UNLV quarterback Matthew Sluka announced late Tuesday night he will be redshirting the rest of the season, alluding to broken promises of NIL (name, image, and likeness) dollars as the reason why.
“I committed to UNLV based on certain representations that were made to me, which were not upheld after I enrolled,” Sluka wrote in his announcement on social media. “Despite discussions, it became clear that these commitments would not be fulfilled in the future. I wish my teammates the best of luck this season and hope for the continued success of the program.”
UNLV has gone 3–0 this season with wins over Houston, Utah Tech—who the Rebels beat 72–14—and Kansas. The team came in at No. 25 in the national rankings this week, the first time reaching the rankings in program history. Sluka has thrown for 318 yards and six touchdowns while throwing just one interception. He picked up 253 yards on the ground, including one 46-yard run, and ran in one touchdown. Sluka transferred to UNLV this season after playing four years at Holy Cross.
Sluka has one year of eligibility remaining; NCAA redshirt rules let football players retain a year of eligibility if they play four games or fewer.
Friends of UNLV is the school’s official NIL collective, which controls payments for athletes and entices transfers and recruits.
The price tag for a quarterback in a power program can get into the millions, but generally sits around $500,000 to $800,000. At a Group of 5 school, it’s likely UNLV is offering Sluka less than that. This is believed to be the first time in the NIL era that an athlete has backed out midseason presumably over collective payments (or a lack thereof).
He wouldn’t be able to transfer and play for another school this season. Local Fox reporter Paloma Villicana reported Sluka has been “approached with more money to transfer.” It’s unclear whether the quarterback has committed to another school for next season. According to 247 Sports and CBS Sports’ Carl Reed Jr., “All financial commitments” were “completely met,” but Sluka, his family, and his representation felt he was worth more after the breakout season.
Sluka’s father adamantly denied that in an interview with ESPN Wednesday morning. “We have no idea what the hell happened,” he said. The elder Sluka told a reporter that his son never asked for any tweaks to the original deal agreed to in February.
His agent told ESPN that a UNLV assistant “verbally promised” Sluka $100,000, but when he actually arrived in Las Vegas, the school and collective offered him $3,000 a month for the football season, and has paid only a $3,000 relocation bonus.
UNLV has been at the center of this round of realignment drama amid its football team’s hot start. Five Mountain West schools have already defected to the Pac-12, which still needs an eighth school to achieve FBS status by 2026. The Rebels and Air Force appear to be prime candidates to make the leap; as they weigh their choice, the Pac-12 is suing the Mountain West in an attempt to get out of millions of dollars in damage fees.
Representatives for the collective and football program did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
