Posted on 07/15/2017 2:51:19 AM PDT by buckalfa
Former Ohio State consensus All-American linebacker and current FOX Sports college football analyst Chris Spielman filed a class action lawsuit Friday against the university to block the usage of player images for promotional purposes.
The suit alleges unfair usage images for financial gain. It also names Nike, Honda, and the IMG Sports Radio Network.
“I personally do not have a financial interest in the outcome of the banner program as my share in any recovery will be donated directly to the athletic department of The Ohio State University," Spielman said in a statement.
“My concern is about the exploitation of all former players across this nation who do not have the platform to stand up for themselves while universities and corporations benefit financially by selling their name and likenesses without their individual consent.
“My hope is that this litigation will level the playing field for those affected players, and that they too can benefit from the dollars flowing into collegiate athletics.”
During an appearance on 610 WTVN in Columbus, Spielman clarified his position: “Ohio State is more than welcome to use my name and image in any way they want to use it. The problem is when they slap a corporate sponsor on it.
"What I’m actually doing is what I learned at Ohio State. To stand up for the right thing and those who may not be able to do so.”
Archie Griffin, who is not named in the suit, says he is in "full support" of former athletes receiving compensation from corporations and universities.
"Although I am not the named Plaintiff in the class action litigation, I am in full support of the right of former athletes to receive compensation from corporations and universities who benefit from the unauthorized use of players names and likenesses.
"There is no greater supporter of collegiate athletics than me, and I will be forever grateful for the opportunities provided to me as a former student athlete. However, the recent landscape of collegiate athletics has changed, and these institutions and corporations have a duty to treat all former athletes fairly.
"As long as the players and universities partner together, this will be a 'win-win' situation for all."
Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith issued a statement late Friday afternoon:
“We immensely value our relationships with all of our former student athletes. Ohio State is aware of the lawsuit that Chris Spielman has filed, and we are in the process of reviewing it.”
With millions of dollars in TV and corporate sponsorships being poured into college sports, why shouldn't athletes profit from their labor? After all, profit is supposed to be part of the American way.
Ohio PING!!!
Article and comments
Thanks, buckalfa
Professional sports do not belong at college. It distorts campus life which should be focused on learning and the mind. Send the athletes to sports camp instead of college - let the pros pay for it.
It is past time to end athletic scholarships and return all college sports to a club basis. If the alums don’t want to go watch games played on that basis, they can find somewhere else to tailgate. Let the NFL and its paymasters (the tv networks) develop their own farm systems on whatever basis works for them.
Those “student athletes” are just cogs in a huge money making enterprise. Often at the end of their careers they have received very little real education. have no money, and are often maimed for life. The universities make huge amounts of money and pay generous salaries to the coaches and administrators who keep the programs churning the bucks. These “student athletes” should be compensated. The era of true amateur athletes at that level is a useful fiction that enriches people other than those that perform.
Minor League Pro Football, here we come.
By the way, since we are discussing compensation to college football players, how about we also pay high school players as well?
How soon before the women athletes sue under Title IX to be paid too? How much would the women’s volleyball team need to be paid to equal the eighty player football team?
agree...Bosworth had it right with his t-shirt some 30 years ago:
National
Communists
Against
Athletes
He’s got a point. I assumed that those graduates used in ads have given permission.
ROFLOL!!!!
“why shouldn’t athletes profit from their labor?”
Tuition and fees at OSU are north of $40K. At some schools it’s north of $50K. All of that is waived in exchange for playing football. How exactly are they being underpaid?
You're standing next to the barn. That speck in the horizon is the horse.
Agreed. And but for baseball, I don’t give a hoot for the pros.
How does a guy who’s screen name is an Ohio State fight song NOT get pinged on this thread?
You have been added to the Ohio Ping list!
I'm waiting for the first class action suit against Pabst Blue Ribbon for the recovery of student loan funds.
EXACTLY
Hopefully he included Gene Smith the corrupt OSU Athletic Director who gets away with anything and everything -
You got a free college education out of it (whether or not you chose to take advantage of it, is a whole other issue).
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