Arkansas's Rodney Hill Explains How NIL Forced Transfer from Florida State

Arkansas Razorbacks running back Rodney Hill provides a cautionary tale for players in the current world of NIL deals.

Sep 16, 2023; Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA; Boston College Eagles linebacker Kam Arnold (5) tackles Florida State Seminoles running back Rodney Hill (29) during the first half at Alumni Stadium. / Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports

A lot of good has been done for collegiate sports with the introduction of NIL deals. Athletes are now able to make money off of their name, image and likeness, getting a piece of the pie that institutions have for so long benefited from without including the most important part; the players.

However, for all the positive that has come out of these deals, there are some horror stories that have developed. It isn’t always as easy as a player receiving payment, as running back Rodney Hill found out the hard way.

Hill’s story is a cautionary tale for other athletes to keep in mind. A three-star recruit coming out of high school who started his career at Florida State, his collegiate career was turned on its head because of NIL dealings gone wrong.

Last week, Hill opened up about the path he has been on that landed him with the Arkansas Razorbacks. It includes two stints at Florida A&M and a quick stop at Miami (FL) after making the difficult, but necessary decision to leave the Seminoles.

As a second-year freshman, Hill was the No. 3 running back for Florida State and their kick returner. However, he was forced to leave the program after an agent that his parents hired was doing some backdoor dealing, shopping for NIL deals.

“Not many people know, but my parents were running my money and stuff like that,” Hill said. “My parents got a bad agent, and he was texting other schools like he was me, so when that got back to the head coach, I had to leave Florida State.”

On3 revealed from a source at Florida State that Hill’s parents were being sold a bill of goods when it came to the value their son had if he entered the transfer portal. An effort was made by the Seminoles to keep him in the fold.

It seemed that both parties were on the road to reconciliation. However, the NIL agent reached out to a Big 10 school, who contacted Florida State and the goodwill disappeared.

“During that time when I had to leave, I wasn’t trying to leave, I didn’t want to leave, so I just had to and the portal was closing up,” Hill said. “Florida A&M was next door, so I just had to go there for a month, find a new place.”

Hill left Florida State last December and committed to Florida A&M. He de-committed after head coach Willie Simmons accepted an assistant job at Duke.

In January, he was committed to the Hurricanes before re-joining the Rattlers. Hill attended class and worked out with the team, but was back in the transfer portal in April.

He is now part of the Razorbacks family and is expected to contribute to them this season. Hill was lucky to land in such a fortunate situation, as not every player is as lucky to find a home with an SEC team after that kind of ordeal.

Now represented by Joe Hernandez of Just Win Management, Hill wants young athletes to hear his story, hoping they can avoid some of the same obstacles that he had to endure.

“I know it’s your parents and stuff like that, but sometimes you’ve got to handle it on your own,” Hill said. “Sometimes, like with my parents, I know they were trying to do the best thing for me, but sometimes you’ve got to take that on your own and got to do it yourself. But to other kids, I’d just say you don’t have to get an agent right now. Just wait.”