Tigerillustrated.com told its subscribers on Monday and again this morning that Clemson would be presenting its supporters with a detailed road map of how it will address revenue sharing when it begins this summer, and how it will navigate the next seven months with NIL still the dominant source of player compensation.
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The following is correspondence received from Clemson Athletics this morning, in its entirety.
Letter from Clemson AD Graham Neff to all IPTAY members:
Dear IPTAY Members,
Thank you for supporting IPTAY and Clemson Athletics. You continue to be the foundation of our department, and we are incredibly grateful for your passion and steadfast encouragement for all 600 student-athletes.
The landscape of college athletics is undergoing a significant transformation, and I want to share with all of you how Clemson Athletics is navigating these changes while upholding our unwavering commitment to competitive excellence and our core mission of providing a world-class student-athlete experience. We recognize the role that we play on our campus and in our community and with integrity we are taking decisive action to best position ourselves for long-term success.
Let me be clear: there is no one “solve” for the transition to the future structure of college athletics. It will take multiple approaches and continued alignment throughout our University, and we believe Clemson is well-positioned to excel in this new paradigm.
You may have heard the term “House case” thrown around in recent months. While the FAQs provide additional detail, in short, the House vs. NCAA proposed settlement opens the door for change by:
(1) Removing scholarship limits in favor of roster limits
(2) Allowing institutions to provide a national-standard revenue share to student-athletes
(3) Requiring third-party NIL deals to be legitimate and for fair market value
Eliminating the cap on scholarships within the new roster limit model will enable us to invest further in our student-athletes across all of our programs. We plan to add 150 new full scholarships across all sports, reinforcing our commitment to providing educational opportunities for our talented student-athletes. These additional scholarships come with a cost and will require increased fundraising efforts, and your continued support is crucial.
Revenue sharing is a monumental shift, and Clemson is All In. We intend to share the maximum allowable amount of revenue with our student-athletes, up to approximately $20.5 million in 2025-26. This cap is outlined in the House settlement and is the same for all schools nationally. These payments will supplement student-athlete scholarships. In order to effectively manage this process, we are establishing a centralized "Front Office" to oversee contract details, compliance, and allocation strategy. As we build out our staff for this new unit, we have retained expertise with professional sports backgrounds and negotiation skillsets.
We are excited about the potential of regulated commercial name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities for our student-athletes. We have created an in-house agency by partnering with Everett Sports Marketing (ESM) to provide expert guidance to our staff and student-athletes, and to connect our students with businesses seeking brand ambassadors. This partnership, along with the previously announced Clemson Ventures, will empower our student-athletes to maximize their NIL potential. The settlement’s call for new oversight of legitimate “fair market value” deals is a necessary piece of the future state.
As a leadership group, we are looking at every possible opportunity to generate revenue while we evaluate expenses to be good stewards of the support we receive. We are pursuing new revenue streams via Clemson Ventures, including hosting special events, unlocking new partnership categories, and further developing original content, while seeking to better capture our media value in the marketplace. In addition, the recently implemented student fee reflects the institution’s commitment to a healthy and vibrant varsity athletic program and an investment in the student experience.
IPTAY’s support has long been central to the Athletic Department’s success and role in creating the number-one student experience. It is important for us to recognize needs where and when they arise, as we’ve done for the past 90 years. The proposed settlement has provided guidance and interpretation, while also helping us lay out a roadmap until it goes into effect, once approved.
There are, however, two distinct phases of the transformation – the phase where we are currently, and the post-House implementation (July 1, 2025). We are currently in a transitional state, which falls at a critical time from a roster management perspective for our programs.
About two years ago, NCAA rules and State legislation paved the way for “collectives” to exist and thrive, and connecting interested donors has been a critical part of our strategy for the past two years. These collectives - at Clemson, the 110 Society - provide meaningful NIL opportunities to student-athletes. Healthy collectives have been an important piece of the college sports landscape in recent years, and will continue to play a role, particularly until June 30, 2025.
With this in mind, all contributions to the 110 Society made between July 1, 2024 and June 30, 2025 will be eligible to earn IPTAY Priority Points. More information on how this will work will be communicated in the near future, and this is a significant step.
Additionally, an anonymous donor has pledged an initial $3 million contribution to emphasize the IPTAY and 110 Society points program. This incredible generosity is emblematic of the way so many of you have stepped up.
Over the next seven months, before revenue sharing and NIL rules are implemented to stabilize the landscape, it is critical we fully support the efforts of the 110 Society. Your engagement with this organization continues to resonate as our programs look to strive for competitive excellence, and do so in a compliant manner.
Make no mistake - we’re approaching this new landscape competitively - but we’re doing it in a way that holds true to our core principles. Clemson Athletics remains steadfast in its mission to provide a world-class education and a first-class student-athlete experience. We are confident that, with your support, we will continue to thrive and compete at the highest level.
Thank you for your unwavering dedication to Clemson Athletics. Your partnership is invaluable as we shape the future of our programs.
Go Tigers!
Sincerely,
Graham Neff
Director of Athletics
FAQ
What is the House settlement?
The “House settlement” refers to three consolidated federal antitrust class action lawsuits brought against the NCAA and Autonomy Five (A5) conferences which are commonly referred to as the House case. These cases allege that the NCAA’s restrictions on the monetization of name, image, and likeness (NIL) payments prevented student-athletes from realizing their true market value. The claimed damages included lost revenues from NIL, broadcast rights, and video games.
The parties reached a proposed settlement which received preliminary approval from the court on October 7, 2024, with final approval expected to occur in April 2025 and implementation beginning July 1, 2025. This proposed settlement represents a transformational shift in college athletics.
The settlement consists of three major components:
Revenue-Sharing and NIL
Universities would be permitted to directly share revenues with student-athletes in addition to the benefits that already accompany scholarships: tuition, housing, meals, academic awards, health care, etc. The settlement sets a uniform revenue share cap for all A5 schools equal to 22% of the average media, ticket, and sponsorship revenue. For 2025-26 the revenue share cap for each school is approximately $20.5M and will be periodically recalculated. Each individual school can decide how to distribute the revenue share amongst its sports teams and student-athletes. There is no minimum required distribution. The revenue share is associated with the grant of certain NIL rights to the school and does not create an employment relationship between the school and its student-athletes.
The settlement also allows for third-party NIL payments to student-athletes. Those third-party payments must be fair market value payments for a legitimate business purpose and not used for pay-for-play (e.g., merely an inducement to enroll or remain at a particular institution.) Legitimate third-party NIL payments will not count towards the revenue share cap and will be reviewed by an independent clearing house to determine compliance with the fair market value rules. This will be a fundamental shift in the current NIL landscape where there is currently no legitimate purpose / fair market value requirement. These rules are in the process of being written.
Back Damages
The NCAA and A5 conferences would pay approximately $2.8 billion in damages over a ten-year period to certain current and former college student-athletes who did not have the opportunity to earn compensation for their name, image, and likeness (NIL). These payments are expected to reduce each ACC member’s distribution from the conference by approximately $1.5M per year over the ten-year period.
Rosters/Scholarships
The settlement provides for roster limits for all NCAA-sponsored sports. Previously, only select sports had a cap on the number of student-athletes who could participate. In addition to roster limits, there now will be no cap on scholarships up to the roster limit. That is, each institution can decide how many scholarships to award up to the total number of roster spots for each sport.
What does revenue sharing mean for Clemson Athletics moving forward?
Clemson Athletics will distribute the full limit of the revenue share, something not every university may elect to do.
These payments will be in addition to the world-class education available at Clemson and all of the other additional benefits that come from being a Clemson student-athlete.
How will Clemson Athletics continue to invest in scholarships moving forward?
The revenue share distribution will be in addition to the costs of scholarships. The core mission of Clemson Athletics and IPTAY remains unchanged and is critical to the success of our student-athletes and sports teams. We still maintain high academic standards, and expect our student-athletes to graduate, develop as young men and women and compete for championships.
With the deregulation of scholarship limits and the move toward roster limits, we plan to be very aggressive in the provision of scholarships to our student-athletes. We expect to invest in 150 new full scholarship opportunities across all sports in the 2025-26 year at an approximate additional cost of $6 million. These 150 new scholarships are in addition to the 275 scholarships we already provide to student-athletes. This is a major investment in our student-athletes and athletic programs and we are committed to providing more student-athletes with scholarships.
Of course, with greater expense comes a greater need for continued fundraising and philanthropic giving. While you may see reports of certain high-profile student-athletes receiving substantial revenue from NIL, for most student-athletes, the value of the scholarships and services provided through your IPTAY donations exceeds what he or she would otherwise receive. Your continued support remains vital to our success.
What services will Clemson provide its student-athletes?
Clemson is nationally known for the significant resources that it provides to our student-athletes in the areas of competitive excellence, academic support, facilities, mental wellness, recovery, nutrition, brand development, NIL and more. With the recent launch of the world-class Athlete Recovery Center, the Watt Family Performance and Wellness Center opening in 2025, and the creation of the Clemson Athletic Brand Institute, Clemson will continue its place among the nation’s leaders in creating a first-class student-athlete experience.
How will Clemson Athletics structure itself for success moving forward?
The implementation of revenue sharing creates a new paradigm in college athletics along with the evolving perspective of roster management. Clemson is being proactive in preparing for these changes by structuring its staff and adding the required expertise.
At a very macro level, Clemson Athletics’ administration will house a centralized “front office” overseeing contract details, reporting and regulations, allocation strategy, enforcement and compliance, NIL/agency rights and much more. Our front office will be staffed with the expertise needed to maximize our competitiveness in attracting and retaining the very best student-athletes.
Buoyed by this central support, each Clemson Athletics program will act as a spoke from this centralized hub, utilizing their sport specific expertise and personnel to help set revenue-sharing allocations, roster recruiting, contract structures, and more.
Clemson Athletics has always been committed to being good stewards of its resources and efficiently allocating finite means, and that commitment will extend into the strategic allocation of market-driven revenue sharing. We will draw upon expertise from the professional sports ranks, while retaining that uniqueness that makes collegiate athletics so special.
All current staff restructuring (and/or the redefining of roles) as well as any new additions all originate from Clemson’s commitment to being leaders in this new era. Clemson intends to attract, retain and reward the type of world-class student-athletes and staff that have defined this athletic department for generations.
Does this mark the end of the “Name, Image and Likeness” era?
Not the end but a transformational shift in NIL is expected – there will likely be a marked difference in the current state (prior to settlement implementation) and future state post-July 1, 2025, if and when the House settlement takes effect.
Currently, the national platform provided to our student-athletes by Clemson’s success has made name, image and likeness an omnipresent piece of our student-athletes experience. With a settlement-defined requirement that NIL be for a legitimate business purpose at a fair market value, there is further opportunity to provide our student-athletes with the resources needed to enhance and monetize their brand. Legitimate business purpose NIL, coupled with a uniform revenue sharing cap, will bring much-needed stability and a level playing field to the competitive landscape. We believe Clemson will thrive in this new era.
To help our student-athletes further maximize their marketability, we have added the expertise of Everett Sports Marketing (ESM). Headquartered locally in Greenville, this global sports management firm has an established track record of providing branding and marketing consultation while also connecting athletes with corporations and institutions looking to leverage their business interests in the world of sports. ESM’s expertise will be an asset to all our student-athletes and yet another avenue for local, national and multinational businesses to maximize their relationships with Clemson Athletics’ brand ambassadors.
The addition of ESM comes on the heels of our announcement of Clemson Ventures, Clemson Athletics’ new private-sector business structure with full-service marketing and in-house NIL agency abilities.
Additionally, Clemson Athletics and IPTAY remain incredibly appreciative of the support our fans and many businesses continue to provide to 110 Society. Healthy collectives have been a critical piece of the college sports landscape in recent years, and they will continue to play a very significant role during this transitional phase. Clemson student-athletes remain in-demand ambassadors for brands, and 110 Society remains a key part of Clemson’s continued success in helping student-athletes monetize their respective names, images and likenesses.
The dawn of the revenue-sharing era does not mean the dusk of NIL. Instead, it will add much-needed regulation in the NIL space and further legitimize the ever-growing opportunities for our student-athletes in the areas of sponsorships, endorsements and more.
What does this new era mean for IPTAY?
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Clemson Athletics and Clemson University will never waver from their commitment to education, and because of that, IPTAY’s mission to provide resources to Clemson Athletics to furnish its student-athletes with a world-class education and a first-class student-athlete experience is as important as it has ever been in IPTAY’s 90-year history.
IPTAY remains the engine that drives Clemson Athletics’ educational mission in the form of scholarships, in addition to providing resources for facility improvements, student-athlete health and wellness, and much, much more. New roster limits and the addition of 150 new scholarship opportunities across our various programs means there is now more of a need than ever to fund scholarships for our deserving student-athletes. Your continued support of IPTAY is an investment not only in the young people across our 21 varsity sports but also is an investment in Clemson’s continued competitive success.
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What does this mean for Clemson Athletics?
Clemson Athletics, including our coaching staffs, are very optimistic about our ability to compete under the upcoming framework. By providing for a uniform revenue share cap across schools and a requirement that third party NIL be for legitimate business purposes, we foresee greater stability for collegiate athletics. This is, however, an evolution, and we are still likely to see refinement of the framework as the new rules are written and we begin to operate in the post-House world. One thing you can be certain of, we will continue to act in a manner consistent with our Clemson Values and to be aggressive in our pursuit of championships.
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