LSU quarterback Myles Brennan called it quits on Monday and his decision could slow the speed and breadth of NIL deals across the college football landscape.
Brennan became the first prominent player in the short history of name, image and likeness to get paid and never step on the field.
While the former four-star quarterback has started three games over his collegiate career, none came after he signed NIL deals.
Believed to have been LSU's next starting quarterback, Brennan signed a car deal with Baton Rouge dealership Hollingsford Richards Ford and added endorsements from Raising Canes, Smoothie King, GameCoin and Smalls Sliders during the NIL craze of 2021.
But before the season, Brennan hurt himself in a fishing accident and never played. After the season, Ed Orgeron was fired and Brennan entered the transfer portal before calling it quits Monday.
As part of the stipulations of NIL, Brennan needed to provide his endorsement to receive the money, which he did, but the rules don't require him to actually play. NIL regulations also disallow performance incentives or benchmarks in any deal.
In fact, Brennan would have still been able to keep the money if, five days after he signed all the deals, he left LSU.
Some proponents of NIL say that's exactly what the system was created for — for athletes who don't fulfill their potential to capitalize and make cash in the moment, at their height of marketability, whether they turn out or not.
Others indicate that cases like Brennan's — or Spencer Rattler's or JT Daniels' — will inevitably depress the meteoric sums unproven players have been receiving since the practice was codified in 2021.
