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The introduction of NIL has been one of college athletics’s biggest shifts. But within the industry, there is an understanding that there was still an NIL era before it was ever formalized, characterized in pop culture by handshake agreements or cash in duffel bags.
Previous generations of college stars have playfully hinted at their past participation before name, image, and likeness’s legal inception in 2021. Speaking at the Front Office Sports Asset Class event on Tuesday, former All-Americans Jay Williams (Duke men’s basketball) and Ndamukong Suh (Nebraska football) shared a playful exchange on the subject.
“Just in black duffel bags,” Williams replied when FOS editor-in-chief Dan Roberts noted that NIL existed before it was formalized. “Sorry, we all participated. [Suh’s] going to claim that he didn’t.”
Suh playfully jabbed back.
“I never participated,” Suh responded. “I don’t know what y’all do at Duke, but don’t bring that over here to Nebraska, sir.”
As he provided his thoughts on whether NIL is a positive for college athletes, Suh took another playful dig at Williams.
“I think it’s a great thing, without question,” Suh said. “Ultimately, the thing that I would change is, yes, they should get some of that immediate cash so they’re not strapped for cash, their families aren’t struggling to come and see them, and they’re, quote, unquote, not breaking the rules, like they did at Duke to get families up and all of those different things.
“But, I also believe that they should have annuity plans and things stashed away so they’re not receiving all those dollars. They’re now having to deal with finances and so many different nuances—taxes, etc. at a young age.”
Williams, an ESPN college basketball analyst, pointed to the need for regulation, and potentially, a bigger shift to a professional sports model to calm an ever-evolving system.
“I think we need to continue to refine the guardrails,” Williams said. “Obviously, a lot of the stuff in legislation is going to be challenging, we’ll see if the [Protect College Sports Act] gets passed. But from a rudimentary perspective, we need contracts. I should be able to sign you to a two or three-year deal. There should be a transfer fee. We act like the model doesn’t exist in pro sports. It already exists.”
The legislation Williams referenced, the Protect College Sports Act (PCSA), is a bipartisan federal bill introduced in 2026 to create a uniform national standard for collegiate athletics, addressing the legal and financial chaos surrounding NIL and the transfer portal.
On Tuesday, senators voted to advance the bill toward a final vote on the Senate floor. Though the bill still has multiple procedural hurdles to clear before passing, Tuesday’s vote marked a significant milestone.
