Earlier this week, the NCAA moved toward figuring out a system that would allow athletes to make money off their image and likeness. Contrary to the belief of many who only read headlines and tweets, this has nothing to do with colleges cutting checks directly to players. That’s not what’s happening here, Notre Dame included.
What is happening is a movement toward leveling the playing field — so to speak — to give scholarship athletes the same rights and privileges as students on academic scholarships. What we’re looking at is a future where college athletes would be allowed to broker their own deals with outside businesses — small, big, local and national.