Deion Sanders advocates for NIL salary cap in college football amid Nico Iamaleava saga

Colorado head coach and NFL HOF Deion Sanders suggested that the NCAA should introduce a salary cap like the NFL to limit the use of it in college.

Deion Sanders advocates for NIL salary cap in college football amid Nico Iamaleava saga

Nico Iamaleava and Deion Sanders (Image via IMAGO)

Deion Sanders is all in for college athletes to sign NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) deals, but at the same time, he wants to see the NCAA put a limit on it. Sanders suggested that the college football authority should follow a similar set of rules to the NFL.

Coach Prime will shortly take charge of the Colorado Buffaloes for the third year in a row. During his first two seasons, the Buffaloes saw an increase in players signing NIL deals with various local and national brands.

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NIL is not a recent phenomenon. It has been around for a while but wasn’t recognized by the NCAA until 2021.

Sanders’s son and the departing quarterback, Shedeur Sanders, ranked second in On3.com’s NIL valuation, which is $6.5 million. He owns contracts with Beats By Dre, Nike, and 5430 Alliance.

NIL surged into the charts after its sophomore quarterback, Nico Iamaleava, demanded three times more than his current valuation from his school, the University of Tennessee. However, the institute rejected Iamaleava‘s request, and he transferred to a different school.

This practice has quickly become a headache for the schools, and Deion Sanders wants the NCAA to take action. The NFL Hall of Famer suggested an option that the college football brass can put into action.

We’ve got to do something about this [player NIL deals]. Because if you don’t, it’s going to keep spiraling [out of control]… There should be some kind of cap. Our game should emulate the NFL game in every aspect. Rules, regulations—whatever the NFL rules, the college rules should be the same. There should be a cap, and every team gets this, and you should be able to spend that.

Deion Sanders said

Was Deion Sanders the first athlete to sign an NIL deal?

Sanders will go down as one of the best cornerbacks and return specialists in NFL history. Yet, football wasn’t the only sport he grew up with. Sanders was equally good at nearly every sport he tried his hand in.

Deion Sanders advocates for NIL salary cap in college football amid Nico Iamaleava saga
Deion Sanders (Image via IMAGO)

He was a very good batter in college and could run bases in a jiffy. However, he slowly lost interest in baseball, but MLB teams kept tabs on him. The New York Yankees drafted Deion Sanders in 1989 and offered him a ton of money.

I was the first NIL player in the history of the game. Let me explain. After my junior year, I didn’t play baseball [at all] in my junior season—not at all. I got tired, I got bored with it, so I said, ‘I ain’t playing [anymore].’ But I still got drafted by the New York Yankees, okay? And they offered me like a quarter of a million dollars.

Deion Sanders said during an interview with JakiTruth, an independent Colorado Buffaloes content creator

The NCAA used to be very rigid regarding its rules. As per its guidelines, college athletes were prohibited from earning professional income while on a scholarship. So he had two choices. Either stay at Florida State with the scholarship or accept the Yankees’ offer.

That made me a walk-on, and I accepted that. I had accepted money, and the school couldn’t pay for my scholarship because the [New York] Yankees paid for it. They covered my tuition, housing—everything.

Deion Sanders said

In the spring of the same year, the Atlanta Falcons drafted Sanders fifth overall. He juggled between football and baseball. In the winter, he would suit up with pads for the NFL season, and after it ended, he picked up the bat to hit screamers out of the ballpark.

Aside from donning the Yankees jersey, Sanders played for the Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, and San Francisco Giants. He retired from MLB in 2001.

Sanders played five seasons for the Falcons before signing with the San Francisco 49ers, where he lifted his first Super Bowl. The following year, Jerry Jones brought the “Deion Sweepstakes” to Arlington. Sanders won his second ring in his first season with the Dallas Cowboys. He played a total of five seasons for the ‘America’s Team.’ After a stopgap year in Washington, Sanders signed for the Baltimore Ravens, where he retired in 2005.

In total, he played 188 games and recorded 512 combined tackles, 25 pass deflections, 53 interceptions, 10 forced fumbles, and 13 fumble returns in defense. He also returned 212 punts and 155 kickoffs for a combined total of 6000+ yards and 9 total touchdowns.

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