Brownell Says Revenue-Sharing 'Much Better' for Clemson

CHARLOTTE – If the new revenue-model starts next year, as expected, football won’t be the only sport at Clemson to benefit in a big way.

Brad Brownell’s basketball program should also see some kind of boost, as schools will be able to start paying athletes directly once the House settlement is finalized as soon as next July.

Brownell broached the subject at the ACC Tipoff in Charlotte on Tuesday, beginning by saying that while the new model is rapidly approaching, there are still a lot of questions that need answering before he can really dive into the impact revenue-sharing can have on his program. Two of the biggest ones being what are the rules going to be and will they be enforced.

“Hard to say, I don’t know what it’s all going to mean,” Brownell said. “There are too many things to worry about. What are the rules going to be? Are people going to do it? Are there going to be loopholes? How’s it going to work?”

While there are still a lot of details to be ironed out, at the end of the day, the head coach believes the end result will be a positive one. Right now, the only way players can be paid is through NIL, meaning a lot of that money has to come from donors.

“I do think that from the standpoint of giving us some direction, some organization and getting most of the money coming from the schools is much better,” Brownell said. “You can’t keep going to the same few donors all the time to keep this thing going. You are just not going to be able to do it. We’ve done everything we can to help our guys to put them in a position to be successful. But there is a point where this becomes really challenging so I am optimistic it will pass and at least give some guardrails to start with.”

NIL has been a hot-button topic since its inception in the summer of 2021. Many just flat-out don’t believe in it. The ones that do must donate to the 110 Society on top of what they are already giving to IPTAY.

With the Tigers’ smaller alumni base, raising those kinds of funds can be more challenging than it might be at some of the bigger schools and at a certain point, donors might get to the point where they feel like enough is enough. In fact, Brownell noted that he has already dealt with some donor fatigue.

While NIL certainly isn’t going away when the revenue-sharing model starts, it just might start to ease the burden on some of the donors and that is something Brownell is confident will prove to be beneficial.

“There’s times where there is certainly donor fatigue,” Brownell said. “It’s real. It’s hard because it is usually on top of what you are already giving to IPTAY. And there are certainly folks that aren’t for the NIL. That believe the full scholarship and everything else is enough. The revenue-sharing speaks to that and that piece to give players money is important and necessary and right. But again, donors having to do all of that, that is a lot. You are asking a lot.”

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