New Incentivization for Missouri High School Athletes to Continue to Play at Home

The Mizzou Model has proven to pay dividends as Missouri high school athletes gain new opportunities if they intend to go to a public, in-state university.

Sep 21, 2024; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers quarterback Brady Cook (12) throws a pass against Vanderbilt Commodores linebacker Bryan Longwell (4) during the first half at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

With last year's history of recruiting potential top NFL draft, receiver Luther Burden III, attracting blue-chip athletes into the transfer portal, and signing one of the best defensive prospects in high school, Williams Nwaneri, sets are high with the legislative initiative under the Mizzou Model has skyrocketed business proposals and player expectations. 

Missouri quarterback, Brady Cook, has received $1.2 million from NIL (Name, Image, Likeness). More than $1.7 billion has been funneled into earnings for athletes under NIL. Yet, 80% of that money is via collectives which are from boosters. Cook explains that he learned more about the intricacies of business this year which has allowed his portfolio to flourish. 

With the assistance of the state legislature, the University of Missouri has created a track for student-athletes to get paid. Thanks to state representative Kurtis Gregory who assisted in the process of this new law, he is not only aware of the harsh realities of NIL but understands NIL’s wide door of possibilities for the development of players as a former athlete himself. The state of Missouri has granted the University to establish a marketing agency including its funding. The marketing agency, known as Every True Tiger, allocates money to players. 

Furthermore, this new law allows high school in-state athletes to profit from endorsement deals on the conditional basis that they intend to attend a public university in Missouri. This new program allows students to receive all NIL benefits because the deal bans the NCAA from scrutinizing players’ purported deals. 

Head Coach Eliah Drinkwitz reflects on the elite players recruited as a consequence of the competitive edge that NIL has revived. Drinkwitz says, “I would just say that we embraced new realities of college football and understood that it could be a competitive advantage for us to be aggressive in that space. It absolutely has contributed to our success.” 

It is this new athletic arena where the ethos, combined with the inducements create a framework for team success. The way Coaches now speak to recruits is more incentivized around the price tag. Team building activities such as locker rooms, training facilities, and fields have practically replaced any other cost. Players such as Obi Ezeigbo did not cost the team any money they didn’t have, consequently affording him a place on Oklahoma State’s roster.

The state law and agency ensure that Drinkwitz will hold his word. In addition to the personality match of a player-coach relationship, there is a newfound business negotiation in the relationship. Cook reminds us that the currency in football depends on if you win, you make money.