more or just didn't get what he was promised). He's not coming to Bozeman.

I don't have any expectations of him coming here. There's no doubt he's chasing the money.

well i wouldn't over simplify it like that. current reports say that he was promised 100k for relocation(NIL) to unlv. he has received only 3k and the school/collective is refusing to pay him the rest of what he is owed. now if that is true unlv is wrong and the kid should sit out. these schools have to stop lying to kids. if you promise a kid something as a school they should come through, whether that's playing time, NIL, whatever.

look at it like this...the kid keeps playing...lets say unlv goes to the cfp...head coach leaves gets a $3mil raise...kid was promised 100k only gets 3k...he is a grad transfer has zero yrs of eligibility left and he isn't a draft prospect, so for him this money is the only big pay day he's getting. That school and the coaches screwed him over. that isn't fair to him and to chalk it up to that's part of sports....no it USED to be part of sports, now you have to come through or kids will leave

now on the flip side, if the school has paid them everything they said they would he is dead wrong for what he is doing. I totally agree on that part but to assume the kid is just chasing money i feel is the wrong way to approach this. we still don't know which story is the actual truth and until then I will not pass judgement on the kid nor the school.

As far as I know, schools are not allowed to be involved in any NIL money. That all must be privately funded through boosters, corporate sponsorships, etc.

All the school can give is room, board, books, tuition, and a FCOA stipend of a few thousand bucks per year. So UNLV is likely being honest when they say they have fulfilled their financial obligation, as that wouldn't include NIL.

And as someone that has played D1 ball and know the ins and outs of collegiate football, I say hogwash. Those coaches made a promise to that kid and didn't come through. It's a cop out. Schools aren't allowed to be involved with NIL money but they CAN pay players. So if I was a coach and the NIL people welched on their money I would go to the school and get that kid the money because I know that he came because we said that he would get that money. If you think that the coaches/schools don't know about the money the kids are being offered you are sadly mistaken. These coaches know what the kids are being offered and are a part of making sure that they are offered that money because they want to get them. Now due to rules they don't "get involved" but they are fully involved, just like they were involved back in the day when they were paying kids under the table. These coaches have eyes and ears everywhere and they know everything that's going on, its their job to know everything.

I'm sure you're right that the coaches and recruiters made NIL promises, no doubt about that. But the money isn't coming from the school itself. The university itself doesn't owe the kid any more than the things I mentioned above. The NIL collective might owe him but the school does not.

So it has now come out that the OC offered him 100k, he committed, got here only got 3K. They said they would pay him before the season, then told him they would pay him in game checks, then when the dad called and talked to the head coach he told them the OC doesn't have the power make that offer and if it didn't come from him it isn't valid. UNLV is screwing the kid and the kid is doing right so that he can get paid now, as he was promised, and play for a team that will keep their word.

If that's the case then its the OC who lied to him, not the university. I'm not saying he didn't get screwed over, he did. My only point is that its not UNLV that owes him, its the OC coach and probably the folks running the NIL Collective (which is not officially affiliated with the school) who broke promises and should be held accountable if possible. NIL money is private money, not university money. That was my only point.

Sucks for the kid, but that stuff is gonna happen when you chase money based on under-the-table verbal agreements and you don't get it in writing. So now, I'm sure we'll be seeing written contracts in the future. And possibly more mid-year quits/transfers which would be awful for the game IMHO.

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild to me. Whoever is at fault he wasn't paid and he has every right to not play. Don't lie to kids, follow through on what you say and you don't have this problem. I don't think it is awful for the game. It is only awful if coaches lie to kids and they aren't honest with them. If you tell a kid he's going to play.....play him. if you say you are going to pay a kid 100k....pay him. It's really quite simple. But see you have never been recruited or gone through this process.....I have. Coaches flat out lie to you. They tell you whatever they can to get you to come to their school, then you get there and the things change because you are now there. They are banking that your will to play supercedes them lying to you and they get what they want out of you without coming through on their promises. That time is over. Coaches have to be honest with a kid an risk not getting a kid, but what you will get is a group of kids that trust you believe your word and will work hard because of those things. So no I don't think it's awful for the game...it's perfect for the bringing integrity back.

[BobcatBuiltTexan]

Don't know anything about this guy, but the UNLV QB (Matthew Sluka) quit after leading the Rebels to a 3-0 start including wins over Kansas and Houston. Previously played 4 years at Holy Cross. Went 12-1 in 2022-23 and lost to the Jackrabbits 42-21 in the first round. Will have one year of eligibility remaining.

He left an FBS program over money (whether his head got big and wanted more or just didn't get what he was promised). He's not coming to Bozeman.

I don't have any expectations of him coming here. There's no doubt he's chasing the money.

well i wouldn't over simplify it like that. current reports say that he was promised 100k for relocation(NIL) to unlv. he has received only 3k and the school/collective is refusing to pay him the rest of what he is owed. now if that is true unlv is wrong and the kid should sit out. these schools have to stop lying to kids. if you promise a kid something as a school they should come through, whether that's playing time, NIL, whatever.

look at it like this...the kid keeps playing...lets say unlv goes to the cfp...head coach leaves gets a $3mil raise...kid was promised 100k only gets 3k...he is a grad transfer has zero yrs of eligibility left and he isn't a draft prospect, so for him this money is the only big pay day he's getting. That school and the coaches screwed him over. that isn't fair to him and to chalk it up to that's part of sports....no it USED to be part of sports, now you have to come through or kids will leave

now on the flip side, if the school has paid them everything they said they would he is dead wrong for what he is doing. I totally agree on that part but to assume the kid is just chasing money i feel is the wrong way to approach this. we still don't know which story is the actual truth and until then I will not pass judgement on the kid nor the school.

As far as I know, schools are not allowed to be involved in any NIL money. That all must be privately funded through boosters, corporate sponsorships, etc.

All the school can give is room, board, books, tuition, and a FCOA stipend of a few thousand bucks per year. So UNLV is likely being honest when they say they have fulfilled their financial obligation, as that wouldn't include NIL.

And as someone that has played D1 ball and know the ins and outs of collegiate football, I say hogwash. Those coaches made a promise to that kid and didn't come through. It's a cop out. Schools aren't allowed to be involved with NIL money but they CAN pay players. So if I was a coach and the NIL people welched on their money I would go to the school and get that kid the money because I know that he came because we said that he would get that money. If you think that the coaches/schools don't know about the money the kids are being offered you are sadly mistaken. These coaches know what the kids are being offered and are a part of making sure that they are offered that money because they want to get them. Now due to rules they don't "get involved" but they are fully involved, just like they were involved back in the day when they were paying kids under the table. These coaches have eyes and ears everywhere and they know everything that's going on, its their job to know everything.

I'm sure you're right that the coaches and recruiters made NIL promises, no doubt about that. But the money isn't coming from the school itself. The university itself doesn't owe the kid any more than the things I mentioned above. The NIL collective might owe him but the school does not.

So it has now come out that the OC offered him 100k, he committed, got here only got 3K. They said they would pay him before the season, then told him they would pay him in game checks, then when the dad called and talked to the head coach he told them the OC doesn't have the power make that offer and if it didn't come from him it isn't valid. UNLV is screwing the kid and the kid is doing right so that he can get paid now, as he was promised, and play for a team that will keep their word.

He's a 23/24 year old college graduate. He should know a) the school offering money is non-binding, as it's actually an NCAA violation to pay athletes and b) anything to do with compensation in that high a dollar amount NEEDS TO BE IN WRITING. I'm not saying an assistant coach DIDN'T MAKE the promise, but at that point he should have said, have your collective send over the paperwork. Even when NIL was very new, prior to the 2nd football season it was made legal, MSU student-athletes were given... CONTRACTS (link below). Typically, these contracts involve specific performance, such as appearing in commercials, showing up to events, etc., not playing football. In fact, paying for play is STILL not allowed by the NCAA amateur rules. They are literally being compensated for use of their Name, Image, and Likeness. It was an expensive, unnecessary lesson but one that Sluka will learn from nonetheless.

https://www.kulr8.com/sports/montana-st ... 6a681.html

I'm curious if anyone will even bring him on. I don't think there's many P4 teams that utilize a run-first QB offense and his passing stats against bottom-half competition leave a ton to be desired, completing 21 of 48 (43.75%) for 318 yards (that's over 3 games, not 1). P4 schools don't recruit stud WRs to bring in a QB that runs the ball 13x per game by himself.

1. you are incorrect schools can pay players. Schools haven't figured out how they are going to do that or what it looks like but has been approved that schools can in fact pay players to pay for them.

2. it's wild that you are saying that a kid, regardless of his age, is at fault for believing coaches and are basically shifting the blame all to the kid. You are not holding the grown men accountable for flat out lying but rather saying that a 23/24y/o should have "known better". Please remember that it has been scientifically proven that males do not fully develop mentally until 25 or later. So you are looking at fully developed men and holding them to a lower standard than a person who isn't fully developed yet(as proven by scientific research). That is wild that you are placing all the onus on the player and none on the people that lied to him. But see you can think through all of that because........yup you are a fully develop adult male(I'm guessing)....while we may say he should have known obviously he didn't....and even if you didn't what about the simple morality of the adults involved? You don't feel they should be held accountable?

4. His ability isn't in question nor is the opportunity to go to another team. you say that he won't go to a P4 team....UNLV isn't a P4 team(well they are as of Tuesday...but they weren't when he decided to go there). Him being a top level qb or not isn't in question....it's the morality of the coaches and them not fulfilling promises that were made to him. Who cares how good he is or isn't.......keep your word. The didn't so he isn't playing. It's a shame that the young man has to hold old men accountable to just being good people.

Look at it like this......if you get recruited to a job....they promise you opportunities to advance....you get there and they don't allow you to advance are you going to keep working there or are you going to find a job somewhere else? Same thing here.....

[RockyBearCat]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

[BobcatBuiltTexan]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

I totally disagree with you. The employee is a representative of the school when it comes to promises made. You are trying to eliminate and combine actions as they fit your narrative....it doesn't work like that. Yes the school as an entity isn't responsible, but the coaches are a portion of said entity so when they make promises in order to garner the services of the players they are held accountable to following through on promises. You analogy is off.....a better analogy is that if you promise me that your company will pay me 100k for my services, we make a verbal contract, I come to your company to provide the services. I'm start doing the work and I ask for my money from your boss, he says no, I say that you told me that you would said you promised me 100k for my services....your boss says no....i stop providing my services. that is the analogy that fits. Now what do you think will happen to you now? Exactly, you are going to be in hot water...you may or may not lose your job but you are responsible for what you promised me and you now have opened your company up to scrutiny for shady dealings....same thing here.

The wording is the problem.......they can pay players but they can't use the money they are going to pay you as a recruiting tool. Basically the coaches/school can't say we will pay you thins if you come here. What has to happen is you have to come to the school THEN you get your money...if it is paid out by the school. If it is coming from an outside source you still can't sign anything with a collective until you are a part of the school, so yes promises have to be honored. The kids still have to trust that what the coaches said they would come through on comes through when they get there. The kid is still taking all the chance in getting screwed over. If you don't pan out the school will just not renew your scholarship and they move on. So yeah I'm on the side of the players because they are the ones that are being asked to be more moral than the adults in the situation.

[RockyBearCat]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

I totally disagree with you. The employee is a representative of the school when it comes to promises made. You are trying to eliminate and combine actions as they fit your narrative....it doesn't work like that. Yes the school as an entity isn't responsible, but the coaches are a portion of said entity so when they make promises in order to garner the services of the players they are held accountable to following through on promises. You analogy is off.....a better analogy is that if you promise me that your company will pay me 100k for my services, we make a verbal contract, I come to your company to provide the services. I'm start doing the work and I ask for my money from your boss, he says no, I say that you told me that you would said you promised me 100k for my services....your boss says no....i stop providing my services. that is the analogy that fits. Now what do you think will happen to you now? Exactly, you are going to be in hot water...you may or may not lose your job but you are responsible for what you promised me and you now have opened your company up to scrutiny for shady dealings....same thing here.

The wording is the problem.......they can pay players but they can't use the money they are going to pay you as a recruiting tool. Basically the coaches/school can't say we will pay you thins if you come here. What has to happen is you have to come to the school THEN you get your money...if it is paid out by the school. If it is coming from an outside source you still can't sign anything with a collective until you are a part of the school, so yes promises have to be honored. The kids still have to trust that what the coaches said they would come through on comes through when they get there. The kid is still taking all the chance in getting screwed over. If you don't pan out the school will just not renew your scholarship and they move on. So yeah I'm on the side of the players because they are the ones that are being asked to be more moral than the adults in the situation.

I agree to a point. I've never started a job without a written offer of employment or an employment contract. When he got to UNLV he should have said...put it in writing. Coach and player were WRONG on negotiating against the rules of the NCAA. NIL is 100% being offered as recruiting and that is banned on both sides. NCAA should step in and sanction both sides. I have 0 problem with him leaving but both sides are to blame, not just 1 side. You are very knowledgeable on the game and obviously you or someone you know was lied to by a coach. I suspect t about playing time. That doesn't make every employee of a school or company able to make enforceable promises.

[BelligerentBobcat]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

Is it against the rules? Absolutely. Does everybody do it? Absolutely.

You guys need to get over the rules when it comes to players getting paid. They’ve been getting paid for decades (longer), and it isn’t going to stop. Obviously it’s a bit different at the FCS level, but at the top P5 levels, it’s absolutely pay for play.

[BobcatBuiltTexan]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

Is it against the rules? Absolutely. Does everybody do it? Absolutely.

You guys need to get over the rules when it comes to players getting paid. They’ve been getting paid for decades (longer), and it isn’t going to stop. Obviously it’s a bit different at the FCS level, but at the top P5 levels, it’s absolutely pay for play.

Nobody cares about the players getting paid, they should get paid. Nobody has disparaged the young man for getting paid. It isn't against the rules to pay players....the school can actually pay them and you have NIL....so yes it is pay to play nobody is debating that, I for sure don't have a problem with it.

[BobcatBuiltTexan]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

I totally disagree with you. The employee is a representative of the school when it comes to promises made. You are trying to eliminate and combine actions as they fit your narrative....it doesn't work like that. Yes the school as an entity isn't responsible, but the coaches are a portion of said entity so when they make promises in order to garner the services of the players they are held accountable to following through on promises. You analogy is off.....a better analogy is that if you promise me that your company will pay me 100k for my services, we make a verbal contract, I come to your company to provide the services. I'm start doing the work and I ask for my money from your boss, he says no, I say that you told me that you would said you promised me 100k for my services....your boss says no....i stop providing my services. that is the analogy that fits. Now what do you think will happen to you now? Exactly, you are going to be in hot water...you may or may not lose your job but you are responsible for what you promised me and you now have opened your company up to scrutiny for shady dealings....same thing here.

The wording is the problem.......they can pay players but they can't use the money they are going to pay you as a recruiting tool. Basically the coaches/school can't say we will pay you thins if you come here. What has to happen is you have to come to the school THEN you get your money...if it is paid out by the school. If it is coming from an outside source you still can't sign anything with a collective until you are a part of the school, so yes promises have to be honored. The kids still have to trust that what the coaches said they would come through on comes through when they get there. The kid is still taking all the chance in getting screwed over. If you don't pan out the school will just not renew your scholarship and they move on. So yeah I'm on the side of the players because they are the ones that are being asked to be more moral than the adults in the situation.

I agree to a point. I've never started a job without a written offer of employment or an employment contract. When he got to UNLV he should have said...put it in writing. Coach and player were WRONG on negotiating against the rules of the NCAA. NIL is 100% being offered as recruiting and that is banned on both sides. NCAA should step in and sanction both sides. I have 0 problem with him leaving but both sides are to blame, not just 1 side. You are very knowledgeable on the game and obviously you or someone you know was lied to by a coach. I suspect t about playing time. That doesn't make every employee of a school or company able to make enforceable promises.

I think you are missing my point all together. I know that the "school" or company can't be forced to pay the young man. That's obvious. What I said was very very clear......they were morally wrong for making a promise and not following through. The young man obviously made relationships with coaches and felt they were men of their word, they aren't. He's sitting now. I played D1 ball and by nature know of tons of guys that played D1 ball...yes i know most players are lied to...that has no bearing on this. Again I'm not saying anything is enforceable....what I'm saying is don't make promises that you are not going to keep....if you do this will happen repeatedly....stop lying to kids. And I do not agree that the kid is to blame, the only thing he did was believe grown men whom he felt had integrity. As a player to go play for a coach you have to believe in them, so he did nothing wrong at all. He was taken advantage of period the end, the onus is on the school to do right by the athlete in this situation.

[91catAlum]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

Is it against the rules? Absolutely. Does everybody do it? Absolutely.

You guys need to get over the rules when it comes to players getting paid. They’ve been getting paid for decades (longer), and it isn’t going to stop. Obviously it’s a bit different at the FCS level, but at the top P5 levels, it’s absolutely pay for play.

You're right that players have been getting paid for decades. But players getting money offers to enter the transfer portal and change schools is a whole new ball game.

[MSUBobcat04]

Don't know anything about this guy, but the UNLV QB (Matthew Sluka) quit after leading the Rebels to a 3-0 start including wins over Kansas and Houston. Previously played 4 years at Holy Cross. Went 12-1 in 2022-23 and lost to the Jackrabbits 42-21 in the first round. Will have one year of eligibility remaining.

He left an FBS program over money (whether his head got big and wanted more or just didn't get what he was promised). He's not coming to Bozeman.

I don't have any expectations of him coming here. There's no doubt he's chasing the money.

well i wouldn't over simplify it like that. current reports say that he was promised 100k for relocation(NIL) to unlv. he has received only 3k and the school/collective is refusing to pay him the rest of what he is owed. now if that is true unlv is wrong and the kid should sit out. these schools have to stop lying to kids. if you promise a kid something as a school they should come through, whether that's playing time, NIL, whatever.

look at it like this...the kid keeps playing...lets say unlv goes to the cfp...head coach leaves gets a $3mil raise...kid was promised 100k only gets 3k...he is a grad transfer has zero yrs of eligibility left and he isn't a draft prospect, so for him this money is the only big pay day he's getting. That school and the coaches screwed him over. that isn't fair to him and to chalk it up to that's part of sports....no it USED to be part of sports, now you have to come through or kids will leave

now on the flip side, if the school has paid them everything they said they would he is dead wrong for what he is doing. I totally agree on that part but to assume the kid is just chasing money i feel is the wrong way to approach this. we still don't know which story is the actual truth and until then I will not pass judgement on the kid nor the school.

As far as I know, schools are not allowed to be involved in any NIL money. That all must be privately funded through boosters, corporate sponsorships, etc.

All the school can give is room, board, books, tuition, and a FCOA stipend of a few thousand bucks per year. So UNLV is likely being honest when they say they have fulfilled their financial obligation, as that wouldn't include NIL.

And as someone that has played D1 ball and know the ins and outs of collegiate football, I say hogwash. Those coaches made a promise to that kid and didn't come through. It's a cop out. Schools aren't allowed to be involved with NIL money but they CAN pay players. So if I was a coach and the NIL people welched on their money I would go to the school and get that kid the money because I know that he came because we said that he would get that money. If you think that the coaches/schools don't know about the money the kids are being offered you are sadly mistaken. These coaches know what the kids are being offered and are a part of making sure that they are offered that money because they want to get them. Now due to rules they don't "get involved" but they are fully involved, just like they were involved back in the day when they were paying kids under the table. These coaches have eyes and ears everywhere and they know everything that's going on, its their job to know everything.

I'm sure you're right that the coaches and recruiters made NIL promises, no doubt about that. But the money isn't coming from the school itself. The university itself doesn't owe the kid any more than the things I mentioned above. The NIL collective might owe him but the school does not.

So it has now come out that the OC offered him 100k, he committed, got here only got 3K. They said they would pay him before the season, then told him they would pay him in game checks, then when the dad called and talked to the head coach he told them the OC doesn't have the power make that offer and if it didn't come from him it isn't valid. UNLV is screwing the kid and the kid is doing right so that he can get paid now, as he was promised, and play for a team that will keep their word.

He's a 23/24 year old college graduate. He should know a) the school offering money is non-binding, as it's actually an NCAA violation to pay athletes and b) anything to do with compensation in that high a dollar amount NEEDS TO BE IN WRITING. I'm not saying an assistant coach DIDN'T MAKE the promise, but at that point he should have said, have your collective send over the paperwork. Even when NIL was very new, prior to the 2nd football season it was made legal, MSU student-athletes were given... CONTRACTS (link below). Typically, these contracts involve specific performance, such as appearing in commercials, showing up to events, etc., not playing football. In fact, paying for play is STILL not allowed by the NCAA amateur rules. They are literally being compensated for use of their Name, Image, and Likeness. It was an expensive, unnecessary lesson but one that Sluka will learn from nonetheless.

https://www.kulr8.com/sports/montana-st ... 6a681.html

I'm curious if anyone will even bring him on. I don't think there's many P4 teams that utilize a run-first QB offense and his passing stats against bottom-half competition leave a ton to be desired, completing 21 of 48 (43.75%) for 318 yards (that's over 3 games, not 1). P4 schools don't recruit stud WRs to bring in a QB that runs the ball 13x per game by himself.

1. you are incorrect schools can pay players. Schools haven't figured out how they are going to do that or what it looks like but has been approved that schools can in fact pay players to pay for them.

2. it's wild that you are saying that a kid, regardless of his age, is at fault for believing coaches and are basically shifting the blame all to the kid. You are not holding the grown men accountable for flat out lying but rather saying that a 23/24y/o should have "known better". Please remember that it has been scientifically proven that males do not fully develop mentally until 25 or later. So you are looking at fully developed men and holding them to a lower standard than a person who isn't fully developed yet(as proven by scientific research). That is wild that you are placing all the onus on the player and none on the people that lied to him. But see you can think through all of that because........yup you are a fully develop adult male(I'm guessing)....while we may say he should have known obviously he didn't....and even if you didn't what about the simple morality of the adults involved? You don't feel they should be held accountable?

4. His ability isn't in question nor is the opportunity to go to another team. you say that he won't go to a P4 team....UNLV isn't a P4 team(well they are as of Tuesday...but they weren't when he decided to go there). Him being a top level qb or not isn't in question....it's the morality of the coaches and them not fulfilling promises that were made to him. Who cares how good he is or isn't.......keep your word. The didn't so he isn't playing. It's a shame that the young man has to hold old men accountable to just being good people.

Look at it like this......if you get recruited to a job....they promise you opportunities to advance....you get there and they don't allow you to advance are you going to keep working there or are you going to find a job somewhere else? Same thing here.....

1) I'm starting to understand why you are siding so strongly with Sluka. You are 100% incorrect that a school can pay the student directly for playing for them.

"NCAA rules still prevent schools from paying players directly. This means that college coaches cannot offer money as an incentive for high school athletes to come play at their school, nor can athletes receive compensation directly from their university based upon their athletic achievements. Because the NCAA still intends to maintain its amateur sports status, paying athletes for their play on the field isn’t possible." https://iconsource.com/everything-about-nil/

"NCAA rules still forbid schools from paying their athletes. However that may change as the result of a May 2024 court settlement." https://www.investopedia.com/nil-and-th ... 20athletes.

The May 2024 settlement reference has not been approved by the judge overseeing the case (Judge Wilkin) expressed concern over the settlement just yesterday. "Wilken is unpersuaded that this new system could realistically distinguish, as the judge put it, “real NIL” versus “pay-for-play.” https://www.sportico.com/law/analysis/2 ... 234796270/

As it stands now, and was in effect during his recruitment, a school CANNOT pay an athlete to play for them. It has to be thru a 3rd party (governed by state laws, if enacted) and be for the commercial use of their name, image, and likeness (wink, wink) which is where the term NIL came from.

2) Maybe I'm smarter than you average bear, but well before I was Sluka's age, if someone said they'd give me $100k for doing XYZ, I would have said, "Let's see it in writing". So even if he wasn't aware that the school COULD NOT guarantee him any money, he should have been smart enough to get a signed contract. Fully developed male or not. I mean, he's like 1 year short of that by your scientific definition (I don't think that definition is meant to be applied to whether a young male can understand contracts, by the way. Jebus)

3...or 4 since you skipped #3... IMO, morality is in doubt in this he-said-he-said case. Sluka said he was promised $100k, UNLV denies it. So our options are: a) Sluka is monumentally stupid and didn't get a $100k agreement in writing AND UNLV was violating NCAA rules OR b) Sluka was never promised $100k and he felt he could squeeze UNLV after obtaining an agent once the team was winning. His "agent" is not even registered as an agent in Nevada. https://www.cbssports.com/college-footb ... in-nevada/

The whole thing stinks of money grab to me. I'm inclined to believe the school, you can believe the player, but to do that you're saying he's monumentally stupid and UNLV is back to breaking NCAA rules.

Also... your hypothetical at the end of your post is a false equivalence. He wasn't promised the opportunity to advance; he's already the starting QB FFS. A better example, which I absolutely did after graduating college, would be a prospective employer offered me a job after college offering me a certain salary, benefits and moving expenses. When I found the terms satisfactory (what they call a "meeting of the minds" in contract law), you know what they did??? Sent me a f***ing contract!

[Cataholic]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

I totally disagree with you. The employee is a representative of the school when it comes to promises made. You are trying to eliminate and combine actions as they fit your narrative....it doesn't work like that. Yes the school as an entity isn't responsible, but the coaches are a portion of said entity so when they make promises in order to garner the services of the players they are held accountable to following through on promises. You analogy is off.....a better analogy is that if you promise me that your company will pay me 100k for my services, we make a verbal contract, I come to your company to provide the services. I'm start doing the work and I ask for my money from your boss, he says no, I say that you told me that you would said you promised me 100k for my services....your boss says no....i stop providing my services. that is the analogy that fits. Now what do you think will happen to you now? Exactly, you are going to be in hot water...you may or may not lose your job but you are responsible for what you promised me and you now have opened your company up to scrutiny for shady dealings....same thing here.

The wording is the problem.......they can pay players but they can't use the money they are going to pay you as a recruiting tool. Basically the coaches/school can't say we will pay you thins if you come here. What has to happen is you have to come to the school THEN you get your money...if it is paid out by the school. If it is coming from an outside source you still can't sign anything with a collective until you are a part of the school, so yes promises have to be honored. The kids still have to trust that what the coaches said they would come through on comes through when they get there. The kid is still taking all the chance in getting screwed over. If you don't pan out the school will just not renew your scholarship and they move on. So yeah I'm on the side of the players because they are the ones that are being asked to be more moral than the adults in the situation.

I agree to a point. I've never started a job without a written offer of employment or an employment contract. When he got to UNLV he should have said...put it in writing. Coach and player were WRONG on negotiating against the rules of the NCAA. NIL is 100% being offered as recruiting and that is banned on both sides. NCAA should step in and sanction both sides. I have 0 problem with him leaving but both sides are to blame, not just 1 side. You are very knowledgeable on the game and obviously you or someone you know was lied to by a coach. I suspect t about playing time. That doesn't make every employee of a school or company able to make enforceable promises.

I think you are missing my point all together. I know that the "school" or company can't be forced to pay the young man. That's obvious. What I said was very very clear......they were morally wrong for making a promise and not following through. The young man obviously made relationships with coaches and felt they were men of their word, they aren't. He's sitting now. I played D1 ball and by nature know of tons of guys that played D1 ball...yes i know most players are lied to...that has no bearing on this. Again I'm not saying anything is enforceable....what I'm saying is don't make promises that you are not going to keep....if you do this will happen repeatedly....stop lying to kids. And I do not agree that the kid is to blame, the only thing he did was believe grown men whom he felt had integrity. As a player to go play for a coach you have to believe in them, so he did nothing wrong at all. He was taken advantage of period the end, the onus is on the school to do right by the athlete in this situation.

In this specific instance, what makes you so sure that Sluka is telling the truth? The school says his demands came out of the blue. I realize that you have some experience dealing with coaches, but that doesn’t automatically mean the kid is telling the truth. Was the kid, agent and parents so naive to not get anything in writing - especially before the season started? Not even a text or an email? This sounds fishy to me, especially since this is about a large amount of money.

[BobcatBuiltTexan]

He left an FBS program over money (whether his head got big and wanted more or just didn't get what he was promised). He's not coming to Bozeman.

I don't have any expectations of him coming here. There's no doubt he's chasing the money.

well i wouldn't over simplify it like that. current reports say that he was promised 100k for relocation(NIL) to unlv. he has received only 3k and the school/collective is refusing to pay him the rest of what he is owed. now if that is true unlv is wrong and the kid should sit out. these schools have to stop lying to kids. if you promise a kid something as a school they should come through, whether that's playing time, NIL, whatever.

look at it like this...the kid keeps playing...lets say unlv goes to the cfp...head coach leaves gets a $3mil raise...kid was promised 100k only gets 3k...he is a grad transfer has zero yrs of eligibility left and he isn't a draft prospect, so for him this money is the only big pay day he's getting. That school and the coaches screwed him over. that isn't fair to him and to chalk it up to that's part of sports....no it USED to be part of sports, now you have to come through or kids will leave

now on the flip side, if the school has paid them everything they said they would he is dead wrong for what he is doing. I totally agree on that part but to assume the kid is just chasing money i feel is the wrong way to approach this. we still don't know which story is the actual truth and until then I will not pass judgement on the kid nor the school.

As far as I know, schools are not allowed to be involved in any NIL money. That all must be privately funded through boosters, corporate sponsorships, etc.

All the school can give is room, board, books, tuition, and a FCOA stipend of a few thousand bucks per year. So UNLV is likely being honest when they say they have fulfilled their financial obligation, as that wouldn't include NIL.

And as someone that has played D1 ball and know the ins and outs of collegiate football, I say hogwash. Those coaches made a promise to that kid and didn't come through. It's a cop out. Schools aren't allowed to be involved with NIL money but they CAN pay players. So if I was a coach and the NIL people welched on their money I would go to the school and get that kid the money because I know that he came because we said that he would get that money. If you think that the coaches/schools don't know about the money the kids are being offered you are sadly mistaken. These coaches know what the kids are being offered and are a part of making sure that they are offered that money because they want to get them. Now due to rules they don't "get involved" but they are fully involved, just like they were involved back in the day when they were paying kids under the table. These coaches have eyes and ears everywhere and they know everything that's going on, its their job to know everything.

I'm sure you're right that the coaches and recruiters made NIL promises, no doubt about that. But the money isn't coming from the school itself. The university itself doesn't owe the kid any more than the things I mentioned above. The NIL collective might owe him but the school does not.

So it has now come out that the OC offered him 100k, he committed, got here only got 3K. They said they would pay him before the season, then told him they would pay him in game checks, then when the dad called and talked to the head coach he told them the OC doesn't have the power make that offer and if it didn't come from him it isn't valid. UNLV is screwing the kid and the kid is doing right so that he can get paid now, as he was promised, and play for a team that will keep their word.

He's a 23/24 year old college graduate. He should know a) the school offering money is non-binding, as it's actually an NCAA violation to pay athletes and b) anything to do with compensation in that high a dollar amount NEEDS TO BE IN WRITING. I'm not saying an assistant coach DIDN'T MAKE the promise, but at that point he should have said, have your collective send over the paperwork. Even when NIL was very new, prior to the 2nd football season it was made legal, MSU student-athletes were given... CONTRACTS (link below). Typically, these contracts involve specific performance, such as appearing in commercials, showing up to events, etc., not playing football. In fact, paying for play is STILL not allowed by the NCAA amateur rules. They are literally being compensated for use of their Name, Image, and Likeness. It was an expensive, unnecessary lesson but one that Sluka will learn from nonetheless.

https://www.kulr8.com/sports/montana-st ... 6a681.html

I'm curious if anyone will even bring him on. I don't think there's many P4 teams that utilize a run-first QB offense and his passing stats against bottom-half competition leave a ton to be desired, completing 21 of 48 (43.75%) for 318 yards (that's over 3 games, not 1). P4 schools don't recruit stud WRs to bring in a QB that runs the ball 13x per game by himself.

1. you are incorrect schools can pay players. Schools haven't figured out how they are going to do that or what it looks like but has been approved that schools can in fact pay players to pay for them.

2. it's wild that you are saying that a kid, regardless of his age, is at fault for believing coaches and are basically shifting the blame all to the kid. You are not holding the grown men accountable for flat out lying but rather saying that a 23/24y/o should have "known better". Please remember that it has been scientifically proven that males do not fully develop mentally until 25 or later. So you are looking at fully developed men and holding them to a lower standard than a person who isn't fully developed yet(as proven by scientific research). That is wild that you are placing all the onus on the player and none on the people that lied to him. But see you can think through all of that because........yup you are a fully develop adult male(I'm guessing)....while we may say he should have known obviously he didn't....and even if you didn't what about the simple morality of the adults involved? You don't feel they should be held accountable?

4. His ability isn't in question nor is the opportunity to go to another team. you say that he won't go to a P4 team....UNLV isn't a P4 team(well they are as of Tuesday...but they weren't when he decided to go there). Him being a top level qb or not isn't in question....it's the morality of the coaches and them not fulfilling promises that were made to him. Who cares how good he is or isn't.......keep your word. The didn't so he isn't playing. It's a shame that the young man has to hold old men accountable to just being good people.

Look at it like this......if you get recruited to a job....they promise you opportunities to advance....you get there and they don't allow you to advance are you going to keep working there or are you going to find a job somewhere else? Same thing here.....

1) I'm starting to understand why you are siding so strongly with Sluka. You are 100% incorrect that a school can pay the student directly for playing for them.

"NCAA rules still prevent schools from paying players directly. This means that college coaches cannot offer money as an incentive for high school athletes to come play at their school, nor can athletes receive compensation directly from their university based upon their athletic achievements. Because the NCAA still intends to maintain its amateur sports status, paying athletes for their play on the field isn’t possible." https://iconsource.com/everything-about-nil/

"NCAA rules still forbid schools from paying their athletes. However that may change as the result of a May 2024 court settlement." https://www.investopedia.com/nil-and-th ... 20athletes.

The May 2024 settlement reference has not been approved by the judge overseeing the case (Judge Wilkin) expressed concern over the settlement just yesterday. "Wilken is unpersuaded that this new system could realistically distinguish, as the judge put it, “real NIL” versus “pay-for-play.” https://www.sportico.com/law/analysis/2 ... 234796270/

As it stands now, and was in effect during his recruitment, a school CANNOT pay an athlete to play for them. It has to be thru a 3rd party (governed by state laws, if enacted) and be for the commercial use of their name, image, and likeness (wink, wink) which is where the term NIL came from.

2) Maybe I'm smarter than you average bear, but well before I was Sluka's age, if someone said they'd give me $100k for doing XYZ, I would have said, "Let's see it in writing". So even if he wasn't aware that the school COULD NOT guarantee him any money, he should have been smart enough to get a signed contract. Fully developed male or not. I mean, he's like 1 year short of that by your scientific definition (I don't think that definition is meant to be applied to whether a young male can understand contracts, by the way. Jebus)

3...or 4 since you skipped #3... IMO, morality is in doubt in this he-said-he-said case. Sluka said he was promised $100k, UNLV denies it. So our options are: a) Sluka is monumentally stupid and didn't get a $100k agreement in writing AND UNLV was violating NCAA rules OR b) Sluka was never promised $100k and he felt he could squeeze UNLV after obtaining an agent once the team was winning. His "agent" is not even registered as an agent in Nevada. https://www.cbssports.com/college-footb ... in-nevada/

The whole thing stinks of money grab to me. I'm inclined to believe the school, you can believe the player, but to do that you're saying he's monumentally stupid and UNLV is back to breaking NCAA rules.

Also... your hypothetical at the end of your post is a false equivalence. He wasn't promised the opportunity to advance; he's already the starting QB FFS. A better example, which I absolutely did after graduating college, would be a prospective employer offered me a job after college offering me a certain salary, benefits and moving expenses. When I found the terms satisfactory (what they call a "meeting of the minds" in contract law), you know what they did??? Sent me a f***ing contract!

let's have a go at it.....

your first point....is completely inaccurate a simple google search pulls this up right here...

https://www.espn.com/college-sports/sto ... ay-players

they have agreed to pay players so no need to go further into that...but i will

https://www.deseret.com/sports/2024/09/ ... rgia-ncaa/

so yes they can pay them if they so choose to...so once again you are incorrect schools CAN in fact pay players. Now has UNLV done everything to do it...that I don't know but the fact remains...the school CAN in fact pay them

next point I addressed this. you are putting the onus on the young man/kid/athlete and absolving any responsibility of the school/coaches that promised him money..whether the head coach know or not, a representative of the school(the oc) made a promise to the kid and "should" be held accountable. Now am i saying the school HAS to pay, no I am not. I AM saying that he "should" and being that they aren't holding him accountable the athlete is sitting out. Should he got it in writing yes he should have, but once again he trusted the coach on his word. That was where the athlete messed up but once again we are putting ALL the onus on the person that screwed and none to the person that did the screwing. That in and of itself is morally wrong

next point...whether we find it stupid or not he trusted the coaches, I don't find it stupid to build a relationship and inherently trust the people that are supposed to coach you. Athletes do it all the time, not regarding money, but we don't think that is stupid. You are basically saying that anything that a coach promises to a kid(playing time, money, playing a certain position, etc) they should get it in writing. Maybe that should be the case, maybe not. He wasn't breaking any rules because as I posted via links earlier the school CAN in fact pay the athlete.

my hypothetical is in play because a promise was made and wasn't fulfilled. Whether it was a promise to advance....a promise of money....a promise of playing time....a promise of playing a certain position....a promise was made and the athlete came to the school based off that promise. Now should he got something anything that locked the money in, yes I do believe that. But once again you are placing not one iota of responsibility at the feet of the coach/school and putting it all on the athlete...calling him stupid. I find it highly immoral to promise a person anything and follow through on it. Maybe you and I were just raised differently but I don't make a promise and follow through on it..I also don't look at someone else and say that YOU are FULLY at fault for someone else not fulfilling a promise made to you.

[BobcatBuiltTexan]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

I totally disagree with you. The employee is a representative of the school when it comes to promises made. You are trying to eliminate and combine actions as they fit your narrative....it doesn't work like that. Yes the school as an entity isn't responsible, but the coaches are a portion of said entity so when they make promises in order to garner the services of the players they are held accountable to following through on promises. You analogy is off.....a better analogy is that if you promise me that your company will pay me 100k for my services, we make a verbal contract, I come to your company to provide the services. I'm start doing the work and I ask for my money from your boss, he says no, I say that you told me that you would said you promised me 100k for my services....your boss says no....i stop providing my services. that is the analogy that fits. Now what do you think will happen to you now? Exactly, you are going to be in hot water...you may or may not lose your job but you are responsible for what you promised me and you now have opened your company up to scrutiny for shady dealings....same thing here.

The wording is the problem.......they can pay players but they can't use the money they are going to pay you as a recruiting tool. Basically the coaches/school can't say we will pay you thins if you come here. What has to happen is you have to come to the school THEN you get your money...if it is paid out by the school. If it is coming from an outside source you still can't sign anything with a collective until you are a part of the school, so yes promises have to be honored. The kids still have to trust that what the coaches said they would come through on comes through when they get there. The kid is still taking all the chance in getting screwed over. If you don't pan out the school will just not renew your scholarship and they move on. So yeah I'm on the side of the players because they are the ones that are being asked to be more moral than the adults in the situation.

I agree to a point. I've never started a job without a written offer of employment or an employment contract. When he got to UNLV he should have said...put it in writing. Coach and player were WRONG on negotiating against the rules of the NCAA. NIL is 100% being offered as recruiting and that is banned on both sides. NCAA should step in and sanction both sides. I have 0 problem with him leaving but both sides are to blame, not just 1 side. You are very knowledgeable on the game and obviously you or someone you know was lied to by a coach. I suspect t about playing time. That doesn't make every employee of a school or company able to make enforceable promises.

I think you are missing my point all together. I know that the "school" or company can't be forced to pay the young man. That's obvious. What I said was very very clear......they were morally wrong for making a promise and not following through. The young man obviously made relationships with coaches and felt they were men of their word, they aren't. He's sitting now. I played D1 ball and by nature know of tons of guys that played D1 ball...yes i know most players are lied to...that has no bearing on this. Again I'm not saying anything is enforceable....what I'm saying is don't make promises that you are not going to keep....if you do this will happen repeatedly....stop lying to kids. And I do not agree that the kid is to blame, the only thing he did was believe grown men whom he felt had integrity. As a player to go play for a coach you have to believe in them, so he did nothing wrong at all. He was taken advantage of period the end, the onus is on the school to do right by the athlete in this situation.

In this specific instance, what makes you so sure that Sluka is telling the truth? The school says his demands came out of the blue. I realize that you have some experience dealing with coaches, but that doesn’t automatically mean the kid is telling the truth. Was the kid, agent and parents so naive to not get anything in writing - especially before the season started? Not even a text or an email? This sounds fishy to me, especially since this is about a large amount of money.

You do realize the head coach acknowledged that the OC made the promise, but because it didn't go through him it wasn't valid. I don't have SOME experience, I have A LOT of experience dealing with coaches...20+yrs of dealing with coaches and how they function. I don't feel the kids is telling the whole truth, I don't feel the school is telling the whole truth...it's somewhere in the middle. Maybe they were that naive, regardless if they were is it any less morally wrong for any one to promise something and not deliver? THAT is my point....I don't find the athlete to be money hungry, I feel he was promised something, it wasn't given and now he is the one that is being called money hungry, a bad teammate, stupid, etc. He does hold some responsibility, I've stated on several occasions that he should have got something in writing. His onus is far less that the school representative(the coach). Yes coaches aren't dumb, they aren't going to put things in text or email because the athlete easily can use that as leverage towards another school. Understand that I've been around college sports for over 2 decades this is chump change that I've seen exchanged with out contracts being signed. It happened back when I was playing years ago and hit is still happening now. Unfortunately the athlete got screwed out of some money. I don't think the starting qb of team that is 3-0 sits out because he doesn't get paid more, simply because, honestly, HE wasn't the main reason they were winning. He didn't get what was due so he said I'm not playing....so you understand I know how the UNLV coaching staff works because a close friend of mines son was recruited heavily by them, even committed to them. Lots of money and incentives were thrown there way, he ultimately decommitted because he was a great track athlete and went to a p4 school instead.

Again I call an ace an ace and a spade a spade. I have no dog in the hunt. When you know what I know how school function you see things very differently than the average person. If it comes out the athlete did get everything that was promised I would say that he is in the wrong, but based off what the head coach said money was promised and it was given.

[RockyBearCat]

Seems like OC said something like, "i know you will 100K" he didn't. Oc says I didn't guarantee it...player sees it as a promise. It sucks. Worst part of college football.

[MSU01]

I see that a DT from USC has also decided to opt out of the remainder of the season due to not getting as much playing time as he wanted after transferring from Georgia. This UNLV thing is only going to be the tip of the iceberg.

[Catsrgrood]

Is there a setting within this site where we can just have the last comment as a part of a quote when a comment thread is quoted and continued?

Some of these posts are getting looooong.


I’m guilty of being a long poster at times, but when it’s long post after long post after long post all within the same quote, it gets ridiculously long.

[Cataholic]

Think about what you're saying. An employee of the school made a promise to the kid how is going to play for the school. As an employee of the school he represents the school, so when he lies the school is lying. Yes we are speaking in broad terms, but to sit here and try to make a distinction between the institution "university" and the people that work for the institution "coaches" is wild..

Cleaned up the quotes and bit....


You are right that schools, etc lie and fully in his right to back out. You are wrong that every employee of the school can speak for the school. If I'm at a bar tonight and Billy, a tire changer at Tires R Us, tells me "I'll get you 4 Goodyears 50% off. Come down tomorrow. " I better get it confirmed by someone before putting the tires on. If I just go put the order in and get my tires changed and my bill is $2000. Nobody is accepting that Billy the tire guy offered me 50% off.

Now...my question is this. Can the NIL offer and execute a contract for a non-student? I thought their rules were that it cannot be used for recruiting. Is it? 100% ...is it supposed to?
I don't think so.
@bvancleeve is it NCAA legal to execute a contract to get a recruit to sign?

I totally disagree with you. The employee is a representative of the school when it comes to promises made. You are trying to eliminate and combine actions as they fit your narrative....it doesn't work like that. Yes the school as an entity isn't responsible, but the coaches are a portion of said entity so when they make promises in order to garner the services of the players they are held accountable to following through on promises. You analogy is off.....a better analogy is that if you promise me that your company will pay me 100k for my services, we make a verbal contract, I come to your company to provide the services. I'm start doing the work and I ask for my money from your boss, he says no, I say that you told me that you would said you promised me 100k for my services....your boss says no....i stop providing my services. that is the analogy that fits. Now what do you think will happen to you now? Exactly, you are going to be in hot water...you may or may not lose your job but you are responsible for what you promised me and you now have opened your company up to scrutiny for shady dealings....same thing here.

The wording is the problem.......they can pay players but they can't use the money they are going to pay you as a recruiting tool. Basically the coaches/school can't say we will pay you thins if you come here. What has to happen is you have to come to the school THEN you get your money...if it is paid out by the school. If it is coming from an outside source you still can't sign anything with a collective until you are a part of the school, so yes promises have to be honored. The kids still have to trust that what the coaches said they would come through on comes through when they get there. The kid is still taking all the chance in getting screwed over. If you don't pan out the school will just not renew your scholarship and they move on. So yeah I'm on the side of the players because they are the ones that are being asked to be more moral than the adults in the situation.

I agree to a point. I've never started a job without a written offer of employment or an employment contract. When he got to UNLV he should have said...put it in writing. Coach and player were WRONG on negotiating against the rules of the NCAA. NIL is 100% being offered as recruiting and that is banned on both sides. NCAA should step in and sanction both sides. I have 0 problem with him leaving but both sides are to blame, not just 1 side. You are very knowledgeable on the game and obviously you or someone you know was lied to by a coach. I suspect t about playing time. That doesn't make every employee of a school or company able to make enforceable promises.

I think you are missing my point all together. I know that the "school" or company can't be forced to pay the young man. That's obvious. What I said was very very clear......they were morally wrong for making a promise and not following through. The young man obviously made relationships with coaches and felt they were men of their word, they aren't. He's sitting now. I played D1 ball and by nature know of tons of guys that played D1 ball...yes i know most players are lied to...that has no bearing on this. Again I'm not saying anything is enforceable....what I'm saying is don't make promises that you are not going to keep....if you do this will happen repeatedly....stop lying to kids. And I do not agree that the kid is to blame, the only thing he did was believe grown men whom he felt had integrity. As a player to go play for a coach you have to believe in them, so he did nothing wrong at all. He was taken advantage of period the end, the onus is on the school to do right by the athlete in this situation.

In this specific instance, what makes you so sure that Sluka is telling the truth? The school says his demands came out of the blue. I realize that you have some experience dealing with coaches, but that doesn’t automatically mean the kid is telling the truth. Was the kid, agent and parents so naive to not get anything in writing - especially before the season started? Not even a text or an email? This sounds fishy to me, especially since this is about a large amount of money.

You do realize the head coach acknowledged that the OC made the promise, but because it didn't go through him it wasn't valid. I don't have SOME experience, I have A LOT of experience dealing with coaches...20+yrs of dealing with coaches and how they function. I don't feel the kids is telling the whole truth, I don't feel the school is telling the whole truth...it's somewhere in the middle. Maybe they were that naive, regardless if they were is it any less morally wrong for any one to promise something and not deliver? THAT is my point....I don't find the athlete to be money hungry, I feel he was promised something, it wasn't given and now he is the one that is being called money hungry, a bad teammate, stupid, etc. He does hold some responsibility, I've stated on several occasions that he should have got something in writing. His onus is far less that the school representative(the coach). Yes coaches aren't dumb, they aren't going to put things in text or email because the athlete easily can use that as leverage towards another school. Understand that I've been around college sports for over 2 decades this is chump change that I've seen exchanged with out contracts being signed. It happened back when I was playing years ago and hit is still happening now. Unfortunately the athlete got screwed out of some money. I don't think the starting qb of team that is 3-0 sits out because he doesn't get paid more, simply because, honestly, HE wasn't the main reason they were winning. He didn't get what was due so he said I'm not playing....so you understand I know how the UNLV coaching staff works because a close friend of mines son was recruited heavily by them, even committed to them. Lots of money and incentives were thrown there way, he ultimately decommitted because he was a great track athlete and went to a p4 school instead.

Again I call an ace an ace and a spade a spade. I have no dog in the hunt. When you know what I know how school function you see things very differently than the average person. If it comes out the athlete did get everything that was promised I would say that he is in the wrong, but based off what the head coach said money was promised and it was given.

I was not aware the head coach verified the OC made an offer. If that is the case, UNLV is clearly in the wrong. And quite frankly, the OC should be terminated.

[MSU01]

Is there a setting within this site where we can just have the last comment as a part of a quote when a comment thread is quoted and continued?

Some of these posts are getting looooong.


I’m guilty of being a long poster at times, but when it’s long post after long post after long post all within the same quote, it gets ridiculously long.

I've asked this before and at least at that time, the answer was no. When I quote one of these massive posts I try and take a few seconds to delete everything but the post I'm directly replying to.

[Cataholic]

Hi @BobcatBuiltTexan . I found this article regarding what the head coach said About an offer from the OC. Based on the article, the father of Sluka alleges what the coach said. Is there something where the coach said this publicly?

https://nypost.com/2024/09/26/sports/mo ... king-exit/

Not trying to argue. Just think we don’t really know what happened and the lack of anything written is fishy. And the intro of the agent after a couple of wins is really strange.