Iowa won’t release NIL Data; said releasing data would hurt recruitment for Hawkeyes

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) - The University of Iowa won’t release how much money its’ players or athletic programs make when businesses use an athlete’s name, image, or likeness to sell a product after requests from our KCRG-TV9 i9 Investigative Team.

Many experts have had concerns that “NIL Deals” will create and deepen disparities in college athletics. But, without the data, it is impossible to understand exactly how much athletes are being paid, what sports earn more money, and if there is a disparity between Women’s and Men’s athletics.

Nathan Levin, who is a lawyer for the University of Iowa, said in an email the information, even without the names of athletes is protected due to privacy laws like FERPA. He also said the information is protected under Iowa law because it is a report to government agencies that would give an advantage to competitors.

“If recruits or other universities were given access to this data, it would place the University of Iowa at a competitive disadvantage, especially in this current state of NIL uncertainty that is not being regulated by the NCAA.”

Scott Dochterman, who is a reporter with The Athletic, said the only school to release data related to NIL was Ohio State. He said other schools could use those numbers, if released, against Iowa during recruitment.

Jordan Bohannon, who is a former Point Guard for the Iowa Hawkeyes, said he said schools might not release NIL data because it is inaccurate or potentially embarrassing. He said how much money an athlete can make in NIL deals has become one of the biggest concerns for recruits today and Iowa hasn’t been as proactive when it comes to helping its players make money.

“The lack of effort they have put in beforehand kind of damaged this upcoming recruiting season, not only for basketball,” Bohannon said. “But, ya know, football, just go down the line of sports that players have the ability to make good money from.”

Dochterman said Iowa is falling behind in the NIL race because Iowa hasn’t announced an effort, like a collective. He also said the potential to make more money at a larger school has made it harder for smaller schools to keep athletes.

A record number of athletes are in the transfer portal in both football and basketball this year. Two of those college-level athletes in the portal, Noah Carter and AJ Green, are top players at the University of Northern Iowa.

David Harris, who is the Athletic Director for the University of Northern Iowa, said smaller schools have always faced a disadvantage when trying to keep successful players. He said he doesn’t know how the influence of potential NIL Deals affects an athlete’s decision to move to a larger school.

“I think it’s easy to draw the line between NIL and the transfer portal and I am sure there is some correlation between the two,” he said. “But I think there are any number of factors.”

Copyright 2022 KCRG. All rights reserved.