UCLA Football: Bruins QB to Address Congress Regarding Importance of NIL Deals

UCLA Bruins quarterback to speak at Capitol Hill regarding NIL legislation

UCLA quarterback Chase Griffin will be speaking on Capitol Hill tomorrow to provide testimony regarding the FAIR College Sports Act. The Act is addressing NIL and intends to create a federal legislating body to set and enforce rules for NIL. The arrival of NIL into college athletics has sparked debate across the country, resulting in the proposed FAIR College Sports Act among other legislative ideas.

Griffin, a graduate student studying at UCLA law, is a major proponent of NIL, and especially unrestricted NIL. Prior to his trip to Capitol Hill, several of the points Griffin will be speaking about in opposition to the FAIR College Sports Act were revealed.

These points include that the Act would provide unnecessary regulations for both advertisers and businesses, and hurt opportunities for female college athletes among several others, via Ben Portony of Sport's Business Journal.

Interesting insight from UCLA QB Chase Griffin in his written testimony ahead of tomorrow's NIL hearing on Capitol Hill.

Below is the summary of key points (basically a bullet point version of what Griffin will read into the record tomorrow). pic.twitter.com/WLyUiPB6fJ

— Ben Portnoy (@bportnoy15) January 17, 2024

Griffin has instead advocated for the proposed College Athlete Economic Freedom Act which would prevent these restrictions. Though Griffin has seen limited playing time on the field during his years at UCLA -- he has just 467 career passing yards -- he's emerged into one of the biggest speakers and leaders in favor of NIL. His work has made him named the 2x of the national NIL Male Athlete of the Year by the NIL Summit and Opendorse.

Griffin himself has benefitted from NIL -- which he believes can and should be used both to benefit athletes and help others. Griffin has accumulated 40.2k followers on Instagram, 33.3k followers on X, and over 16.7k followers on LinkedIn, which has allowed him to partner with companies like Chase Bank. He also utilizes this platform to promote #NILforGood, which he himself has followed through on by working with the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. Griffin is far from the only athlete leveraging their NIL for good, Texas quarterback Arch Manning has done similarly by donating to a nonprofit hospital.

Regardless of if Griffin's testimony helps keep the bill from passing, this discussion along with plenty of other upcoming legislation will have huge implication for the future of college athletes.