A New Deal: The realities of NIL for some North Carolina athletes

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Fall sports are just around the corner all across the Carolinas and for the first time, some student-athletes will be able to take advantage of something that up until now, had only been reserved for college athletes.

Right now, there’s three words that have become synonymous with college and high school sports: name, image and likeness.

The 2024-25 school year is the first time that players like Providence Day School’s Leo Delaney will be able to make money off making tackles.

“There’s one company that I really love. I’ve talked to them in the past and its 1st Phorm,” said Delaney when talking about some of his favorite brands.

Earlier this year, the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association (NCISAA) announced that their athletes can ink NIL deals, while maintaining their “amateur” status.

In the state right now, that only applies to private schools.

Providence Day head football coach Chad Grier says there’s a lot of noise surrounding NIL, but it’s not really what people think.

“I think there’s a misconception among some, that think private schools have access to some pot of money to pay kids who they have some access to deals to pay kids,” Grier said. “It just doesn’t happen.”

Grier said they have a long list of student-athletes wanting to come play for them, but it’s solely because of the program’s caliber, not NIL. The Chargers have won the last three NCISAA Division 1 state championships.

“It’s preparing you to go to college. The school day here is intense,” he explained. “I have yet to have a kid or family come and say, ‘Hey, what does an NIL deal look like?’ They don’t even ask.”

According to the NCISAA handbook, student-athletes can now get paid for being in commercials for local businesses, running a camp or clinic, promoting a product or service on social media, or even signing an autograph.

Delaney, who transferred after his sophomore season at East Mecklenburg High School, said while the idea of getting a big payday is nice, it’s not where the offensive lineman’s head is right now.

“We’re trying to go 13-0 for another season, and that’s always going to be my main goal:  bringing me and my teammates to another state championship,” he said.

Standing at 6-foot-6, Delaney also has a big decision ahead of him: choosing between 29 offers from some of the top Division I universities. It’s why he feels potential deals will definitely be there down the road if he wants them.

“It’s a phenomenal opportunity, but I really want to focus on getting a great college degree and hopefully getting money after college,” he said.

Meanwhile, just 5 miles up the road at Myers Park High School, a Charlotte-Mecklenburg public school, head football coach Chris James is also fielding NIL questions, but for the college level.

“That’s the recruiting pitch now, kids come back from visits and instead of talking about campus or the mascot, sometimes even playing time, the conversation of NIL comes up first a lot,” he said.

James said that even though he doesn’t see NIL having an impact on his players this season, his second leading the Mustangs, it does add another layer to what some call an already uneven playing field.

“It’s definitely a disadvantage to a certain extent,” James explained. “I’ve been at private school, I’ve been at public school, just the difference alone, forget NIL, there is a significant difference.”

As the NCISAA rules stand, its member schools and anyone associated with them are prohibited from promising student athletes NIL opportunities to entice them to transfer or attend their school.

However, James knows the fact that the opportunity exists could be appealing to some players.

“You hope you can keep your players around for a long time, but if you’ve got high-level guys and guys that have the potential and it’s the market for that, they might leave and you just have to know that as a coach,” he said.

As athletes at private schools are in their first year befitting from an NIL framework, those under the N.C. High School Athletic Association can no longer, following a State Board of Education vote in June.

But athletes who focus on winning games first can still see the individual glory in one way or another, says PDS’s Delaney.

“I’d like to think everyone on this team would think the same way, that we’re just focused on winning out and have a great season, because then we’ll all get our individual awards,” said Delaney.

Click here for the NCISAA Handbook regarding NIL.

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