When NIL started in 2021, I said to myself, watch Duke and Stanford.
Paying college athletes for their so-called Name, Image and Likeness sounded like a perfect fit for a few schools, such as two that were already among the richest and smartest.
Duke was right out of the gate with the projected top NBA draft pick Paolo Banchero, who supposedly made a million dollars beyond his scholarship in the Wild West days when NIL rules and regulations had not even been formed to monitor schools.
The reason I thought of Duke, which 50 years ago really struggled financially, was because the Blue Devils were paying Mike Krzyzewski between $7 and $10 million a year, depending on how big of a bonus Coach K received. He was also making millions privately after signing with Creative Artist Agency in New York.
Somebody, probably Krzyzewski, came up with the idea of letting CAA also represent the Duke athletes with the most NIL upside, and after his retirement the school hired Rachel Baker as the first general manager in Division I college basketball.
Since the private school could shut down internal information like the Nixon White House, very few details trickled out but the truth was that Duke had another arrow in its quiver. Then came revenue sharing in July of this year to add salaries to pay them more.
Cooper Flagg supposedly made seven figures by signing with New Balance during his one year at Duke but of course missed rev share by turning pro. There was plenty of its allowable $20.5 million, and it is no accident that the Blue Devils are also very good in football.
They are, also reportedly, paying quarterback Darian Mensah $8 million after transferring from Tulane, and he looks worth it. Nothing better showed that than the end of the Devils’ 46-45 win at Clemson by going for a two-point conversion. College teams are doing that more than ever now, usually because they have a special play prepared.
Unlike what Mack Brown called against Clemson in 2019 and Bill Belichick went with against Virginia, both that fell short, Duke had something to behold. Mensah took his team out of the huddle, and then the fun started. There were at least three shifts by backs and tight ends, which you can do as long as two players are not shifting at the same time.
Duke made at least three shifts and so bamboozled the Tigers that by the time the ball was snapped Mensah’s pass to Sahmir Hagans was completely uncovered. Dabo Swinney had another conniption after Clemson lost its fifth game of the season for the first time in years.
Now, Stanford is clearly not that advanced, but it has the money to be eventually. And they now have former star quarterback Andrew Luck, one of the smartest players ever, as GM. So you know he will get the job done, too. Hopefully, not in time to ruin Saturday’s visit here.
Featured image via Associated Press/Ben McKeown
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
