The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) announced that it has struck down a bill that would have allowed high school athletes to financially benefit from their name, image, and likeness.
The proposal, which would have allowed student-athletes to ink deals with companies as long as their schools, teams, and OHSAA logos were not included in the endorsement, failed after weeks of debate and testimony from school officials throughout Ohio.
Ohio high school football players take part in a tackling drill (Getty Images)
“Voting to change the bylaw started on May 1. In total, 817 Ohio high school principals each had one vote in the matter and 409 votes were required to change OHSAA bylaws,” 10TV in Columbus, Ohio, reported. “Ultimately, the proposal failed 538 to 254.”
OHSAA Executive Director Doug Ute made it plain that if NIL were to enter into play in Ohio high school sports, the schools would have to be the driving force behind it.
“If NIL is going to enter the Ohio interscholastic landscape, we want the schools to be the ones to make that determination,” Ute said in a release. “Whatever we do moving forward, it will include discussion on this issue with our school administrators, Board of Directors, staff and leaders of other state high school athletic associations.”
NCAA athletes have been allowed to partake in NIL deals governed by the laws in the states in which they reside since 2021. Though, several former collegiate athletes and current coaches, such as Alabama’s Nick Saban, have begun speaking out about the need to reform the process and prevent athletes from being poached by affluent programs with the ability to offer more lucrative NIL packages.
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