Florida Gators: Ron DeSantis signs law to save UF from any more Rashada situations

Sep 3, 2022; Gainesville, Florida, USA; a general view of fans at the The Swamp during the second half between the Florida Gators and Utah Utes at Steve Spurrier-Florida Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 3, 2022; Gainesville, Florida, USA; a general view of fans at the The Swamp during the second half between the Florida Gators and Utah Utes at Steve Spurrier-Florida Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Florida Gators have been in the news recently for NIL mishaps and disasters. We don’t need to get into that anymore, we all know about it.

The good news is that we likely won’t see any problems of that magnitude happen again in the state of Florida.

Today, Governor Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 7B, which will change the NIL landscape in the state of Florida, and make it easier for coaches and players to navigate NIL deals during their recruiting process and during their time with the program.

These changes will simplify the NIL process, and ensure that a situation like Jaden Rashada’s doesn’t happen again.

Florida Gators: What changes were made?

The biggest change moving forward is that coaches and staff within the athletic department can now assist with NIL deals. For instance, if they know of a company looking for NIL partnerships, they can communicate with athletes and try to help facilitate an agreement.

That seems minute but was previously illegal under the laws that were in place. With coaches now allowed to be at the table during discussions, there will be more transparency and less of a chance for confusion and disagreements during negotiations/signing.

Another change is that NIL deals are no longer required to be disclosed publically. If this rule was in place during the Rashada sage, UF would have ducked a lot of smoke from the public. $13 million dollars catches a lot of eyes in the news, but going forward that number would not have to be public information.

More changes include allowing players to sign deals with sponsors/companies that conflict with deals that your team has in place. For example, a Florida player can now sign a deal with Nike or Adidas, even though the school has a partnership with Jordan.

In addition, NIL deals no longer need to correspond with “market value”, and agents that represent players in the state of Florida must be registered with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation.

Keep up with the Florida Gators at Hail Florida Hail.